Annemiek van Vleuten to ride Gravel World Championships

Just weeks after officially ending her illustrious road racing career, Annemiek van Vleuten has confirmed that she will be lining up for the upcoming Gravel World Championships in Veneto on October 7.

The 40-year-old finished her final road race at the Simac Ladies Tour earlier this month, but will already be pinning a number on at next month’s gravel event, she confirmed to Dutch publication AD’s podcast In Het Wiel.

“In a crazy mood I said 'yes' to that,” Van Vleuten told In Het Wiel. “The team [Movistar] liked it, the sponsors liked it and I also found it fun to participate.”

Despite hinting in a pre-retirement interview that she might take up some gravel racing - a popular path among retired road pros these days - she said this wasn’t the start of a career in off-road.

“I have no ambitions in a gravel career, so I think I will end it here,” she said.

Read more: Annemiek van Vleuten: I can leave the sport proud

In fact, it seems that even her ambitions for Veneto are very humble, and more of a chance to enjoy a race in Italy with her Movistar team rather than a serious goal.

“I'm not prepared for it and I'm not going to train for it. I'm going to participate and have a nice photo with Alejandro Valverde,” she said, referring to her Movistar teammate who has made a more serious move towards gravel after his own retirement last winter.

Though the official start list has not been confirmed, a few other big names from the road are expected to be lining up for the women’s race. Lorena Wiebes is expected to be among them, after racing a number of off-road and UCI Gravel World Series events throughout 2022. Her SD Worx teammate Demi Vollering also confirmed to WielerFlits after the European Championships that she will be racing in Veneto.

Marianne Vos has ridden - and won - some gravel this season but is currently out after undergoing iliac artery surgery, but the Dutch may select another road racer in the form of Pauliena Rooijakkers, who has won two rounds of the World Series.

In the men’s race, Wout van Aert is expected to be the biggest road star heading off-road in Veneto, taking on a mixture of current and retired road pros, as well as the gravel specialists.

Defending World Champion Pauline Ferrand-Prévot is unlikely to reclaim her title, heading to the final two UCI Mountain Bike World Cups in North America instead, whilst 2022 men’s champion Gianni Vermeersch is an unknown after riding little gravel this season.