A minute of silence was observed before the start of the elite women's road race at the World Championships, and the tragic death of the late Muriel Farrar was etched in the mind of each participant on a rain-soaked afternoon in Zurich.

Minutes after defending the rainbow jersey in a full-on sprint, Lotte Kopecký was ushered into a tent near the podium for a flash interview. The Belgian Kopecký was asked about her feelings immediately after the finish, and her first thought was for Fuller, who died on Friday after crashing in the junior women's road race the day before.

“It was an incredible feeling, but first I want to offer my condolences to Muriel's family,” Kopecky said. 'The minute's silence at the start, the Swiss players crying, was something I didn't want to see. I think it's very painful for them.”

Asked if the world title was a tribute to the late Fuller, a Swiss international in road, cyclo-cross, and mountain biking, Kopecky nodded, “Yes.”

Kopecky's words were echoed by Noemi Rüeg of her native Switzerland, who finished 11th. Before the start, Rüeg and her five Swiss teammates stood arm in arm in the front row of the peloton during a minute of silence dedicated to 18-year-old Muriel. Said Rüeg: “We'll keep Muriel in our hearts and see how the race goes.”

Despite the conditions and the subdued atmosphere that graces the World Championships, the home riders received generous cheers from the crowds lining the roadside. The afternoon's racing, though eerie, made one forget for a few hours the tragedy that had occurred on these roads.

“The mood in Zurichberg was great. I tried to enjoy it and soak it all in,” said Ruegg.

“It was a great experience, even if the encouraging voices and her own strong performance were only a temporary respite from the prevailing mood.

“I couldn't believe last year that I could do something like that,” she said. But it was a very difficult couple of days. During the race I was thinking about Muriel. In the end, I was happy to reach the finish line and hug my family."

Kopecky took the rainbow jersey, but Elisa Longo Borghini (ITA) nearly clinched the world title with an aggressive final lap.

Longo Borghini was strong enough to finish third in the sprint, even after being reeled in by favorite Demi Vollering (Netherlands), and after the 2012 and 2020 World Championships and the 2016 and 2020 Olympics, she earned her fifth bronze medal in the World Championship road race He won the medal.

In the press room afterward, Longo Borghini spoke to reporters in considerable detail about his tactics, but also eloquently explained the apparent paradox of competing to win a bicycle race while mourning the tragic loss of a young life.

“I don't think there was a single person in the peloton today who didn't think about yesterday and the young woman who died,” Longo Borghini said. 'But at the end of the day, when you're racing, you focus on the race. Sometimes that may not be right, and maybe I should think more about my health and my life. But when you're an athlete, you focus on your performance."

“At the start of today, everyone was very aware of the tragic loss. But as soon as the race started, she focused on the race and raced. I think today's race was also a celebration of her life, that she was a cyclist, that she had dreams, that she had goals, and that she unfortunately died doing what she loved. “

Unlimited access to all coverage of the 2024 UCI Road World Championships - including breaking news and analysis from the Junior, Under 23 and Elite time trials and road races, as reported by journalists on the ground. Details.