Amanda Spratt (Mitchelton-Scott) is focusing all of her attention on the newly-formed Women's WorldTour and is also eyeing gold at the UCI Road World Championships later this year as an Australian rider.

The 32-year-old will return to racing later this month, but the bulk of the Women's World Tour races in September and August, along with the climber-friendly World Championships, are her foundation for the year.

The past few months have felt like a lifetime of global blockades, pandemics, and daily life restrictions. For professional cyclists, the biggest challenge has been to stay focused as races were postponed and teams faced economic instability.

Spratt managed to minimize distractions off the bike. That in itself is quite a feat, considering that until recently, Mitchelton Scott's future was by no means secure. The failed buyout from the Manuela Fundacion has prompted team owner Jerry Ryan to change the team's management structure and intervene financially to ensure the team's safety for at least the next two years.

"It was not a distraction," Spratt told Cycling News of the Manuela Fundacion episode.

"Since the lockdown, the team has been communicating and looking out for the staff and riders. With Manuela, and with the reorganization of the team, the team has kept us informed with accurate information. It's easy to read everything that's out there and draw your own conclusions, but anytime I could pick up the phone, I knew what was really going on.

"In general, as athletes, we are used to putting everything else aside and just focusing on our work. So I didn't stress myself out, I just focused on training."

Jerry Ryan has played a pivotal role in the development and success of Australian cycling over the decades.

"His commitment is astounding. He has been involved in Australian cycling for several years and has been particularly committed to GreenEdge over the last few years. I wouldn't be where I am today without his support.

"We have had men's and women's teams from the beginning and he has always had a commitment to women's cycling from the beginning. We have gained a lot because of his passion and support. You always want to get good results and when you get to the finish line you think about all the people who helped you, from team officials to teammates to family. Jerry is among them. Without him, we wouldn't be here."

Spratt, who has not raced since finishing third in the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race in January, will adjust her form in a series of races at the end of July and begin WorldTour work at Strade Bianche in early August. After that, there will be a lull in the women's World Tour races until the fall, but after that, the event will be packed with events.

"I'm looking forward to coming back. Because for me it will be almost six months, longer for some people, between races.

"This is the first time I've done this kind of preparation at this time of year, which is effectively the start of the season. I have been training hard for the race. Strade Bianche is the first race on the World Tour, but after that we have a big break until the rest of the World Tour, so it will be very interesting to see who goes hard in the first race and who will be ready in September and October when the racing continues. "

With so many races in a row and so few precedents, teams and riders alike will enter the new season with a sense of the unknown. For Spratt, however, having a clear goal is the key to success.

"It's going to be three months of intense racing, and it's hard to stay at the top level for three months. For me, the Giro, the World Championships, and the Ardennes are really my goals for that period. The Giro, the World Championships, and the Ardennes, those three months are my biggest target. That's my plan, that's my goal. I hope it works out."

And Spratt's main focus this season will be the World Championships, where the governing body and local Swiss authorities have given the championships the tentative go-ahead, despite speculation that the COVID-19 restrictions could move the major UCI event to the flatlands of the Middle East. This is good news for Spratt, who excels in mountainous terrain and has already won silver and bronze medals at previous World Championships.

"Like I said before, I try not to read too much media, but I did read about the possibility of the World Championships being moved to the Middle East. I panicked a little bit, but it's great that it's going to be held in Switzerland. I've seen and run the course and I think it's a great opportunity for the Australian team to get a result. I'm focused on this race," Spratt said. [I went twice last year and ran some laps on the course. DS lives on the course and I'm getting to know the course pretty well. I hope by race day I know the course like the back of my hand."

For Spratt to conquer Switzerland and win Australia's first rainbow jersey in the elite women's road race, she will need to beat not the course but a formidable opponent in the Netherlands, which has won five of the last eight events.

"The Netherlands have won most of the previous world championships, with the exception of Qatar. The Netherlands have won most of the previous World Championships, with the exception of Qatar. But I don't care about what they are doing, I'm just focused on making sure I'm in the best condition I can be. This is a great course for me and the climbs are very hard.