Results: Sofia Gomez Villafañe and Alexey Vermeulen Win 2024 Big Sugar Gravel

“], “filter”: { “nextExceptions”: “img, blockquote, div”, “nextContainsExceptions”: “img, blockquote, a.btn, a.o-button”} }”>

Sofia Gomez Villafañe and Alexey Vermeulen celebrated under champagne spray in Bentonville, Arkansas on Saturday after winning Big Sugar Gravel.

Both riders crossed the line solo after edging out their breakaway companions in the final miles of the 100-mile race.

Gomez Villafañe finished in 5:32:20, 15 seconds ahead of Melisa Rollins. Cecily Decker, who rode with the pair until she was dropped on a late climb, came across the line in third, just 25 seconds after Rollins.

In the men’s race, Vermeulen crossed the line eight seconds before Colby Simmons after the pair broke away with over 40 miles left in the race. Simen Nordahl Svendsen won the four-man sprint for third place.

The Women’s Race

As has become standard in the Life Time Grand Prix, the elite women’s field had its own start at Big Sugar. For Rollins, who was second, this set the tone for the day.

“Today the race was a women’s race,” she said. “It was not influenced by men. The moves were made by women, the win was women-powered. I think it’s great and headed in the right direction.”

By mile 20, half of the 48-rider elite women’s field were still together. By mile 30, that group had whittled down to 13, and by the midway point of the race, a group of nine — Sarah Sturm, Alexis Skarda, Flavia Oliveira Parks, Erin Huck, Paige Onweller, Stella Hobbs, Gomez Villafañe, Decker, and Rollins — made up the front.

Lauren De Crescenzo and Michaela Thompson were chasing and eventually made contact with the group. As the women traversed the hills and hollers of northwest Arkansas, no one waited for anyone else to make moves.

“There were a lot of attacks,” Gomez Villafañe said. “The group would come apart then pack together again. I was throwing down where ever I could.”

Ultimately, Gomez Villafañe, Rollins, and Decker went clear with about 15 miles to go. Each was motivated to win the race for different reasons, and that powered the trio to move efficiently together for about 12 miles. At the base of the final of two short climbs, Rollins attacked and only Gomez Villafañe could follow.

Admittedly after Grand Prix points more than a win on the day, Rollins asked her friend for assist.

“I was like, ‘help me!’” Rollins said. “She pulled through once and then she kicked my ass.”

Gomez Villafañe was able to shed Rollins on the final pitch into downtown Bentonville, her win fulfilling a goal she set before the 2025 season.

“I had a goal to win the first race of the season and the last race of the season,” she said. “In past years I’ve tended to fade and sort-of crumble at the end and Big Sugar has always kicked my butt, so I’m excited to take the win today.”

Gomez Villafañe met her goal and more, winning Sea Otter, Chequamegon, and Big Sugar this year, while placing second at both Leadville and The Rad. Although she had the overall Grand Prix series wrapped up before today’s race, she wasn’t coming to party ride.

Decker, who was third on the day, also sealed up her 2025 season authoritatively. She was third at The Rad last month, and consistent racing throughout the summer put her sixth overall in the Grand Prix.

2024 Big Sugar Gravel Women’s Top 20

Full women’s results here

The Men’s Race

90 elite men lined up at Big Sugar on Saturday, but by the halfway point of the 100-mile race, it was a group of 15 animating the front.

Then, with 44 miles to go, Alexey Vermeulen made a move that would stick until the end.

The 30-year-old, who has twice been second overall in the Life Time Grand Prix, had a bit of a rough go in the series this year. He said that was part of his motivation for showing up so strongly at Big Sugar on Saturday.

“Cheated is probably the wrong word, but at the last two races I kinda felt cheated,” he said. “At Chequamegon and The Rad I was going really well and  bad luck happened. I just wanted to finish really hard. If I had been third today or fourth I think I would have been stoked, but I wanted to put my stamp on the race early on, I didn’t want to take it to the line and I think that showed.”

When Vermeulen went, he bridged up to two riders who were about 20 seconds up the road. One was 21-year-old Visma-Lease-A-Bike U23 rider Colby Simmons. When Vermeulen made contact, Simmons was able to hold his wheel. The duo worked together to stay ahead of the chasers behind them.

According to Vermeulen, Simmons asked him to reel it back a little on the climbs so they could continue working together. Then, they had ‘the talk.’

“I brought it up — ‘hey, one we hit the asphalt it was like, we’re gonna race this,’” Vermeulen said. “So we kept pulling through. But he knew I was gonna go hard on the climb, then he started to come back on the flat part between the climbs. For me, literally the whole day from when I attacked, it was ‘pace pace pace.’

Vermeulen’s strategy worked, and he beat Simmons by eight seconds. But Simmons, who is based in Europe where he races “50/50 with the Jumbo Visma U23 team and the WorldTour team,” was stoked.

“In Europe I’m used to getting dropped pretty much all the time, but in this I can actually do something in the race so it’s quite enjoyable,” he said.

Simmons was third at US Gravel Nationals in September, but he says he doesn’t have plans to abandon his road racing aspirations just yet.

Behind the top two men, a four-man sprint ensued with Simen Nordahl Svendsen the fastest to the line.

Just one week after finishing second at Ranxo Gravel in Spain and winning the overall Gravel Earth series, Nordahl Svendsen, who lives in Norway, had a bit of a deer-in-the-headlights look when asked if he’d be applying to the 2025 Life Time Grand Prix series after his result on Saturday.

“I’ll race a lot of races in the U.S. anyway, that’s already on my schedule, but I have considered applying … and I’ll continue to consider it. As a European, it’s really just more about logistics,” he said.

2024 Big Sugar Gravel Men’s Top 20

Full men’s results here