The final two days of La Vuelta Femenina saw Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka deliver two strong and contrasting performances, showing herself at the sharp end of the racing on two very different parcours.

With 126.8 mostly flat kilometres and a handful of late hills, stage six left room for speculation – would it come down to a sprint, favour the punchy climbers, or reward a breakaway?

There were numerous breakaway attempts, including one from Nastya Kolesava, who made it into a large group of 19 that escaped with 75km to go. The group gained a maximum advantage of 1:15 minutes before being reeled in. From there, a revolving door of small breakaway groups animated the final 40km, including attacks on the last climb: 1.1km at 6% with just 5.5km remaining.

Agnieszka survived the undulations and was joined in the reduced bunch of 60 riders by Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney and Neve Bradbury, with both working to position her for the finale. In a tightly packed sprint where the road curved and riders jostled for space, Agnieszka powered to sixth – just a whisker off the top five. The result equalled her best-ever individual finish in a Women’s WorldTour race.

Stage seven, meanwhile, was an intimidating and gruelling mountain test: 152km with over 2700m of elevation, finishing atop the epic Alto de Cotobello. This final climb was a true brute – 10km long, rising 835m to a 1200m summit, with steep gradients peppered throughout and bookended by sections averaging over 9%.

Agnieszka describes her attacking plan, which saw her go clear with more than 80km remaining, riding solo over the two other categorised climbs – the Alto de la Colladona (5.5km at 7.4%) and the Alto de la Colladiella (7km at 7.7%).

“The plan was to go for breakaway, to create a big group. At first, we had a big group but the peloton caught us, and then in a small village, I attacked and went solo. Then, one girl from Visma came to me and we were together, but then eventually the group caught me again. I tried to stay a bit in the front, but already the pace was too hard.”

It wasn’t just Agnieszka having all the fun – Justyna Czapla followed on behind and explains below how her day unfolded. Unfortunately, Justyna couldn’t stay with de Vries (TVL), the rider who bridged the gap to Agnieszka and formed a two-up breakaway. Together, the duo achieved a maximum advantage of 3:00 mins until the peloton reeled them back in with 40km to go.

Justyna: “Today’s stage was really hard from the beginning because we tried to get into a breakaway again. Right before the climbs, Aga went away, and we had a gap to the peloton. Adam told us to create a bigger group, so I attacked, got a gap, and found myself between Aga and the peloton. At the top of the first climb, I was caught and back in the bunch. I did the last feeding for the girls, and then my job was done.”

With that, 21-year-old Justyna completed her first-ever Grand Tour, consistently demonstrating her growing strength across various terrains. From pulling with Chloé Dygert in the Team Time Trial to pacing climbs and driving the lead-out into the final kilometres of a sprint stage, she continually proved her versatility and value.

“I’m really happy to finish La Vuelta. It was so hard but really nice to do.”

On the final battleground of the stage, the Alto de Cotobello, Kasia stayed with the leading wheels past the halfway mark in an already select group. As the front thinned further under pressure, she was distanced by the group of 12 with 5.6km to go, riding at her own tempo as the road relentlessly went up and the weather worsened.

Freezing rain and thick cloud greeted relieved and exhausted riders at the summit, heralding the finish of this year’s La Vuelta Femenina. Kasia crossed the line in 14th, 2:38 minutes down, and finished 11th overall in the general classification – just 16 seconds off a top 10.

La Vuelta Femenina proved a challenging week for the team, with results falling short of expectations. Despite the preparation and effort, the desired outcomes didn’t materialise. The outlook is optimistic however; it’s the first of three major tour tests, which always carry a degree of uncertainty, giving the team time to reflect and course-correct. Spanish racing continues with the Navarra Women’s Elite Classic on Wednesday.