Rabo Women Number 1 in the world

Vos has had a perfect CX season - and now her team is
ranked the best in the world as the start of the road season
draws nearer
(image credit: Rabosport)

Hot on the heels of the Vos to race men story is news that the new Stichting-Rabobank Women team, which was constructed around her, is at the top of the UCI rankings in the run-up to the start of the 2012 season and with the Tour of Qatar, which will be the team's first race, beginning on the 1st of February and the Ronde van Drenthe - the first round of the Women's World Cup - less than two months away.

Specialized-Lululemon are in second place, followed by AA Drink-Leontien.nl in third - but with AA Drink recently confirming it has signed Emma Pooley and other riders from the ill-fated Garmin-Cervelo, there's every likelihood that the team will move up and possibly even challenge the mighty Rabobank.

The UCI say that the 35 women's teams signed up to race internationally in the coming year is a record - by our calculations, there were 37 in 2008 but the number then decreased over the coming years to 2010 when there were 27, then a slight increase to 28 in 2011. Seven extra teams is fantastic news, hopefully an indication that women's cycling is not in straits quite as dire as we had feared, and a sure sign that 2012 is going to be a vintage year for fans of the sport.