Milan–San Remo Women
{{Short description|Women's professional road bicycle race}}
{{Infobox cycling race
| name = Milano–San Remo Donne
| current_event =2025 Milan–San Remo Women
| image =File:Milan–San Remo Women logo.png
| image_caption =
| date =March
| english =Milan–San Remo Women
| localnames =
| nickname =Primavera Rosa
Classicissima
| discipline = Road
| competition = UCI Women's Road World Cup (1999–2005)
UCI Women's World Tour (2025–)
| type = One-day race
| organiser = RCS Sport
| director =Giusy Virelli
| first = {{start date|1999}}
| number = 8
| final =
| firstwinner = {{flagathlete|{{Ill|Sara Felloni|lt=Sara Felloni|it|Sara Felloni}}|ITA}}
| mostwins = {{flagathlete|Zoulfia Zabirova|RUS}} (2)
| mostrecent = {{flagathlete|Lorena Wiebes|NED}}
|website=https://www.milanosanremo.it/}}
Milan–San Remo Women, officially the Milano–San Remo Donne, is an elite women's professional one-day road bicycle race, held annually in March. It is part of the UCI Women's World Tour. The equivalent men's race is a cycling monument, considered to be one of the most prestigious one-day events in cycling. The race is held on the same day as the men's race, over a shorter distance but with an identical finish in Sanremo.
The race was first held in 1999 as Primavera Rosa as part of the UCI Women's Road World Cup, running for 7 editions before it was cancelled prior to the 2006 edition. In the 2020s, organisers discussed the potential of a women's race, with the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) announcing in 2024 that the race would join the 2025 UCI Women's World Tour.
History
Milan–San Remo is one of cycling's oldest races (being first held in 1907), and considered to be one of the most prestigious one-day events in cycling. Held in early March, the race is the longest professional one-day race on the men's calendar, with a distance just under {{Convert|300|km|mi}}. The men's race is considered a "sprinters classic" because of its mainly flat course (although the Poggio climb close to the finish has often been an opportunity for puncheurs and rouleurs).{{Cite web |date=2025-03-19 |title=Preview: Your guide to the first women's Milan-San Remo in 20 years |url=https://escapecollective.com/preview-your-guide-to-the-first-womens-milan-san-remo-in-20-years/ |access-date=2025-03-19 |website=Escape Collective |language=en}}
= Primavera Rosa =
In the late 1990s, the UCI requested that RCS Sport – the organisers of the men's race – hold a women's edition of Milan–San Remo.{{Cite podcast |url=https://audioboom.com/posts/8668720-a-good-return |title=Series 13 Episode 18: A Good Return |website=Cycling Podcast Féminin |host=Rose Manley |date=14 March 2025 |access-date=19 March 2025 |time=34:00-44:00}} In 1999, the first edition of the race was held under the name Primavera Rosa, part of the UCI Women's Road World Cup. It was the first cycling monument to hold a women's edition. The route was around {{Convert|120|km|mi}} in length, with the start not in Milan, but in Varazze – but an identical finish in Sanremo, including the Cipressa and Poggio climbs.{{Cite web |last=Maloney |first=Tim |date=20 March 2004 |title=Zabirova zaps competition for 2nd consecutive Primavera Rosa win |url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2004/worldcup04/primaverarosa04/?id=results |access-date=2024-11-28 |website=Cycling News}}
7 editions of the race were held between 1999 and 2005. Despite the men's race being considered a "sprinters classic", 4 editions were won by a solo rider in a breakaway. Russian Zoulfia Zabirova was the only rider to win the race twice, in 2003 and 2004.
In January 2006, it was announced that the race had been cancelled, and the 2006 edition would not be held.{{cite news |last=Westemeyer |first=Susan |date=26 January 2006 |title=Women's Milan-San Remo cancelled |url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/editions/first-edition-cycling-news-for-january-26-2006 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121008041846/http://www.cyclingnews.com/editions/first-edition-cycling-news-for-january-26-2006 |archivedate=8 October 2012 |accessdate=12 May 2011 |work=cyclingnews.com}} Organisers noted the lack of financial interest in women's cycling, as well as the disruption caused by extended road closures as both men's and women's races were held on the same day.{{Cite podcast |url=https://audioboom.com/posts/8668720-a-good-return |title=Series 13 Episode 18: A Good Return |website=Cycling Podcast Féminin |host=Rose Manley |date=14 March 2025 |access-date=19 March 2025 |time=41:30-42:16}}
= Milano–San Remo Donne =
In the late 2010s and early 2020s, major classic cycling races began staging women's editions – such as Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes (first held in 2017) and Paris–Roubaix Femmes (first held in 2021).{{cite web |date=21 February 2017 |title=New-look route for Liege-Bastogne-Liege as debut women's parcours unveiled |url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/new-look-route-for-liege-bastogne-liege-as-debut-womens-parcours-unveiled/ |access-date=18 April 2017 |website=cyclingnews.com |publisher=Immediate Media Company}}{{Cite web |date=2021-10-02 |title=Lizzie Deignan masters cobbles for glory in first staging of Paris-Roubaix Femmes |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/oct/02/lizzie-deignan-triumphs-in-first-staging-of-paris-roubaix-femmes-cycling |access-date=2022-02-22 |website=the Guardian |language=en}} In 2022, RCS Sport – organisers of the men's race – stated that they planned to organise a women's edition of Milan–San Remo in the future.{{Cite web |last=Davidson |first=Robyn |date=2024-09-27 |title=Women’s Milan-San Remo to make long-awaited return in 2025 |url=https://www.cyclist.co.uk/news/milan-san-remo-women |access-date=2024-11-28 |website=Cyclist |language=en}} Riders welcomed this, with Italian rider Marta Cavalli stating that she "would love to play out a big fight with all the riders from the WorldTour on the Poggio".{{Cite web |last=Frattini |first=Kirsten |date=2022-01-02 |title=Marta Cavalli: Dreams of winning a women's version of Milan-San Remo |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/marta-cavalli-dreams-of-winning-a-womens-version-of-milan-san-remo/ |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=cyclingnews.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Frattini |first=Kirsten |date=2023-03-15 |title=Annemiek van Vleuten envisions a 'crazy long' Milan-San Remo for women |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/features/annemiek-van-vleuten-envisions-a-crazy-long-milan-san-remo-for-women/ |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=cyclingnews.com |language=en}} In 2023, RCS Sport announced that a women's edition would be held from 2024.{{Cite web |date=2023-03-21 |title=A Women's Version of Milan-San Remo Is Planned. Sadly, It Will Be Much Shorter Than the Men's Race. |url=https://www.bicycling.com/news/a43377778/womens-milan-san-remo/ |access-date=2023-08-10 |website=Bicycling |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Gentili |first=Gabriele |date=2023-02-15 |title=Rcs Sport acquisisce il Giro per U23 e donne. Ma c'è altro che bolle in pentola... |trans-title=RCS Sport acquires the Giro for U23 and women. But there's more cooking... |url=https://bici.pro/news/donne/non-solo-giro-donne-progetti-rosa-rcs-sport/ |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=bici.PRO |language=it-IT}}
In October 2024, the 2025 UCI Women's World Tour calendar was announced, with Milano–San Remo Donne to take place on the same day as the men's race.{{Cite web |last=Weislo |first=Laura |date=4 October 2024 |title=UCI rolls out 2025 road calendar with Copenhagen Sprint added to men's and women's WorldTour |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/uci-rolls-out-2025-road-calendar-with-copenhagen-sprint-added-to-mens-and-womens-worldtour/ |access-date=13 October 2024 |work=Cycling News}}{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Mathew |date=2024-09-27 |title=Milano-Sanremo returns for women as classic joins 2025 calendar |url=https://procyclinguk.com/milano-sanremo-returns-for-women-as-classic-joins-2025-calendar |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=ProCyclingUK.com |language=en-GB}} To accommodate the race, the prestigious and long-standing Trofeo Alfredo Binda race shifted its date on the calendar.{{Cite web |last=Vandecapelle |first=Bram |date=7 May 2024 |title=Giro-organisator wil volgend jaar Milaan-Sanremo voor vrouwen organiseren |trans-title=Giro organizer wants to organize Milan-Sanremo for women next year |url=https://www.hln.be/wielrennen/giro-organisator-wil-volgend-jaar-milaan-sanremo-voor-vrouwen-organiseren~afb2bbb0/ |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=Het Laatste Nieuws |language=nl}} Following the announcement, Kasia Niewiadoma stated that the race would "raise the level even higher" in women's cycling.{{Cite web |last=Thewlis |first=Tom |date=2024-10-01 |title=Milan-San Remo addition will 'raise the level even higher' in women’s cycling, says Kasia Niewiadoma |url=https://www.cyclingweekly.com/racing/milan-san-remo-addition-will-raise-the-level-even-higher-in-womens-cycling-says-kasia-niewiadoma |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=cyclingweekly.com |language=en}} In March 2024, the route was announced, with a start in Genoa and a race length of {{Convert|156|km|mi}}, around half the length of the men's race.{{Cite web |date=5 March 2024 |title=Sanremo Women: the return of the Classicissima |url=https://www.milanosanremo.it/en/news/sanremo-women-the-return-of-the-classicissima/ |access-date=2025-03-06 |website=www.milanosanremo.it |language=en}}
Following her victory in 2025, Lorena Wiebes expressed her desire to lengthen the race in future, stating "it would be nice to race closer to 200km, if the rules allow it".{{Cite web |last=Marshall-Bell |first=Chris |date=23 March 2025 |title=Closing in on a century of victories: Lorena Wiebes is unstoppable |url=https://www.rouleur.cc/blogs/the-rouleur-journal/closing-in-on-a-century-of-victories-lorena-wiebes-is-unstoppable |access-date=2025-03-23 |website=Rouleur |language=en |quote=If the race distance were to be lengthened in future editions, perhaps the finishing group would have a different dynamic. “Maybe in the future it would be nice to race closer to 200km, if the rules allow it,” Wiebes added.}} Marianne Vos and multiple world champion Annemiek van Vleuten agreed that the race should be longer, with van Vleuten expressing her desire that the race "should be the longest one-day race ever for women's cycling" with a distance beyond the maximum race distance of {{Convert|160|km|mi}} set by the UCI.{{Cite web |last=Frattini |first=Kirsten |date=2025-03-23 |title='It was hard to predict' - Gamble in final comes up short for Marianne Vos in historic Milan-San Remo |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/it-was-hard-to-predict-gamble-in-final-comes-up-short-for-marianne-vos-in-historic-milan-san-remo/ |access-date=2025-03-25 |website=cyclingnews.com |language=en |quote=suggesting only one minor improvement to the distance, by adding 20km to 30km and increasing the total to closer to 180km.}}{{Cite web |last=IJnsen |first=Youri |date=2025-03-20 |title=Annemiek van Vleuten verwacht leukere Milaan-San Remo voor vrouwen dan mannen, maar is ook kritisch |url=https://www.wielerflits.nl/nieuws/annemiek-van-vleuten-verwacht-leukere-milaan-san-remo-voor-vrouwen-dan-mannen-maar-is-ook-kritisch/ |access-date=2025-03-23 |website=WielerFlits |language=nl}}
Route
The route of the race heads towards Sanremo along the coastal road with the spectacular scenery of the Ligurian Coast. In San Lorenzo al Mare, the course turns inwards to the Cipressa (5.6 km in length, average gradient of 4.1%), with its top at 22 km from the finish.{{Cite web |date=2024-03-14 |title=Decoding Milano-Sanremo: Unraveling Cycling’s Most Elusive Classic |url=https://www.bicycling.com/racing/a60180561/how-to-win-milano-sanremo/ |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=Bicycling |language=en-US}} After the towns of Santo Stefano al Mare and Arma di Taggia comes the last and most famous climb, the Poggio di Sanremo (3.7 km in length, average gradient 3.6%).{{Cite web |last=Ostanek |first=Dani |date=2023-03-14 |title=What is the Poggio? Inside the decisive climb of Milan-San Remo |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/features/what-is-the-poggio-inside-the-most-decisive-moment-of-milan-san-remo/ |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=cyclingnews.com |language=en}} From the top of the Poggio, 5.4 km from the finish, the course heads down via a fast and curvy descent towards the center of Sanremo, where the race finishes on the Via Roma, the city's illustrious shopping street.
The 1999 to 2005 editions of the race were around {{Convert|120|km|mi}} in length, starting in Varazze and finishing in Sanremo. The 2025 edition of the race started in Genoa, with a race distance of {{Convert|156|km|mi}}.
Past winners
{{Cycling past winner start}}
{{Cycling past winner rider|year=1999|name={{Interlanguage link|Sara Felloni|it|Sara Felloni}}|nat=ITA|team=Acca Due O}}
{{Cycling past winner rider|year=2000|name={{sortname|Diana|Žiliūtė||Ziliute, Diana}}|nat=LIT|team=Acca Due O - Lorena Camicie}}
{{Cycling past winner rider|year=2001|name={{sortname|Susanne|Ljungskog}}|nat=SWE|team=Vlaanderen–T Interim Ladies Team}}
{{Cycling past winner rider|year=2002|name={{sortname|Mirjam|Melchers-van Poppel}}|nat=NED|team=Team Farm Frites–Hartol}}
{{Cycling past winner rider|year=2003|name={{sortname|Zoulfia|Zabirova}}|nat=RUS|team=Prato Marathon Bike}}
{{Cycling past winner rider|year=2004|name={{sortname|Zoulfia|Zabirova}}|nat=RUS|team=Let's Go Finland}}
{{Cycling past winner rider|year=2005|name={{sortname|Trixi|Worrack}}|nat=GER|team=Equipe Nürnberger Versicherung}}
{{Cycling past winner no race|year=2006–2024 |reason= }}
{{Cycling past winner rider|year=2025|name={{sortname|Lorena|Wiebes}}|nat=NED|team={{UCI team code|SDW|2025}}}}
{{Cycling past winner end}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.milanosanremo.it/ Official website]
- {{Cycling archives race|370}}
{{Milan–San Remo}}{{UCI Women's World Tour}}{{UCI Women's Road World Cup}}
Category:Recurring sporting events established in 1999
Category:1999 establishments in Italy
Category:UCI Women's Road World Cup