• Kopecky finds late burst of energy to win gold
• Minute’s silence held before race for Muriel Furrer

A women’s world championship road race for the ages was won by Lotte Kopecky, who survived everything a spiteful Zurich afternoon could throw at her to retain her rainbow jersey. On a day where the rain was incessant and temperatures struggled into double figures, the 28-year-old’s body felt frozen long before the end and she was dropped on the final climb as Demi Vollering pushed the pace.

But the Belgian was given a lifeline by some hesitation among the leaders, as well as some questionable tactics from the Dutch team, which enabled her to work back into contention as six riders headed to the finish at the Sechseläutenplatz.