The Traka 360 — Avancini Claims Men's GC as Lauren Stephens Wins Third Consecutive Women's Title

Two races. Two continents. One weekend that settled a few things heading into gravel’s biggest month of the year.

The Traka 360 — Schmidt Goes Solo, Klöser Bounces Back

Mads Würtz Schmidt and Rosa Klöser both won at The Traka 360 in Girona, Spain, on Friday, May 1 — commanding solo victories that marked a landmark day for each of them.

Schmidt, the reigning European gravel champion riding for Specialized Off-Road, didn’t simply control the race from the front. He chased back twice — once after a mechanical, once after a wrong turn — before going definitively solo with more than 90km still remaining on the 325km course. He crossed the line in 9:57:38, becoming the first rider to break the 10-hour barrier at the event. Organisers are calling it the “Traka Double”: Schmidt becomes the first rider to complete the achievement, having won the Traka 200 in 2025 and the Traka 360 in 2026 — victories across both premier distances in back-to-back years.

“I’m really proud of that, maybe I completed Traka then. But no, I really love this race. I live in Girona, it’s a beautiful course, it’s demanding, it’s super difficult, it’s super technical, it has a lot of climbing.” — Mads Würtz Schmidt

Hugo Drechou finished second at +11:18, Matthew Beers third at +11:30. Romain Bardet — multiple Tour de France stage winner — crossed fifth, while defending champion Tobias Kongstad couldn’t repeat his 2025 solo ride.

The women’s race was Klöser’s from the moment the road tilted upward. The German forced an early selection on the opening climbs, whittled the lead group down to herself and Axelle Dubau-Prévot (EF Education-Oatly), then attacked with around 90km to go and rode away clean — finishing in 11:27:58. Dubau-Prévot came in second at 11:40:51, Geerike Schreurs third at 11:46:27.

Context matters here. Klöser had only recently stepped off the cobbled classics circuit with Canyon-SRAM Zondacrypto, and just weeks earlier she’d reported terrible form at Sea Otter Classic Gravel after a rushed journey from Paris-Roubaix to California.

“Sometimes it’s good getting your ass kicked at the race before, because then you really want it, and today I made it.” — Rosa Klöser

The win adds to a palmares that already includes the 2024 Unbound 200 title, back-to-back Traka 200 podiums, and the 2025 Gravel Earth Series overall. The Traka 360 is the Series’ biggest one-day event — and increasingly functions as a form barometer ahead of Unbound Gravel. Lauren De Crescenzo also caught the eye on her Traka 360 debut, finishing inside the top ten.

Tour of the Gila — Avancini Overturns Deficit, Stephens Makes History

Across the Atlantic that same day, Henrique Avancini (Localiza Meoo-Swift) claimed the men’s overall at the Tour of the Gila in New Mexico — and he did it the hard way. The brutal 100.6-mile Gila Monster finale featured nearly 10,000 feet of climbing. Samuel Florez (Modern Adventure) won the stage outright. Overnight leader Walter Vargas cracked badly, shedding 14 minutes and dropping to 27th overall. Avancini’s third-place finish was enough to overturn a 17-second deficit and take the GC by 24 seconds over Kieran Haug, with Diego Camargo third at 37 seconds.

Lauren Stephens (Aegis x Leaders of Enchantment) secured her third consecutive Tour of the Gila overall title — building her GC lead across three stage wins and never giving up the leader’s jersey. Her team swept the final podium, with Ashley Frye (Competitive Edge) second and Emily Gilbert (Virginia’s Blue Ridge TWENTY28) third. In a display of squad depth that the race hadn’t seen before, Aegis claimed every classification jersey: overall, mountains, sprints, best young rider, and teams. The first time in the race’s 39-year history that one team has completed that sweep.

What’s Next

The Traka 200 followed on Saturday, won by Lukas Pöstlberger and Sofia Gómez Villafañe. Gravel’s elite now turn toward Unbound Gravel in Emporia, Kansas — and Schmidt’s sub-10-hour ride and Klöser’s dominant Traka performance will not have gone unnoticed by the rest of the field.