Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM) won the 2019 Amstel Gold Race Ladies Edition, attacking on the final climb of the Cauberg and holding off Annemiek Van Vleuten (Mitchelton-Scott) in a dramatic pursuit. The Pole had looked strong on previous ascents of the Cauberg and surged away from an elite group of 15 as the race hit the famous climb for the final time. Van Vleuten was late to respond but made her way up past Marianne Vos (CCC-Liv) to crest in second place, leaving a nail-biting 1.8 km run-in to the line. The time trial world champion gained and gained time on the duo, but ran out of road. Niewiadoma could sit up and celebrate in the final 15 metres, with Van Vleuten now right on her back but the victory secure.ADVERTISEMENT “To be honest, I still cannot believe what happened,” Niewiadoma said. “I’m filled with so many different emotions. I’m just shivering now, inside, like ‘oh my god what have I done?’ I’ve been wanting so much to win the Amstel Gold Race. I’ve been dreaming about it, and it just happened. A dream came true. It’s just so amazing. It’s beautiful.” How it happened With 19 classified climbs on 126.8 kilometres through southern Limburg, the women’s Amstel Gold Race offered a challenging course. The first ten hills were on a big loop that was followed by three laps of a finishing circuit with the Geulhemmerberg, Bemelerberg, and Cauberg.
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