Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Canyon//SRAM): “I woke up believing that this was the day”

April 17 ^th 2024 - 19:15

This victory means a lot to me. I really hope that with this victory I have inspired a lot of people who are pursuing their dreams to keep going. I’ve failed a lot of times, with many near-misses, and never stopped believing. Reward is always there, waiting for us.

The race was super brutal. As we started, it started raining so hard and temperatures became very low. I knew it was my day, I just felt it, and the weather conditions got on my side because I always benefit from hard races like this. As a team, we always keep a positive atmosphere even when shaking from the cold. My teammates were amazing, taking care of me and bringing me to the front every time I needed it.

I was happy to see Demi [Vollering] taking the responsibility to pace the climb. I knew that last year she cracked me, but I was well prepared to counter and cope better with her rhythm as I simulated this kind of racing in training, with the help of my coach. That helped me being confident into the final. Then of course you never know what can happen on the race - but I woke up believing that this was the day.

To be honest, I had planned not to celebrate even if was clear with 100 meters to go after what happened to Lorena Wiebes at Amstel Gold Race. I didn’t want to waste any energy looking around. I just wanted to give my best.

Liège-Bastogne-Liège? As of now, I just want to enjoy what just happened. After five years without winning a road race, this victory is everything there is my mind now.