The convoy leaves a trail of dust(Image credit: Luc ClaessenGetty Images)
The race takes on the undulating terrain of Tuscany(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Steep inclines bring the favourites to the fore(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Movistar looked to tee up Van Vleuten(Image credit: Luc ClaessenGetty Images)
Strade Bianche women 2022(Image credit: Luc ClaessenGetty Images)
The bunch reduces on the gravel(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
SD Worx had plenty of riders to put pressure on the front, this time it was Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio(Image credit: Luc ClaessenGetty Images)
The race is on(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx) was out the front more than once, delivering an aggressive race(Image credit: Luc ClaessenGetty Images)
Kopecky on the march(Image credit: Sprint Cycling Agency)
Kopecky anticipated and stole a march on the toughest sector(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Kopecky is away(Image credit: Getty Images)
Kopecky then settled into what was now a select lead group(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar), Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM), Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx), Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma) Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope) Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (SD Worx) in the key break out the frontout the front(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Van Vleuten with one of many big accelerations(Image credit: Sprint Cycling Agency)
The select lead group(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Van Vleuten forces the issue(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Annemiek van Vleuten and Kopecky out the front and while they were pulled back by the lead group before the climb, ultimately the duo came back together again at the top(Image credit: Sprint Cycling Agency)
It was a duel all the way up the final climb between Kopecky and Van Vleuten but Kopecky got the lead on the crucial final corner(Image credit: Getty Images)
Victory for the Belgian champion ahead of two-time winner van Vleuten(Image credit: Sprint Cycling Agency)
The effort is evident(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Celebrations for the winning team(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Exhaustion for the rest(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Fifth for Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope) again, repeating her 2021 and 2019 placing(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Kopecky first, Van Vleuten second and Moolman-Pasio third(Image credit: Getty Images)
Second place for two-time winner Van Vleuten(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Cheers for the SD Worx podium teammates(Image credit: Getty Images)
The winner(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Celebrations for Kopecky after a storming ride(Image credit: Getty Images)
Strade Bianche the youngest of the Classics but already one of the most prestigious, and arguably the most photogenic.
Whether bathed in sunshine or drenched in rain, the gravel roads in the rolling Tuscan hills never fail to catch the eye and take the breath away.
And that's before the stunning final kilometre in Siena's old town, with the hike up the super-steep Via Santa Caterina and the drop into the bowl of the Piazza del Campo.
The scenery is one thing; the toll on the riders is another. Although just 184km in length, the undulating gravel tracks and the 3000 metres of elevation gain make for a brutal day in the saddle, and it's all apparent on the faces and bodies of the riders.
The photographers we work with were once again capturing all the action throughout Saturday's men's and women's races, and we've compiled the most spectacular shots.
Click or swipe through the gallery above to re-live the 2022 Strade Bianche.
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