'I'm trying to become a better climber' - Kristen Faulkner back in action at Ardennes Classics

Results don't always tell the story of a pro cyclist. To date, Kristen Faulkner's name has only been among the top 20 finishers, and not on the podium, at Amstel Gold Race, Brabantse Pijl and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. 

She's gone from a dependable worker for other teammates in the past to a role as a smart, strong contender, now a double Olympic champion and multiple stage winner at Grand Tours.

The trio of Ardennes Classics are where the reigning US road champion will compete after two-and-a-half weeks away at a team altitude camp. The stiff, shorter climbs across the Ardennes are most appealing for Faulkner's return to racing, which serve as appetisers for the first main course of her early season, La Vuelta España Femenina. 

"I’m trying to become a better climber, and I think the Ardennes are a really good chance for me to practice those tough, shorter climbs, which is the climbing that I really like," Faulkner said just before her 2025 season start at Milan-San Remo.

The set of one-day contests serves as Faulkner's lead to the Vuelta, which is similar to two years ago, where she was 19th in both Brabantse and Amstel Gold. But 2025 has not been 'normal', as the 32-year-old took several months to recover from a concussion sustained in a December training ride and looked for good form to transpire across one-day Spring Classics.

"I love the really hard one-day races. And so I find that's where I tend to shine. The fatigue is tangible by the end, you know, it's visible. And I love racing in those conditions," she told Cyclingnews after Milan-San Remo about the Ardennes Classics on her calendar.

"What I like about the races is you have to be a really versatile rider, and you also have to have good fitness. Those are things that I find quite exciting about those races.

"They're also quite unpredictable. For example, at Liège, you have to be a good climber, but then it comes down to, likely, a bunch sprint or a solo attack or something; it's a flat finish. I think Amstel is similar where you have this climb before [the finish], but then it's actually a bit of a false flat at the top."

The first up is De Brabantse Pijl on Friday, with a relentless day of punch climbs and finish circuits in Overijse. Faulkner will ride alongside Alison Jackson, fifth at Paris-Roubaix last Saturday, Kim Cadzow, Henrietta Christie, Magdeleine Vallieres and US compatriot Veronica Ewers.

"Like I said, I'm not in full form. I think if I were in full form and healthy, I am confident that I could do a very good result at those races. I have been in a support role in the past many times."

Last year at the Liège stage of the Tour de France Femmes, Faulkner placed 11th, followed by a fourth-place the next day on stage 5 from Bastogne. Even with time back in the peloton this weekend leading up to the one-day Liège contest, she was focused more on the road ahead in May. 

"At a normal year, I would love to win Liège. I love Liège. I like the length of climbs. You have some climbs in there that are just really, really hard, and it weeds out riders who are on top form and those who aren't.

"You know, my form will come when it comes. And the only thing I can do is focus on the process between now and then."

Second half of the season not far away

Not on her calendar is La Flèche Wallonne, which falls mid-week between Amstel Gold Race and Liège. When she spoke to Cyclingnews at the start of a training camp, Faulkner said she was "a bit heavier" than in past seasons due to the late start of her season, to recover from an off-season concussion, and noted the signature climb of Mur de Huy was "a little too steep for me right now".

"I have a very healthy relationship with food. I don't want that to change," she said with a small laugh, noting she filled much of her time in the winter with cooking healthy food and baking. 

"Where my fitness is, where my weight is, it's not something to rush. It has a timeline, and I can't push the timeline. We'll just see where we're at when those races come."

Faulkner said after the Vuelta she planned to return to the US at the end of May to defend her US Pro road championships, and would make the second half of the year a priority. 

"The Vuelta, it's the first big stage race of the year. We won two stages last year as a team. I won one of the stages and placed second on another stage. So I think it's a race for me. [US Pro Championships] that's another big goal of mine this year. I love wearing the stars-and-stripes, so if I can keep wearing them, then I'd be happy.

"I'm really kind of hoping to have a strong second half of the season this year, as opposed to the first half. I'd like to do well at the Tour of Britain. That's a big goal of mine. I'd like to win a stage at the Tour of France. And I'd like to get on the podium and the time trial at the World Championship."

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