Rosa Klöser: Dutch Threat at Gravel World Championships
## Klöser Eyes Rainbow Jersey at Gravel Worlds, Warns of Dutch Tactics
Pauline Ferrand-prévot (ondacrypto) is a seasoned competitor when it comes to gravel racing, having reached the podium 22 times in the last three years, including a victory at the Unbound Gravel 200.
This year, she aims for her first podium finish at the UCI Gravel World Championships in Maastricht, Netherlands, and hopes to claim the rainbow jersey. She’s in strong form,boasting seven wins in nine gravel races. However, a notable challenge awaits: a large and potentially tactical team from the Netherlands.
Klöser expressed concern about the UCI’s lack of restrictions on national team size, stating, “The current way the UCI handles the world Championships, you do not really have a restriction on the amount of participants per nation. There’s a lot of Dutch and Belgian riders. I need to be really cautious and aware of what the Dutch and Belgian people do.” She specifically warned about the potential for Dutch riders to sacrifice themselves for a teammate, recalling last year’s race where Marianne Vos won, aided by a large Dutch contingent. “If you have like 30 Dutch people sitting back,and one Dutch person rides away,and it’s a person with potential to win,nobody will do anything. That’s basically what happened last year. So yeah, don’t let the Dutchie go! I guess that’s the story.”
Last year’s race saw Vos (Netherlands) win, with Germany’s Romy Kasper finishing 5th and Klöser 21st. Eleven other Dutch riders also placed within the top 25.
Klöser believes the course suits her strengths. “I think it’s a course [Worlds] that I really like a lot because it plays into my strengths. It’s a lot of cumulative climbing that might not seem as hard on paper, but over time, really, really adds up. You have to be a really powerful kind of rouleur, a type of rider who can push hard all day, and maybe also know how to race strategically.”
The German champion has been successful in UCI Gravel World Series events this summer, winning Teanress Arravels Luxembourg and Hegau Gravel, both characterized by significant elevation gain despite shorter distances. This preparation comes after a grueling 10+ hour race at Unbound.