Grace Brown (Team Bike Exchange), who has made remarkable strides in 2020, is eyeing the opportunity to lead the Australian team in the Spring Classic.

The 28-year-old, who won Brabantse Pijl last season and finished second to Lizzie Diegnan in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, has been consistent with a string of strong performances throughout the Classic's regrouped season. Now that Annemiek van Fruten has moved to Movistar, she is looking to fill the void and lead the team to the Classic and the One-Day stage.

"The year is open to me in a way, and I have to make the most of it because this opportunity may not come again," Brown told Cycling News during the offseason.

"I see this season as pretty important, both in terms of taking it to the next level and continuing what I was doing at the end of last season. I have to keep improving and keep working towards the best way to get results. I think it will be very interesting for the team, not only for me but for the other players as well, to step up and do well without Annemiek van Fruten.

Brown burst onto the scene in 2018 with an impressive run in Australia before moving to Mitchelton Scott early the following year. By her own admission, she went deep on the World Tour, and her first full campaign was as much about learning as it was about getting results.

"I definitely went deep. In my first season with the team, I think I did the most races on the team that year. With that experience, I'm hoping to find another level and then step it up again for 2020. It was a process of learning how to race the entire Classic, knowing when to take a position, when to use your energy, and your riding style. That's something I've learned gradually over the last couple of years."

That experience and racing savvy paid off in 2020, when Brown will compete in the Santos Festival of Racing before returning to Europe to race, due to a slight increase in the number of COVID-19s, Although some have questioned the event being held as an alternative to the Women's Tour Down Under, Brown will compete in this Adelaide-based stage race, which will be held at the same time as the Women's Tour Down Under.

Although this event is not a World Tour event, Brown will be competing in the Australian National Championships and then hopes to put on a show for the local crowd before heading to Europe.

"I was initially disappointed when it was announced that the Tour Down Under had been cancelled, but I enjoy racing on Australian soil before heading back to Europe. It's always fun to race for the Australian fans.

"We are not training for this event, but the important thing for the team is to get in and have a really good race. Our Australian rivals are strong and it is not easy to win. Being in your hometown and having your hometown fans cheering you on makes it even more important.

"The course this year seems to suit me. I haven't run it yet, but from the profile it looks good for me and GC, and there may be stages here and there. Willunga is exciting. It's a short stage to the top, so it will be a bit of a sprint, but it's an iconic climb and I'm looking forward to seeing how the girls do there. Hopefully this will pave the way for us to race on this summit when it becomes a UCI race in the future. ......" .

One of the events Brown will be focusing on later in the season is the UCI Road World Championships. Amanda Spratt is also on the national team, so the team has options, but Brown indicated that she may head to the Olympics to support Spratt. Brown told Cyclingnews, "I'm pretty excited about the course because someone told me that the road course at the World Championships is another version of Brabantspaille."

"I want to work hard for it. With the Olympics coming up this year, a lot of people will be focused on the Olympics, so the World Championships will be forgotten until later in the year. I want to be a leader at the World Championships."