Annemiek van Vleuten's victory has been compared to the electrifying performances of Eddy Merckx, Alberto Contador, and most recently Chris Froome at the 2018 Giro d'Italia in Finestre, but the UCI Road World Championships in Yorkshire victory in the women's elite road race was truly worthy of history.

The Dutch rider came into the race lacking in confidence after a painful defeat in the individual time trial, but put that performance behind her once and for all with a 104km solo breakaway.

"I didn't think I could keep running for 104km," the 36-year-old said at the finish line.

"I was feeling really good and I still had power, so that gave me confidence that it was possible, and when I saw the power on the power meter I knew the guys behind me would have a tough time."

Left behind were world-class athletes, including time trial winner Chloe Dygert Owen, Lizzie Deignan, and last year's champion Anna van der Breggen.

Van Vleuten attacked on the Lofthouse climb and built a two-minute lead on the Dygert-Owen group, but also relegated most of the field to just riding around the Yorkshire countryside Saturday. Marianne Vos, Colin Rivera, and Marta Bastianelli were eliminated before the race reached the Harrogate finish circuit.

Van Vleuten still had a big task ahead of her, and even though she was not coherent in the chase, she had to cover two-thirds of the race from the moment she accelerated from the pack. She later admitted that her attack on Lofthouse was planned, but that she had hoped to draw the pack away. However, Van der Breggen was enjoying a free ride in the chase group, and Van Vleuten recommended that they continue racing.

"That was the plan, and I was going to make a small group with Anna. The Dutch would have been foolish not to use that point to make the race more difficult. The plan was to see what happened after the descent," she said.

"But I was feeling really good today and I thought it would be stupid to ruin my legs in the solo. Then the national coach told me to go for it because Anna wasn't coming after me hard from behind. So I decided to go for it. But I played it smart. I didn't give it my all in the first part and tried to take my time on the climbs."

The chase group lacked cohesion, but reactions always happened, and as expected, the time trial world champion made the difference. Daigert had never raced on European roads before today and paid the price for his inexperience, but as the race reached Harrogate, he attacked repeatedly. As the race approached Harrogate, she attacked repeatedly, pulling away from the chasing group and cutting Van Vleuten's lead by 30 seconds. At one point it looked like it would be a race. ......

"When Daigert tried to cross, the gap was 1:45 and I was a little nervous.

The writing was practically on the wall when Daigert was caught and then dropped out with around 10.4 km to go. Van Vleuten finished 2:15 ahead of Van der Breggen and Amanda Spratt (AUS).

"This is a most special victory," a delighted Van Vleuten told the media. [Last year in Innsbruck I broke my knee and could not celebrate my time trial victory. I thought it was my only chance. That's why I got this title. I'm really enjoying it right now."

On a rain-soaked Tuesday in Harrogate, as dusk approached, Van Vleuten admitted that her trial performance had raised concerns after she finished third, her second time trial loss in nearly two years.

While speaking to the media in the mixed zone, she admitted that her performance in the opening round of this year's World Championships was an off day.

"I perked up that day. I talked to my coach about going out to dinner next week and talking about this [the TT]."

"I had one day to be a little sad and one night to get some sleep. I didn't want to analyze it, I had a 3.5 hour road course and I thought, 'Oh shoot, I need to get my World Championships kit out of the closet.' It was really sad, but I thought, 'No, there might be one more chance that the clothes are still there. And it's still there. But it's still there.

Comparisons to Froome and his decisive run in the 2018 Giro were again addressed in the post-race press conference. The Orange women have now won the last three road world titles, the last two of which have been decided by solo runs or by large margins. [The Dutch are super strong. I can only speak for myself and I know what I have done to win this title. It's not for everyone, but what made my performance so great was the hours I put in on the bike. My teammates tell me I'm crazy for doing this, but it's what has allowed me to win solo.

"I know how many hours I spend on the bike to get the best preparation here. I'm kind of crazy, preparation included. I'm a hard worker on and off the bike, but I also have a lot of fun, and being able to do 100km solo is probably due to all the hard work I've put in on the bike. I also do high altitude camping alone and it paid off today. It was crazy and I think I may have made a little history today."

History was indeed made, and Van Vleuten joins an elite club of four women who have reigned as time trial and road world champions.

Importantly, comparisons to men are not necessary to appreciate or admire Van Vleuten's achievements. Her run in Yorkshire stood out on its own, but when asked about such comparisons, she responded with the same clinical grace as she did at Lord's.

"I'm really proud to be compared to them. In Liège, my coach told me to commit to La Redoute to make history. Today I thought maybe I could write history. I didn't think it was possible, but if it is, it would be epic."