Vos the boss

Marianne Vos delivered another crushing blow to her rivals for the women’s world road race title, attacking close to the summit of the Via Salviati climb and riding alone to the finish to record a second straight victory in the most prestigious of all one day races (she combined a successful ride to the rainbow stripes with victory last year in another memorable competition – the Olympic Games). Vos will now begin a third season in the rainbow jersey of world road race champion. Her first victory in the competition came as a 19-year-old, in 2006.

Commentators are now openly comparing Vos’ domination to that of Eddy Merckx, widely regarded as the greatest cyclist of all time. She has won five of eight races in this season’s UCI Women’s Road World Cup, and her prowess on the tarmac is only one part of the Vos story. She is a six-time world cyclo cross champion, and an Olympic champion on the track and on the road.

The Dutchwoman’s victories do not come at the expense of hopeless opposition; rather they are achieved at the expense of talented competitors racing in an era of unprecedented professionalism for women’s cycling, many of whom represent the female squads of UCI WorldTour teams like Argos-Shimano and Orica. Who can challenge her? The same was once asked of those who lined up against the Cannibal.