Anna van der Breggen is the defending champion in the elite women's road race at the UCI Road World Championships in Yorkshire on Saturday. She is one of the favorites to win on a course as punchy as the Classics, but even if she doesn't make it, she told Cycling News that she has had a memorable year in the rainbow jersey.

"I enjoyed it a lot," van der Breggen told Cycling News in an interview in Harrogate two days before the race. 'Two days before the race, I did an interview with Cycling News in Harrogate. But just to be able to run in the rainbow jersey and think back to that great race, it was really nice."

Van der Breggen won the world title last year in a competition held on a mountain route in Innsbruck, Austria. He pulled away from the rest of the field on the decisive climb and won solo ahead of Australia's Amanda Spratt and Italy's Tatiana Gudelzo.

Her first victory in an elite women's road race was previously seen as a blank for her, despite her illustrious career that includes a gold medal at the Rio Olympics, two Giro Rosa overall titles, and five consecutive Flèche Wallonne titles.

"It might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," van der Breggen said. 'I really enjoyed everything about it. The year is over, but I plan to try again with a little less pressure. It's hard to look back on a victory and truly enjoy it, but wearing the jersey has allowed me to think more deeply and enjoy wearing the jersey."

Van der Breggen is one of a Dutch team of eight competing for the world title in Yorkshire. This team also includes Marianne Foss, Annemiek van Fruten, Chantal Black, Flortje McKay, Lucinda Brand, Amy Peters, and Demi Volering.

The women will start in Bradford and travel north to Masham in North Yorkshire before heading south to the undulating three finish circuit in Harrogate.

While many believe this course is perfectly suited to Vos, it would be remiss not to consider van der Breggen and van Fruten. Both are excellent classic riders and specialists, especially in breakaways. It is possible that one of them will break away or win solo, but either way, they will race as hard as they possibly can.

Rain is forecast for the women's race, a more dangerous scenario, especially on the technical Harrogate circuit at the finish. Van der Breggen said the key to doing well in a rainy race is to strike a balance between speed and safety.

"Rain always makes it more dangerous," he said. There are some tricky downhills on the local laps." So far, they don't look slippery and not many people are slipping. If you play it safe, of course everyone will want to go fast, but if you strike the right balance between safety and speed, it shouldn't be a problem."