Opinion: As Annemiek van Vleuten rode away, she raised the bar and made every one of her rivals better riders

Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar Team) is the rider of a generation. Over a relatively short time — say, the last six years — she has proved that to us time and time again. She has produced more memorable performances than perhaps any female rider ever.

Her smash and grab at La Course in 2018 and her Worlds win in Harrogate in 2019 are the two that most readily spring to mind, but there are countless others. Ad/> The world did not need to see such a display of dominance today for Van Vleuten’s Hall of Fame status to be secure. The stomach bug she fell victim to at the start of the Tour de France Femmes would have seen off most.

Had she merely won from a select group, or even not won at all, we would have been no less impressed with her for sticking it out, no more inclined to view her as mortal. Tour de France FemmesShould teams regret not taking advantage of Van Vleuten mechanical?AN HOUR AGO As it was, her twinkle having returned, she put on a show. The manner of her victory served to underline the widespread belief that she is in a league above every other rider in the Women’s WorldTour.

Unbeatable, on her day. An argument could be made that the sport would be better off — or at least more competitive — without a rider so much better than all the others. In the alternative universe, maybe Demi Vollering (SD Worx) would be the first rider on the road, fending off a cooperative collective containing Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon–SRAM), Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (FDJ Suez Futuroscope) and the other young talents.