5 conclusions from the 2022 Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta

The final podium at 2022 Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta
The final podium at 2022 Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta (Image credit: Sprint Cycling Agency)

The summer of stage racing concluded on Sunday with the Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta, which this year expanded to five stages and its toughest edition yet. Starting with a team time trial, the race took in climbing stages, punchy stages, a long 160km day out and a Madrid circuit sprint for a varied five days of racing. After a huge effort on the Queen stage, Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar) took overall victory, the latest addition to her long list of achievements.

Whether it was an important target or not, Van Vleuten’s victory sees her complete the so-called Giro-Tour-Vuelta triple in the first year it was possible. Packing the three races into just three months has made for an intense summer, and to win them all is an undeniably impressive achievement. With Van Vleuten hailed as a once-in-a-generation talent, it may be the first and only time we see a rider take home pink, yellow and red in one season. 

Matilda Price is a freelance cycling journalist and digital producer based in the UK. She is a graduate of modern languages, and recently completed an MA in sports journalism, during which she wrote her dissertation on the lives of young cyclists. Matilda began covering cycling in 2016 whilst still at university, working mainly in the British domestic scene at first. Since then, she has covered everything from the Tour Series to the Tour de France. These days, Matilda focuses most of her attention on the women’s sport, writing for Cyclingnews and working on women’s cycling show The Bunnyhop. As well as the Women’s WorldTour, Matilda loves following cyclo-cross and is a recent convert to downhill mountain biking.