After starting the 2016 season as the dominant force in women’s cycling, Boels-Dolmans have had a quieter start to 2017. The ladies in orange have amassed less than half the number of wins as they had at this point last year, but that’s not to say that they haven’t enjoyed a significant degree of success. In fact, despite not winning every race they have started, as they did last year, the team have hoarded more wins than anyone else, just. They have this week achieved the feat of securing the top two podium spots in back-to-back Ardennes Classics with Anna van der Breggen, the Olympic and European Champion, and Lizzie Deignan.
Breeding Champions
Four out of eleven of the team’s riders have traded the team’s orange livery for national, European or world champion’s jerseys. Boels-Dolmans have managed to double-up on World Championship titles, first winning with Lizzie Deignan in 2015, then seeing the surprise package of Amalie Dideriksen sprint to victory in Doha last October. Then there’s Anna van der Breggen, Megan Guarnier and Christine Majerus in the European, American and Luxembourg jerseys respectively.
With such a strong team, there’s not masses of room for the very young talent that we see coming through other teams. However, Dideriksen is testament to the development that is possible in such a high tempo environment. Their newest signing is 21-year-old Dutch rider Jip Van Den Bos who will hope to learn from competing at this incredibly high level, in the world’s best women’s cycling team.
Multi-Disciplinarians
There are a handful of professionals in the road ranks who like to play in the mud in the winter months, but none quite so seriously as it seems possible in the women’s peloton. Both Nikki Brammeier and Christine Majerus excel in all twelve months of the year. Brammeier, née Harris, is the current British national Cyclo-Cross Champion, while Majerus has this year renewed her status as Luxembourg Cyclocross Champ for the eighth year running.
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Winning as a Team
It has always been clear that the Boels Dolmans squad is built of incredibly strong individuals and besides their own solo wins, they’re a team who win together as well. As individuals, Boels Dolmans scooped dozens of victories, and they came together to take the team time trial title at the World Championships in Doha in 2016 – topping the UCI team rankings in the process.
Specialized
Specialized have been a partner of Boels-Dolmans since 2014, equipping the world’s best women’s cyclists with the very best in kit and equipment. The S-Works Amira is the bike of choice for most of the races, with the Ruby occasionally employed for races on broken roads, i.e. cobbles.
Proven as World Championship winning machines, it’s clear you can’t get much better than the Amira in women’s cycling.
S-Works Amira eTap
Equipped with SRAM eTap like the Boels-Dolmans team bikes, this model swaps the team’s Zipp wheels for Roval CLX 40 carbon rims wrapped in Turbo cotton tyres.
Specialized Amira Sport
Manufactured from FACT 9r carbon, the Sport model makes little compromise despite the more friendly price tag. Riding on Axis Elite wheels wearing Espoir Elite tyres, the Apira Sport is equipped with Shimano 105 gearing.
Keep an eye out for the striking orange of Boels Dolmans, and indeed the rainbow bands, for the remainder of the season. Few would bet against them having another sensational year.
(Photo: Davy Rietbergen/Cor Vos © 2017)
