Liege-Bastogne-Liege 2022 as it happened - Re-live Annemiek Van Vleuten's victory

Thanks for joining us for the final spring classic of the 2022 season, what a day for the Dutch veteran rider and former World Champion Annemiek van Vleuten taking her second victory of the season and her second at the race.

Grace Brown takes second for FDJ with the SD Worx pairing of Demi Vollering and Ashleigh Moolman Pasio in third and fourth respectively. Elisa Longo Borghini comes in fifth and Marta Cavalli in sixth.

The second win for the Dutch rider - Annemiek van Vleuten is all smiles as she crosses the line.

The finish line in Liege is almost in sight for Annemiek van Vleuten. The Dutch Movistar rider will seal the deal as long as she can stay upright for the final kilometre.

The chasing group look as though they have accepted their fate and will fight for second place - van Vleuten is fighting to stretch out her lead - she now has 32 seconds over the rest. 2.3km to go.

Annemiek van Vleuten looks relaxed at the front as she briefly opens out her gap, but the chasing group are working together well so her potential victory hangs in the balance. Can she break the run of second places at Strade Bianche, Ronde van Vlaanderen and La Fleche Wallonne?

Just 7.5km remain in the 2022 Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes and the chasing group aren't able to make any more of an impression on van Vleuten's lead. She maintains a steady 17 second lead over the rest.

With less than 10km remaining the pace is frenetic as van Vleuten tries to stay clear and the chasing group work together to try and bring her back. Van Vleuten has 13 seconds.

The Dutch woman has around 20 seconds but it's beginning to close a little as the riders hit a fast, flat section of the parcours.

With two FDJ riders (Cavalli and Brown) and two from SD Worx (Vollering and Moolman Pasio), and Elisa Longo Borghini from Trek-Segafredo, this select group have van Vleuten in their sights but will need to work together if they stand any chance of bringing her back.

With all the climbing over for the day it's less than 12km to the line for Annemiek van Vleuten, who has opened up a 15 second gap over the chasing group. She hasn't won a race since Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and after coming so close in the week at La Fleche Wallonne she clearly has the bit between her teeth today.

Van Vleuten is still clear at the front, with Cavalli and Vollering trying to stay with her. Grace Brown loses touch at the back following her mammoth solo effort.

Cavalli, Brown, and the rest of the chasers try to hand on to Annemiek van Vleuten as she pulls clear of the group. Just five riders remain - Cavalli, Brown, Longo Borghini, Vollering and Moolman Pasio.

The Movistar rider attacks and reaches Grace Brown, going straight past with a huge attack.

Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons is a bit of a beast of a final climb - 1.3km in length, with an average gradient of 11%. Brown has a lead of 18 seconds over the chasing group now.

With 20 seconds over the chasing group of favourites, Brown also maintains a 35 second gap over the next group on the road. The Australian national time trial champion looks comfortable going solo at the front.

FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Futuroscope have a lone leader in Grace Brown, who has a 15 second lead over the rest with 20.7km remaining. Cavalli reportedly said the team were working with joint leaders today, and with Cavalli herself in the chasing group the French team are looking strong once again.

With van Vleuten and Reusser back in the fold, the attacks begin, first from Pauline Rooijakkers and next from Grace Brown, who quickly opens up a small gap over the rest.

With the two chasing groups joining forces, the lead of Annemiek van Vleuten is diminishing. Marlen Reusser continues to follow her wheel. 23km remain, with less than 10km to the final climb of the day.

As the groups begin to come back together, other riders make efforts to bring themselves to the front including Niewiadoma, and Juliette Labous of DSM.

With Reusser not coming through, it's down to Annemiek van Vleuten to do the work at the front of the leading pair of riders. Their lead is trickling away though, as the chasing group of eight riders close in.

A third group of six riders follows on 28 seconds behind the leaders including Grace Brown (FDJ), Lianne Lippert (DSM) and Pauline Rooijakkers (Canyon//SRAM). Kasia Niewiadoma has not made the cut today for Canyon//SRAM.

With the climb dealt with, the two leaders have a gap of 20 seconds over the chasing group, including most of the pre-race favourites along with those who were able to hang on from the breakaway. 27.5km remain.

With van Vleuten and Reusser clear at the front, a chasing group of eight solidifies behind.

Thomas, Muzik, Vollering, Spratt, Moolman Pasio, Cavalli, Longo Borghini and Paladin make up the chasing group of eight riders.

The two riders at the front open up a gap to the chasing group which is down to around seven riders.

Annemiek van Vleuten attacks and closes the gap to the breakaway, immediately moving through to the front. The Movistar rider is looking powerful but Marlen Reusser is able to stick with her.

Riders are falling away as Moolman Pasio sets an infernal pace up the climb. Vollering, Longho Borghini, Cavalli, Brown, van Vleuten, Niewiadoma are all there.

Heading onto the Côte de La Redoute Moolman Pasio attacks for SD Worx, stringing out the peloton and slashing the lead of the breakaway group to 23 seconds.

With 31.1km remaining, Marta Cavalli's team mate Brodie Chapman suffers a mechanical - she's quickly back up and running again, although she has to stop again shortly after for a bike change. Chapman has been very active in recent one-day races and will be missed by her team if she can't make it back on.

With the stronger teams working in the peloton, the gap to the breakaway closes quite rapidly - it's now under a minute, with less than 2km remaining until the Côte de La Redoute.

With Marlen Reusser in the lead group, SD Worx are also active in the peloton. They have options for the day, including both Demi Vollering and Ashleigh Moolman Pasio, who came 3rd and 4th on Wednesday at La Flèche Wallonne Féminine.

With just over 5km to the next climb the lead group's advantage is holding steady, hovering around the 1.25 mark.

Côte de La Redoute is 2km long, at an average gradient of 8.9%. It comes with around 30km remaining in the race, and is the next ascent that the riders will face. Short but steep, the central part of the climb includes sections of up to 16%.

UAE Team ADQ are at the front of the bunch as the live coverage kicks in. UAE ride for Mavi Garcia today. The lead group have 1.26 over the peloton.

As the lead group of eight riders tackle the Côte de Desnié, we see their lead being gradually chipped away by the chasing peloton. It's now down to 1.23.

The breakaway group hit the Côte de Desnié with a lead of 1.30 over the peloton. We may start to see one or two of them drift away, however those that can hold on will be able to provide support for their leaders as and when the bunch close in, heading into the final two climbs of the day.

The live ticker now suggests the gap is out to almost two minutes - the front group are clearly collaborating well, while there is a lack of cohesion in the bunch. This is look good for our breakaway riders, although with the next climb coming in just a couple of kilometres' time, things could change again rapidly.

Cédrine Kerbaol of Cofidis tries to bridge across to the front group, who still have a significant gap of 1.15 over the peloton.

This year's race travels from Bastogne to Liège over a distance of 142.km. The race takes in seven climbs. The final climb of the day is the Côte de La Roche Aux Faucons. The is the sixth edition of the race.

With under 50km remaining, the teams driving the bunch are not working together, and as a result, the gap to the breakaway group of six remains at 1.10.

This is just the sixth edition of of Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes. The Dutch have won all but one of the past five editions, with Lizzie Deignan the only non-Dutch rider to take victory, back in 2020. Demi Vollering won last year's thrilling edition of the race; her former team mate and now DS Anna van der Breggen has won twice, with Annemiek van Vleuten the other winner, in 2019.

And just like that, we're within the final 50km of Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes, where a strong front group of 8 riders leads with a gap of 1.10.

With the Col du Rosier done and dusted the front group have now extended their advantage to 1.10 over a bunch. The chase is being led by UAE Team ADQ.

A reminder of the riders who are out front and currently holding a lead of 1.00 over the peloton:

Marlen Reusser (SD Worx), Sara Martin (Movistar), Leah Thomas (Trek-Segafredo), Soraya Paladin (Canyon//Sram Racing), Evita Muzic (FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope), Amanda Spratt (Team BikeExchange), Leah Kirchmann (Team DSM) and Clara Honsinger (EF Education-Tibco-SVB)

The next climb is the Côte de Desnie in around 10km time.

With 55km of the race remaining, the front group maintain their lead of one minute over the rest.

The leading group of eight begin the ascent of the Col du Rosier, with a minute over the rest of the bunch. A rider from UAE Team ADG is in pursuit in between the lead group and the peloton.

With around 3km remaining to Col du Rosier, let's take a look at the composition of our leading group. It includes representation from all of the top teams, including team mates of Marta Cavalli, Annemiek van Vleuten, Demi Vollering, Kasia Niewiadoma and Elisa Longo Borghini. Jumbo Visma, UAE Team ADG and Uno-X have all missed out on the move.

A strong leading group has pulled out a 20 second gap over the bunch - here are the riders who've made it across:
Marlen Reusser (SD Worx), Sara Martin (Movistar), Leah Thomas (Trek-Segafredo), Soraya Paladin (Canyon//Sram Racing), Evita Muzic (FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope), Amanda Spratt (Team BikeExchange), Leah Kirchmann (Team DSM) and Clara Honsinger (EF Education-Tibco-SVB)

The next climb the riders face is the Col du Rosier. it's the longest climb in the race and is likely to cause significant splits in the bunch. It's 4.4km long, with an average gradient of 5.9%; expect to see numerous attacks go up this climb.

A reminder that live coverage of the race begins at 10.35 BST - stayed tuned for here for the latest updates from the race.

As expected, following a brief period of respite the attacks have begun anew as riders try to gain an advantage heading toward the next climb of the day, the Col du Rosier.

The peloton navigate a sharp turn in the road as they head back west towards the next climb en route, the Col du Rosier.

With 500m remaining on Côte de La Haute-Levée, the final breakaway rider, Quinty Ton of Liv Racing Xstra, was swallowed up by the bunch. Expect attacks to begin imminently as the business end of the race is upon us.

The peloton have the break in their sights and are holding them at 15 seconds. They will surely be reeled in any minute now, after a valiant effort for the first half of the race.

With 68km left to race, the riders are over halfway through their day. They face four more iconic climbs before their arrival in Liège.

Liège–Bastogne–Liège is a race characterised by hard climbs that are stacked mainly in the second half of the race. Next up is the Côte de Haute-Levée (2.2km at 7.5%). With the gap down to 15 seconds, it's likely the breakaway will be swallowed up by the peloton as they ascend this climb.

Riding in support of Demi Vollering, and with past winner Anna van der Breggen in the team car as DS, SD Worx were always set to be a strong presence at the race. They are setting a high pace at the front of the bunch and quickly eating into the break's advantage, which is now down to just 23 seconds.

The Côte de Wanne climb is next up and the gap to the break is now under a minute.

It's been a stellar spring for FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Futuroscope's Marta Cavalli - with spectacular victories in Amstel Gold and La Fleche Wallonne she could make history and take all three Ardennes classics were she to win today. She would be only the second woman ever to complete the triple - Anna van der Breggen was the first, winning the inaugural edition of Liege in 2017 along with Amstel and Fleche in that year too.

The race is clipping along at quite a pace - the women have already covered over 60km and have just under 80km remaining, with the day's climbs coming more regularly now we are in the latter half of the race. Live coverage kicks in at 10.30 BST.

Le Col-Wahoo's Flora Perkins wins the race to the top of Côte de Mont-le-Soie and nets herself a €250 prize for her trouble.

A couple of abandons to report - Movistar's Jelena Eric and Trek-Segafredo's Tayler Wiles have both withdrawn from the race leaving their teams one woman short.

Heading into the early climbs of the day, the breakaway group of four riders has a gap of 1.40 over the peloton. Trek-Segafredo's Audrey Cordon-Ragot is reportedly struggling at the back of the bunch.

A select group of eight riders have ridden in all six Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes - including Annemiek van Vleuten, who goes for her second victory today.

Four riders have a gap over the peloton - they are: Jeanne Korevaar and Quinty Ton (Liv Racing Xstra); Flora Perkins (Le Col-Wahoo), and Magdeleine Vaillieres Mill (EF Education-Tibco-SVB)

128 riders began the day, with only one DNS, Amandine Fouquenet of Team Arkea.

There have been a number of early attacks as the break tries to establish itself. With 32km of the race's 142.1km distance elapsed, the battle was still on to get away from the bunch.

Thanks for joining us for the final Ardennes Classic of the 2022 season - it promises to be a fantastic day of racing with FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine's Marta Cavalli going for a historic triple, having already sealed victory at the Amstel Gold Race and La Flèche Wallonne. However Movistar's Annemiek van Vleuten and SD Worx' Demi Vollering are among the other favourites poised to make sure Cavalli doesn't have an easy ride.

The race is already underway - let's get you up to speed on the action so far...

With two-time champion Anna van der Breggen retired and the 2020 winner Lizzie Deignan on sabbatical, the only two previous winners taking to the start will be the Dutch pair Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar) and Demi Vollering (SD Worx).

Victory in Paris-Roubaix will make Italy’s Elisa Longo Borghini (Trek-Segafredo) one of the pre-race favourites and it remains to be seen what condition Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma) is in after the Dutch veteran missed the Hell of the North with Covid. Fourth last year, Poland’s Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Canyon-Sram) will be in the mix alongside Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig of FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine – although it's the cheery Dane's team-mate Marta Cavalli who's perhaps the bigger threat after the Italian added a victory in La Fleche Wallonne to her earlier Amstel Gold success.

Trek has power in numbers with Ellen van Dijk and Lucinda Brand both offering options should Longo Borghini falter, ditto Ashleigh Moolman Pasio at SD Worx in the event of a Vollering off-day. Canyon-Sram also have Switzerland's Elise Chabbey to consider, while Spain's Mavi Garcia is also in good nick.

The women’s race could just as well be called Bastogne-Liege Femmes for it runs pretty much along an identical course to the men’s route just without the southward preamble from Liege to the roundabout at Bastogne. The 142.1km route features the same seven climbs as the northward leg of the men’s race, most notably the decisive Redoute/Roche-aux-Faucons combo at the end of what usually proves to be an explosive and selective race.

In 2019 and 2020 the key moves came on La Redoute – and the placing of the penultimate climb closer to the finish will perhaps encourage more attacks here rather than on the Cote de la Roche-aux-Faucons. As in the men’s race, the final categorised climb is immediately followed by that final six-percent test before the fast and technical descent towards Liege. Both races conclude with a flat 2km run through the city and towards the finish.

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