A rider who walked away from the rainbow jersey defense a year ago doesn't usually return as the clear number two. But Kopecky's 2026 form backs the ranking: a Milan-San Remo win in March, plus back-to-back world titles in 2023 and 2024 still on the résumé. Willems was blunt about the hierarchy — «Demi Vollering is the absolute top favorite, but Lotte Kopecky can certainly be placed just below her» — which reads less like consolation and more like a coach who's done the math on who else is racing.