Kasia Niewiadoma takes stunning solo victory atop Mont Ventoux to take Tour de France Femmes lead
Kasia Niewiadoma stormed to her first Tour de France Femmes stage win with a stunning solo victory atop Mont Ventoux and seized the overall lead on a dramatic stage seven.
The Pole had been third in the general classification standings going into the ‘queen stage’ of this year’s race, with 3,500m of elevation gain across four categorised climbs along the 147km route from La Voulte-sur-Rhone to the legendary Mont Ventoux.
2024 champion Niewiadoma had been 1’17” behind yellow jersey Marlen Reusser, with 2023 winner Demi Vollering second at 12 seconds back and the favourite to win the title this time around.
But Canyon-SRAM’s Niewiadoma had other ideas, dropping Reusser and Vollering with 9km to go on the 15.7km hors-categorie climb and never looking back, continuing to power up the slope with a grimace on her face as she won by 1’16”.
She flung her hands in the air as she crossed the line before nearly grinding to a halt. Having won the 2024 edition by just four seconds from Vollering, fighting all the way to the line on another historic Tour climb – Alpe d’Huez – to cling onto her lead, she was no doubt aware that every second could prove crucial come Sunday’s finale.
Behind her, Vollering dropped Reusser on the double-digit gradients of the final kilometre and soloed to second, while Elisa Longo Borghini caught a rapidly fading Reusser in the final 100m and crossed the line third, 1’42” behind, with the Swiss rider four seconds behind her.
Vollering remains second in the general classification and just 15 seconds behind Niewiadoma, with Reusser falling to third but still only 39 seconds back.
Two category-two climbs and a category-three earlier in the stage were minor skirmishes compared to the hors-categorie summit finish to the stage as the women’s peloton finally tackled Mont Ventoux, one of the Tour de France’s most iconic climbs.
The challenge of surmounting the steepness and length of the ‘Bald Mountain’ – a leg-sapping 8.8%, approached from its tougher southern side – was further compounded by its exposure to the elements and the heat, with the riders racing in stifling conditions albeit on gentler terrain all week.
The battle for the stage win was expected to be contested by Vollering and Niewiadoma, with all eyes on time-trial specialist Reusser to see if the Movistar rider could hang onto her lead.
Vollering’s FDJ Suez-United teammates set an infernal pace as the riders hit the lower slopes, with Reusser tucking in behind the Dutchwoman and defending champion Pauline Ferrand-Prevot, who had already conceded her race was run, among those distanced early on.
Vollering attacked with just under 11km to go, dropping everyone except Reusser and Niewiadoma, but had no response 2km later when the Pole accelerated away.
SD Worx-Protime’s Anna van der Breggen, who finished on the podium of both this year’s Giro d’Italia and Vuelta Espana Femenina, had been considered a dark horse for this race but did not start stage seven. Her team candidly admitted she had struggled during a “difficult week of racing, during which it quickly became clear that she was unable to perform at her usual level”.
The race continues on Saturday with a 171.9km stage from Sisteron to Nice which should provide some respite to the general classification contenders – despite the presence of four categorised climbs – and an outing for the sprinters, who have had to struggle through the Massif Central and up the Giant of Provence in the hope of one more stage win.
This year’s Tour concludes on Sunday with what could yet be the defining stage of the race: an explosive, punchy outing lasting just 99km but encompassing four ascents and descents of the formidable Col d’Eze, with a fast downhill to the line in Nice setting up a dramatic finale.
