Zoe Bäckstedt got the job done on the fourth and final stage of Baloise Ladies Tour, finishing safely on the winning time in the top 15 to secure the general classification title by 12 seconds over van Dijk (LTK) — the same advantage she carried into the stage.

This maiden professional general classification victory wraps up a stellar week for Zoe, who also achieved three individual stage wins while often racing on familiar roads near her adopted Belgian home.

⁠”It feels awesome to come away with so many achievements from the one race – it really wasn’t what I could have imagined at the start of this week!”

She opened the tour with a victory in Wednesday’s 3km prologue, earning the lead in the overall, youth and points classifications going into stage one. Over the next two sprint stages, she worked selflessly in support of the fast-moving Chiara Consonni, playing a key team role in the frantic final kilometres. Then came her outstanding double-day feat: claiming her first professional road race victory in the morning, before doubling up with a time trial win that evening, spectacularly reclaiming all three leader jerseys. She was the red-hot favourite against the clock, but delivering under pressure is another story – and she did just that.

Heading into Sunday’s finale, just 32 secs separated a formidable top five overall. The team knew that the 127 kilometres of racing would be fierce – no illusions and no gifts. Rain and damp roads greeted the riders for five laps of a quintessentially Belgian circuit with sapping rollers and twisty, tricky sections of road. A mid-stage break included Coupland (LIV) – not an immediate threat but still less than one minute behind on GC.

On this, Zoe said, “There were a few moments where I was nervous for the GC, but the sprinter teams wanted it to come back, so that played well in my hands!”

As the sun broke through and the kilometres ticked down into single digits, the breakaway was back in sight. Maria Martins, Nastya Kolesava, and Chiara stayed active near the front, keeping Zoe well-positioned while also juggling dual responsibilities, with Chiara eyeing the sprint. Zoe, meanwhile, had to stay alert to attacks from GC threats — the most dangerous coming from Koch (TPP) in the final 10km.

As the finish line approached, the sprint trains ramped up, reducing the chance of any late attacks sticking. After some superb positioning work from Nastya, Chiara surfed the wheels and launched into a drag race to the line, going head-to-head with Fidanza (TVL) after tracking her into the final 200 metres. Although she couldn’t quite come around, Chiara claimed third behind a fast-finishing Guarischi (SDW), rounding out an all-Italian podium.

This result marked Chiara’s second podium of the week, following a close second on stage one – a nice bonus alongside Zoe sealing the overall win. At just 20 years old, Zoe became the youngest ever winner of the Baloise Ladies Tour in the race’s 10-year history. Given her already decorated palmarès and growing reputation in the cycling world, it’s easy to forget that the Welsh generational talent is barely out of her teens.

“I’d like to think that this week is a breakthrough for me, and it gives me a good feeling for the next races!” Zoe enthused.

Naturally, she also claimed the youth classification and finished second in the points classification — the latter not a target, but rather a testament to her high-level consistency across the week.

Here’s what Adam Szabó, Sports Director on the ground and Head of Sport for CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto, had to say after five successful days of stage racing:

“Obviously, we are really happy and it was a really successful tour. Securing three stage wins and the GC is really phenomenal. The team plan was definitely not to be passive or to be inactive today, but we also didn’t want to provoke anything because we just needed to deliver the leaders jersey to the final for the GC win. We definitely also wanted to play our card in the sprint with Chiara, but only when we were 100% sure that we would come to the sprint – that was another big thing that we wanted to achieve.”

“Today was a real team effort. I wanted to really give big ups to teammates Maria Martins, Chiara Consonni and Nastya Kolesava, who helped tremendously. It was a steep learning curve for the Generation riders, Joëlle Messemer and Awen Roberts, to be helpful and to be there, but I think it was super nice for them to be part of this team where we were fighting for the overall victory.”

Adam highly commends the strides Zoe has taken in her still-developing career.

“It’s really nice to see Zoe stepping up and conquering the GC. It was her first GC victory in her career as an elite cyclist, and you can really see that she has stepped up as a team leader and in motivating the other girls, which says a lot. There was already big progression in her development, coming from junior ranks and securing good results in juniors, but now she’s also taken a step forward in the elite ranks, from getting TT stage wins to GC wins as well.”

The next event Zoe will be zeroing in on is the Tour de Pologne in mid August, while also planning another tilt at the Simac Ladies Tour in early September. The latter holds special, unique memories for her. Last year, she not only secured her first WorldTour win in the time trial but also led the GC for three days without any teammates (!), ultimately finishing third overall and winning the youth classification. Given the excellent form she’s shown so far this year in classic-style stage racing, it’s hard not to get excited about what she might achieve this time around.