New Zealander Ally Wollaston has experienced the highs and lows of racing, with three early-season victories and a Grand Tour-winning team effort giving way to a recent battle for form.
The 2025 Tour of Britain Women champion described her 2026 campaign as both a “mixed bag” and a “rollercoaster”, and, as she heads towards the final months of a long year, she’s aiming to get back on track, both literally and figuratively.
Wollaston won’t be taking a second Tour of Britain title this year, instead forming part of FDJ United-SUEZ’s support team for Lauren Dickson on the queen stage at The Great Orme in Llandudno. Speaking after the finish, she said that she’s hoping to refind her form and confidence ahead of big late-season goals.
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“Personally, it’s been a pretty mixed bag for me. I came into this week with a little bit of uncertainty, I’d say. I was a little bit ill last week, and just probably a lack of road racing for me,” she told Cyclingnews.
“So just trying to find the legs and a bit of confidence in the peloton again, I’d say for this week, has been my goal.
“Obviously we came here with a really strong team with Lauren, and we’re really proud of the job that she did today. It was a brutal, brutal climb, and she did really well, so we’re super proud of her.”
Wollaston’s mixed bag looks impressive from the outside, even if she isn’t pleased with recent form. The 25-year-old enjoyed a flying start to the year, taking two stages and the points jersey at the Tour Down Under, plus a second career New Zealand road title and a second Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race win in as many years.
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In March, Wollaston took seventh in Milan-San Remo, and in May she helped Demi Vollering take home the maglia rosa at the Giro d’Italia Women. Off the bike, she graduated with her law degree, and more recently, she picked up team pursuit silver at the Commonwealth Games while narrowly missing out on adding bronze in the points race.
“I’d say a bit of a rollercoaster of a season for me. Nothing drastically gone wrong, just yeah, a little bit sub-par at the moment,” Wollaston said.
“It’s not to say it’s been an unsuccessful season. But as athletes, you just want to be going good all the time, and unfortunately, that’s not the way it’s been going for me the last few months. I’m confident that after this solid week of racing, my form will come up.”
A host of other riders in the Tour of Britain Women peloton are using the race to build up for the Road World Championships in Montreal at the end of September. For Wollaston, however, it’s all about the Track Worlds in Shanghai, running October 14-18, with the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028 her long-term target.
“I’ve still got some big goals and ambitions for the rest of the season with the Track Worlds coming up in October, so yeah, I’ll just reset and focus on that for the next few months,” said Wollaston, a World Champion in Elimination and Omnium two years ago.
“Just coming into the Olympics in L.A., I’m starting to get a little bit of tunnel vision, I’d say, for the track. So, I’m certainly leaning towards that.”
Wollaston’s battle for form in recent months has made switching between road and track more challenging than usual, she said. But she’s identified her weaknesses and is now focused on the future.
“For me, I find it really mentally refreshing to jump between the two. I think this season has been a little bit tricky trying to juggle them and trying to be the best at both, and timing that. I’d say I’ve definitely struggled with that this season.
“In previous seasons, I’ve maybe had it mapped out a little bit more than this season. I feel like I’ve just been floating through the season a little bit without some real targets. So, I think definitely back to the drawing board for me, and just try to structure out the next two years to L.A. maybe a little bit clearer.”
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