Interview | Van Vleuten gives zero importance to time trial loss against Markus and Vollering: "We'll see the best Annemiek"

Annemiek van Vleuten is feeling great again, after a somewhat disappointing spring. The 40-year-old leader of Movistar already won the women's Vuelta in May and then went on a high-altitude training camp. On Wednesday, she returned with a third-place finish at the Dutch National Time Trial Championship, lagging behind Riejanne Markus and Demi Vollering. However, Van Vleuten attaches zero importance to that, as she tells IDLProCycling.com after the race.

Van Vleuten, who will be retiring after this year, ultimately finished 1 minute and 13 seconds behind the winner Markus, conceding 18 seconds to Vollering. Vollering was quite satisfied with her performance, but Van Vleuten finds it less intriguing. "The result may not have exceeded expectations, but it was still good. I can work with this. Considering how everything unfolded, I'm actually quite content. Sometimes you start and it becomes a grueling journey with a downward curve, but I managed to maintain a steady pace and deliver a solid time trial, to the best of my abilities."

The fact that Markus left everyone in her wake was not a surprise to Van Vleuten either. The Jumbo-Visma winner had secretly been honing her time trial skills, although it wasn't a secret to everyone. "I expected her to win. It was her main objective, and she dedicated a lot of effort to it. When you hear at the first checkpoint that it's a lost cause for the top spot, you know someone is blazingly fast. Moreover, the course wasn't exactly tailored to my strengths. When I win time trials, they usually involve many hills. That just suits me better."

Van Vleuten gains confidence, both at altitude and in National Championships

In addition, Van Vleuten lost a few seconds after an interesting moment at the first pass at the finish line. It appeared that she almost lost control around the bend, but the truth was that she simply didn't know she had to turn right. "I had explored the entire course, except for the passage at the finish and where I had to go afterwards. My support car was too far behind, so they didn't know either. I momentarily didn't know where to go. However, I managed to handle it well, it wasn't that bad," she calmly explains.

It is clear: Van Vleuten is physically and mentally focused and ready for what lies ahead. "I have trained very well, had a wonderful time at altitude with my boyfriend, and I believe in the plan. That's why I'm satisfied today. Two years ago, I competed in a National Time Trial Championship and it was a disaster, as I had just returned from altitude. I can move forward with this result, and it gives me confidence that I could push myself until the end. I truly believe that I have stepped up my game, and we will witness the best version of Annemiek this summer. That's what we're aiming for."

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg)