Video: Annemiek van Vleuten wins 2022 Women’s Tour de France

By Alex AzziJul 31, 2022, 4:02 PM EDT

It seems only fitting that Annemiek van Vleuten — a cyclist whose career has been defined by comebacks — won the long-awaited revival of the Women’s Tour de France following a “rollercoaster” ride of her own.

Van Vleuten, who began feeling sick just hours after stage one on Sunday, was struggling just to eat and drink earlier this week. The two-time Olympic medalist turned things around in the mountains, winning stage seven on Saturday with a dominant solo ride.

The 39-year-old Dutchwoman entered the eighth and final stage of the 2022 Tour de France Femmes with a 3 minute, 14 second lead, but her victory appeared in jeopardy early on Sunday due to mechanical issues that resulted in six bike changes.

But van Vleuten came back. Like she always does.

Six years ago at the Rio Olympics, Van Vleuten was leading the women’s road race and having the best race of her career when she had a horrendous crash on a downhill turn. She was placed in intensive care at a Brazilian hospital, where she was diagnosed with three small spine fractures and a concussion.

Van Vleuten was back on her bike within two weeks and went on to win her first world title in 2017 and two Olympic medals (gold in the time trial, silver in the road race) at last summer’s Tokyo Games.

On Sunday, van Vleuten attacked with six kilometers remaining and went on to win both the stage — a 123-kilometer mountainous climb from Lure to La Planche des Belles Filles — and the 2022 Tour de France Femmes title. (A video highlight is embedded above.)

“That’s actually a dream that comes true,” she said. “It was not an easy stage. It was not an easy week… and even today it was not easy. But to finish here in yellow? Solo? (That’s) the best way.”

2022 Tour de France Femmes: Results, highlights, event history, stage details and more

Van Vleuten, who has said she plans to retire at the conclusion of the 2023 season, also hinted at the progress still left to be made in women’s cycling.

“I hope it’s a big start for more and that you can build this event to a bigger event for the women, also. Men and women,” she said.

2022 Tour de France Femmes – Final General Classification Ranking (Top 10):

Rank	Athlete	Team	Total Time / Time Behind
1	Annemiek van Vleuten	Movistar Team	26h 55′ 44″
2	Demi Vollering	SD Worx	+ 3′ 48″
3	Kasia Niewiadoma	Canyon–SRAM	+ 6′ 35″
4	Juliette Labous	Team DSM	+ 7′ 28″
5	Silvia Persico	Valcar–Travel & Service	+ 8′ 00″
6	Elisa Longo Borghini	Trek–Segafredo	+ 8′ 26″
7	Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig	FDJ Suez Futuroscope	+ 8′ 59″
8	Évita Muzic	FDJ Suez Futuroscope	+ 13′ 54″
9	Veronica Ewers	EF Education–EasyPost	+ 15′ 05″
10	Mavi García	UAE Team ADQ	+ 15′ 15″

2022 Women’s Tour de France: Stage-by-Stage Results and Standings

Stage	Date	Course	Distance and Course Type	Stage Winner	Yellow Jersey (General Classification Leader)	Green Jersey (Points Classification Leader)	Polka Dot Jersey (Mountains Classification Leader)	Young Rider Classification Leader	Team Classification Leader	Combativity Award
Stage 1	24 July	Paris (Tour Eiffel) to Champs-Élysées	82 km (51 mi) — Flat stage	Lorena Wiebes	Lorena Wiebes	Lorena Wiebes	Femke Markus	Maike van der Duin	Canyon-SRAM	Gladys Verhulst
Stage 2	25 July	Meaux to Provins	135 km (84 mi) — Hilly stage	Marianne Vos	Marianne Vos	Marianne Vos	Femke Markus	Maike van der Duin		Maike van der Duin
Stage 3	26 July	Reims to Épernay	133 km (83 mi) –Medium-mountain stage	Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig			Femke Gerritse	Julie De Wilde		Alena Amialiusik
Stage 4	27 July	Troyes to Bar-sur-Aube	126 km (78 mi) –Medium-mountain stage	Marlen Reusser				Julie De Wilde	SD Worx	Marlen Reusser
Stage 5	28 July	Bar-le-Duc to Saint-Dié-des-Vosges	175 km (109 mi) –Hilly stage	Lorena Wiebes				Julie De Wilde		Victoire Berteau
Stage 6	29 July	Saint-Dié-des-Vosges to Rosheim	128 km (80 mi) –Flat stage	Marianne Vos				Julia Borgstrom		Marie Le Net
Stage 7	30 July	Sélestat to Le Markstein	127 km (79 mi) –Mountain stage	Annemiek van Vleuten	Annemiek van Vleuten		Demi Vollering	Shirin van Anrooij	Canyon-SRAM	Annemiek van Vleuten
Stage 8	31 July	Lure to La Planche des Belles Filles	123 km (76 mi) — Mountain stage	Annemiek van Vleuten	Annemiek van Vleuten		Demi Vollering	Shirin van Anrooij	Canyon-SRAM	Mavi Garcia
Final Winner					Annemiek van Vleuten	Marianne Vos	Demi Vollering	Shirin van Anrooij	Canyon-SRAM	Marianne Vos

You can watch a replay of stage eight of the 2022 Women’s Tour de France via Peacock.

Follow Alex Azzi on Twitter @AlexAzziNBC

2022 Rivalry Series: USA extends lead to 3-0 over Canada in women’s hockey showcase

By Lisa AntonucciNov 20, 2022, 10:00 PM EST

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Hilary Knight had two goals and one assist to lead the U.S. women’s hockey team to a 4-2 win over Canada on Sunday, extending Team USA’s series lead to 3-0 in the seven-game 2022-23 Rivalry Series.

Savannah Harmon and Abby Roque also scored for the U.S., which has notched three consecutive wins against Canada for the first time since 2019. Goalie Nicole Hensley made 22 saves in front of a record-setting crown at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, where fan attendance totaled 14,551.

Marie-Philip Poulin and Sarah Nurse scored for Canada, which captured gold \at both the IIHF Women’s World Championship in September and the Beijing Olympics in February.

Knight has enjoyed a standout 2022-23 Rivalry Series to date, registering six points (three goals, three assists) in the first three games including the game-winning goal in a shootout victory in Game 1 of the series on Tuesday and the game-winning assist in Game 2 on Thursday. Prior to the puck drop in Seattle on Sunday, Knight was presented with a golden stick to commemorate her record-breaking 87th career point in world championship play. Knight became the all-time points leader at the IIHF Women’s World Championship in September, when the eight-time world champion recorded one goal and one assist in Team USA’s 12-1 quarterfinal win over Hungary.

Sunday’s matchup between the U.S. and Canada marked the third game of the 2022-23 Rivalry Series and was the third matchup between the two teams in five days. The U.S. came in with a 2-0 series lead following a 2-1 victory on Thursday in Kamloops, B.C., and a 4-3 shootout victory — the first shootout in Rivalry Series history — in Kelowna, B.C., on Tuesday. It also was the first game for the U.S. national team on home soil since Dec. 17, 2021, when the team hosted Canada in St. Louis (Canada won 3-2 in overtime).

The 2022-23 Rivalry Series continues next month with two games in the U.S., set to be played in Las Vegas on Dec. 17 and Los Angeles on Dec. 19.

2022-23 Rivalry Series schedule, results

DATE	TIME/RESULT	LOCATION	NETWORK
Tuesday, Nov. 15	USA 4, CAN 3 (SO)	Kelowna, British Columbia	NHL Network
Thursday, Nov. 17	USA 2, CAN 1	Kamloops, British Columbia	NHL Network
Sunday, Nov. 20	USA 4, CAN 2	Seattle, Washington	NHL Network
Thursday, Dec. 15	10 p.m. ET	Henderson, Nevada	NHL Network
Monday, Dec. 19	10 p.m. ET	Los Angeles, California	NHL Network
TBD	TBD	TBD	NHL Network
TBD	TBD	TBD	NHL Network

What is the Rivalry Series?

The Rivalry Series was introduced by USA Hockey and Hockey Canada during the 2018-19 season and designed as an annual showcase of the highest level of women’s hockey at various locations in the United States and Canada. The first series comprised three games between the two national teams, with Canada winning 2-1. Team USA took 2019-20 title, winning the expanded five-game series 4-1 and wrapping with an overtime win in the finale in front of a then-record-breaking total of 13,320 fans in Anaheim, California.

Following a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic and preparation for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games, the Rivalry Series resumed this season with seven games over three months: three in November, two in December and two in February.

The U.S. and Canada have battled in the gold-medal game of six of seven Winter Olympics and 20 of 21 IIHF Women’s World Championship, with the two exceptions being the 2019 World Championship and 2006 Olympics. The Canadian women are the reigning Olympic and world champions.

2022-23 Rivalry Series rewind: USA takes Games 1-2

Game 1 recap: USA 4, CAN 3, SO (Nov. 15): The series kicked off Tuesday with Team USA grabbing a 2-0 lead off goals from Hannah Brandt and Hilary Knight. But Canada battled back with three unanswered goals and held a 3-2 lead with 13 minutes to go in the third. With just 1:29 remaining in regulation, Alex Carpenter tied it for the Americans, sending the game to overtime. The U.S. ultimately won in a shootout, with Knight and Carpenter scoring while U.S. goalie Nicole Hensley made two key saves.

Game 2 recap: USA 2, CAN 1 (Nov. 17): Canada was first to get on the board Thursday when Marie-Philip Poulin capitalized off a penalty shot opportunity in the second period, but USA’s Kendall Coyne Schofield knotted the score just 1:12 later. Alex Carpenter scored the go-ahead tally with 6:36 remaining in the third to give the U.S. a 2-1 win and a 2-0 series lead. U.S. goalie Maddie Rooney recorded 19 saves in net.

Who’s playing in the 2022-23 Rivalry Series?

Team USA’s roster — led by coach John Wroblewski — for the November Rivalry Series games features 23 players, 16 of whom were part of the silver medal-winning team at the 2022 IIHF Women’s World Championship in August:

Hannah Brandt (Vadnais Heights, Minn.)
Alex Carpenter (North Reading, Mass.)
Kendall Coyne Schofield (Palos Heights, Ill.)
Jincy Dunne (O’Fallon, Mo.)
Aerin Frankel(Chappaqua, N.Y.)
Rory Guilday (Minnetonka, Minn.)
Savannah Harmon (Downers Grove, Ill.)
Nicole Hensley (Lakewood, Colo.)
Megan Keller (Farmington Hills, Mich.)
Amanda Kessel (Madison, Wis.)
Hilary Knight (Sun Valley, Idaho)
Kelly Pannek (Plymouth, Minn.)
Abby Roque (Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.)
Hayley Scamurra (Getzville, N.Y.)
Maddie Rooney (Andover, Minn.)
Lee Stecklein (Roseville, Minn.).

Team Canada’s 23-player roster, selected by coach Troy Ryan and director of hockey operations Gina Kingsbury, features 16 players who were on the gold medal-winning team at the 2022 IIHF Women’s World Championship and the 2022 Beijing Olympics (Canada beat , including:

Erin Ambrose
Kristen Campbell
Emily Clark
Ann-Renée Desbiens
Renata Fast
Brianne Jenner
Jocelyne Larocque
Emma Maltais
Emerance Maschmeyer
Sarah Nurse
Marie-Philip Poulin
Jamie Lee Rattray
Ella Shelton
Laura Stacey
Blayre Turnbull
Micah Zandee-Hart

Rivalry Series history

Following Sunday’s victory, the U.S. holds a 6-2-1-2 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record over Canada all time in the Rivalry Series. Canada won the 2018-19 Rivalry Series with a 2-0-0-1 record, while the U.S. won the 2019-20 Rivalry Series with a 3-1-1-0 record.

2019-20 Rivalry Series results

DATE	RESULT	LOCATION	U.S. PLAYER OF THE GAME
Dec. 14, 2019	USA 4, CAN 1	Hartford, Connecticut	Alex Cavallini
Dec. 17, 2019	USA 2, CAN 1	Moncton, N.B.	Alex Carpenter
Feb. 3, 2020	CAN 3, USA 2 (OT)	Victoria, B.C.	Hilary Knight
Feb. 5, 2020	USA 3, CAN 1	Vancouver, B.C.	Katie Burt
Feb. 8, 2020	USA 4, CAN 3 (OT)	Anaheim, California	Megan Bozek

2018-19 Rivalry Series results

DATE	RESULT	LOCATION
Feb. 12	USA 1, CAN 0	London, Ontario
Feb. 14	CAN 4, USA 3	Toronto, Ontario
Feb. 17	CAN 2, USA 0	Detroit Michigan

Atthaya Thitikul takes LPGA rookie-of-year honors in stride ahead of Tour Championship

By Lisa AntonucciNov 16, 2022, 4:01 PM EST

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To say that Atthaya Thitikul has enjoyed a breakout rookie LPGA season is a bit of an understatement, but keeping things low-key is exactly how 19-year-old “Jeeno” likes it.

As the 2022 season concludes this week at the CME Group Tour Championship, Thitikul has already captured two LPGA titles, held the No. 1 spot in the world rankings and collected the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year honors. But the current world No. 2 displays a wise-beyond-her-years ethos when she says what she’s most proud of this season is her mindset.

“[I’m]19 years old — I think I’m still young to handle all the things that I have now,” Thitikul told On Her Turf ahead of this week’s season finale in Naples, Fla. “I didn’t say that I handled it well, but I’ve just said that I think I can handle it. I can do it. And yeah, it’s turned out to be pretty good this year.”

To keep herself in check, the Thailand native keeps her philosophy posted on her Instagram profile, which reads, “Be you, be happy and everything will be fine.” Thitikul, who on Oct. 31 joined 18-time LPGA winner Lydia Ko as the only players in tour history to reach No. 1 before their 20th birthday, said she took stock of poor performances on the golf course and found they all had one thing in common: She wasn’t being herself.

“I didn’t have fun,” she says of those unsatisfactory rounds. “I was expecting a lot of results on the golf course, not really talking, not really enjoying it. So I think being myself, have fun, keep smiling, keep laughing and talking with other players or talking with my caddie, joking around — I think it’s the best that I can do.”

Golf has always been fun for Thitikul, who grew up in northeast Thailand and was introduced to the sport at age 6 through her father and grandfather, both of whom were not golfers themselves but recognized the opportunity that golf might provide. Thitikul teases that her grandfather was enamored with Tiger Woods, but after her first golf experience with a professional in Bangkok, she was hooked, too.

“They asked me when I finished practicing, do I like it? And I say, ‘Yeah, I do.’ Because [there were] a lot of friends and when I practice, it seemed fun and it seemed not like other sports that I have been watching on TV,” she recalls.

Thitikul’s ascent to the top of her sport was swift: In February 2017, just three days after her 14th birthday, she made her first LPGA tournament appearance at the Honda LPGA Thailand and finished 37th out of 66 players. Just five months later, Thitikul made headlines when she became the youngest person ever to win a professional golf tour event at age 14 years, 4 months and 19 days old, winning the Ladies European Thailand Championship on the Ladies European Tour (LET).

RELATED: 2022 CME Group Tour Championship — How to watch, who’s playing in LPGA’s season finale

For three more years, Thitikul resisted turning professional, racking up multiple international amateur victories and plenty of tour experience, notching her first LPGA top-10 finish in March 2018 at the HSBC Women’s World Championship (T-8) and earning low amateur honors that same year at two majors, the ANA Inspiration (T-30) and Women’s British Open (T-64). The following year, she won the Ladies European Thailand Championship for the second time in three years, earned low amateur honors at the British Open (finishing T-29) for the second straight year and was No. 1 on the women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking.

In her first year as a pro, during the pandemic-impacted 2020 season, Thitikul broke through for her first professional win in July at the Thai LPGA Championship. She finished the season with five Thai LPGA wins and topped the money list.

Thitikul moved to the LET in 2021, winning the Czech Ladies Open in June, and just a month later she moved into the top 100 on the world rankings for the first time at No. 89. She finished 2021 with two wins, three runner-ups and nine additional top-10 finishes, securing the LET Order of Merit and Rookie of the Year titles and becoming just the fourth player to win both awards in the same season.

After finishing third at LPGA Qualifying School to earn her card for 2022, Thitikul didn’t miss a beat in her meteoric rise this season. She posted two top-10s in her first four starts before striking a staff deal with Callaway, which she followed up by winning her first LPGA title in March at the JTBC Classic. She carded an 8-under 64 in the final round to force a playoff and Nanna Koerstz Madsen on the second extra hole. She earned her second LPGA title in September at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, tying the tournament record of 61 in the second round and beating Danielle Kang in a playoff.

As for the pressure of being a teen phenom, Thitikul admits she can’t ignore it but has figured out how to turn it around to her advantage: “It’s still so hard because I think as players want to be on top and we put the pressure on ourselves, and there’s a lot of eyes on us. … But at the same time, it’s kind of like you couldn’t win every week, you couldn’t have a good day every day. It’s golf. I like to think of pressure as a challenge. I put a lot of pressure on myself, but I think of it as challenging.”

Away from the golf course, Thitikul enjoys spending time with friends, watching Korean television dramas and indulging in Asian food (Chinese and Korean are favorites). Although she doesn’t have a pet, she says she’s a dog person, and prefers the mountains to the beach, as she loves to hike.

But don’t expect too much lounging, hiking or other non-golf activities on Thitikul’s itinerary after this season wraps on Sunday.

“This offseason, we have a lot of work to do,” she says.” There are a lot of things I still have to learn – not just for next year but for [beyond.] … But hopefully next year, it’s going to be nice and good for me as well. I really want to have a major win in my career. I don’t know if it’s going to happen next year, but hopefully.”

2022 Tour de France Femmes: Results, highlights, event history, stage details and more

2022 Tour de France Femmes – Final General Classification Ranking (Top 10):

2022 Women’s Tour de France: Stage-by-Stage Results and Standings

Stage

Date

Course

Distance and Course Type

Stage Winner

Yellow Jersey (General Classification Leader)

Green Jersey (Points Classification Leader)

Polka Dot Jersey (Mountains Classification Leader)

Young Rider Classification Leader

Team Classification Leader

Combativity Award

Final Winner

Annemiek van Vleuten

Marianne Vos

Demi Vollering

Shirin van Anrooij

Canyon-SRAM