Nicola Rutzou
The Tour de France Femmes concluded on Sunday in the picturesque French Alpine village of Chatel. A new French hero Pauline Ferrand-Prévot of Team Visma | Lease a Bike was crowned the winner taking the General Classification maillot jaune in emphatic style.
After her dazzling race-winning performance on the Col de la Madeleine on Stage 8, Ferrand-Prévot was the strongest rider again on Sunday afternoon, leaving her rivals behind with 6.7km to go and powering on to cross the finish line 20” ahead of Demi Vollering of FDJ – Suez, who also finished second overall by 3’42” in the general classification. Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney of Canyon/SRAM zondacrypto was third on the stage, finishing 23” behind Ferrand-Prevot on the day and third overall at 4’09”.
Special mention goes to Aussie rider Sarah Gigante, who showed her climbing prowess to secure second place on Stage 8 at the top of the Col de la Madeleine. She followed this with a seventh place in Stage 9, finishing a very creditable sixth place overall. Bravo Sarah.
I was lucky enough to be on the roadside for Stage 9 as a guest of Cervélo and Visma | Lease a Bike, and the crowds were phenomenal. French fans lined the roads with many signs cheering their hero on, ‘Allez Pauline’ (Go Pauline), the most popular homemade cardboard sign.
It’s hard to believe this is only the fourth edition of the relaunched women’s Tour de France. I’m sure that the A.S.O. (the race owner) is glad it took the plunge. It must be paying off for the organisation, particularly because no Frenchman has won the great race since Bernard Hinault in 1985.
Enjoy these amazing images from the A.S.O.
Nicola Rutzou – a long-time contributor and, most recently, the editor of Bicycling Australia. Nicola is a keen Sydney-based road cyclist who writes reviews, news, and destination pieces, as well as the weekly e-newsletter for BA online.
