"I think the season went well. It's been a bit of a strange year, changing teams, moving to Covid, it's been a very compact year, but when I look back on the year it makes me smile," she told Cycling News from the first team training camp of the winter, held at the FDJ service course in France.
"There is a part of me that wants to do better, and I think that is the competitive spirit. Because one of my big goals was to win on the World Tour, and that didn't happen. That's on my list of big goals for next year.
Uttrup-Ludwig was the lone winner of the Giro delle Miglia International Donne Elite and took the mountains prize at the Giro Rosa. In La Flèche Wallonne, she finished second behind Anne van der Breggen, but it was a great accomplishment for both Uttrup-Ludwig and her competitors to be able to hold the race in a year when the race calendar was filled with cancellations.
During the European blockade, the FDJ leader remained in Denmark and was free to train on the road, but she too received a constant stream of media requests as journalists struggled to fill their pages with race-related copy.
"I think it was the same for everyone, but we were all crazy happy just to have the calendar and the race. It was hard to come back, but it wasn't too hard to stay motivated. We were able to stay in Denmark and train outdoors. I didn't stay in Spain, so I didn't get bored during lockdown, just with my home trainer."
"But I didn't have any new hobbies, but during that time I felt like I was getting more media requests because there were no races for cycling journalists to write about. They said, 'We can't write about races. I was busy on and off the bike, training for hours on end. My motivation was still high and I was always positive that the season was coming.
Uttrup Ludwig, who moved to FDJ at the start of the season, became the de facto leader of the women's World Tour team. She had proven herself over several years in Bigla with results, including a memorable third place at the 2019 Tour de Flanders, but a win in a high-profile race should have been an indicator that her move to France would be appreciated.
In many ways, every athlete competing in 2020 deserves a passing grade because of the circumstances in which they competed, but Uttrup-Ludwig does not want that kind of sympathy. Her victory in Italy was a timely reminder of the class of her bike and the progress she is still making despite not having raced until July.
"It's one of the best feelings to win and put your hands up.
"It was important for the team, and there was a feeling of "I did it, I did it." I still felt like a rookie on the team, but it was cool and a good start for me on the team. Personally, it was important to me. Because some people thought I was talented, but I wanted to prove that I was more than that. 0]
The results at the Giro Rosa proved Uttrup-Ludwig's consistency--she moved into fourth place on the second stage and never lost a position from there--but the time she lost on the opening stage was too much for her to turn around. However, to make up the time she lost in the opening stage, she needed to move up to 2nd overall.
"The team time trial is one of the things we want to keep working on and I think it has potential for the team. It's something to work on in the future and it's exciting. Fourth in the Giro is one of the worst results in a way. It gives me even more motivation for next year.
Although the race plan has not yet been officially announced, Uttrup-Ludwig will likely use Valenciana as his debut race in 2020. The Olympics are a big target, along with the spring classics, but a return to the Giro will depend on whether the race schedule is changed. The 10-day race is no longer a World Tour event as organizers were unable to fulfill many commitments due to TV exposure and organizational issues, but for now, Uttrup-Ludwig is using the winter to train and further strengthen the bond with his teammates that he built during a turbulent season ...
"Right now I am just training and I know that at this point it is important to build a good foundation and have that base. As the season gets closer, I'll do more intense training and sharpen things up, but right now I'm just building a good base and I know that's enough," said Uttrup Ludwig. I am very close to getting my first win on the World Tour. That's my big goal.
"I don't have anything set on my calendar yet, but I know most of the races I will be competing in. I still don't know a bit about what races will take place and what the COVID situation will be like, but who knows? But next year we have the Olympics, and one of my main goals is to represent Denmark. I love the classics and they are very important to me."
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