Kasia Niewiadoma delivered a spectacular solo performance on the legendary Mont Ventoux, securing a slim overall lead in the Tour de France Femmes. The Polish rider left behind fellow race favourites Marlen Reusser and Demi Vollering to claim her first Tour stage victory.
Niewiadoma, who previously won the yellow jersey in 2024, expressed her excitement, stating, “It’s hard to describe my feelings because I’m still blown away by what just happened.” Her decisive acceleration came just under 10km from the summit, as Vollering and Reusser appeared to hesitate.
With two stages remaining, Niewiadoma leads the overall standings by 15 seconds from Demi Vollering, the 2023 champion. Marlen Reusser is currently in third place, 39 seconds behind Niewiadoma. The Polish rider expects a significant challenge in the final 48 hours, noting, “I’m expecting a massive fight for everything – points, bonus seconds, everything – because the gap is so small.”
Among those who withdrew from the race before the stage was Anna van der Breggen, described as “not feeling at her best.” Defending champion Pauline Ferrand-Prévot and stage six winner Kim Le Court also fell away during the challenging climb.