Stage 3 of the 2025 Tour de Suisse Women unfolded with early drama and a late surge to a sprint finale, as Elisa Balsamo edged Mischa Bredewold in a photo finish to claim her fifth win of the season. The 124km stage to Küssnacht was shaped by a long solo move from Kristen Faulkner, before the sprinters’ teams regained control and teed up a fast and technical finish.
It took just 2km for Faulkner to launch her attack, going clear solo with no takers on her wheel. The EF Education-Oatly rider built up a maximum lead of 1:45 and remained off the front for nearly 90 kilometres, crossing all the day’s key climbing points alone and helping animate what had initially been a cautious peloton.
The gap began to fall steadily after the Aegeristrasse climb, where teams started to sense the importance of positioning into the final run. Faulkner was finally caught with 34km to go, just as a flurry of attacks followed on the false flat. Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney and Mavi García both tested the pace with digs, but with several teams interested in a sprint, none of the moves were allowed to stick.
As the bunch regrouped into the final 10km, Lidl-Trek, Movistar, and SD Worx-Protime all took turns trying to position their finishers. The technical final kilometre featured a fast right-hand bend 400 metres from the line, where Balsamo held her nerve and launched her sprint early from around 250 metres out.
Bredewold, in perfect position on the wheel of Blanka Vas, hesitated briefly before opening up and surged late, only to run out of road. Noemi Rüegg came in behind them for third, with Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka finishing just off the podium in fourth.
After the finish, Faulkner was upbeat despite missing out on a result, clearly pleased with her return to form after a difficult start to the year. “I’m definitely more fit now than I was this morning,” she joked. “We planned to be in the break and I tried to get others to come with me, but no one did. At first I thought, ‘this will come back quickly,’ but when the gap grew, I figured I may as well keep pushing.” Faulkner, who suffered a concussion over the winter, sees the effort as a useful step. “Today was good for training those longer efforts. That used to be my strength, and I haven’t been able to do much of that this year.”
Mischa Bredewold, meanwhile, was left ruing a missed opportunity. “I probably waited too long,” she admitted. “The lead-out was great and Blanka Vas did an amazing job, but I just didn’t go early enough. A few metres more and I might’ve had it.” Still, the SD Worx-Protime rider saw it as a strong rebound after a disappointing opening stage. “The first day we were all off the pace, but we’ve shown the last two days we’re coming back. It’s frustrating, but we can be proud of how we turned it around.”
Balsamo, for her part, was quick to credit her team for getting her into position. “It was a really close one. I went early because I knew the corner would be decisive. I didn’t see Mischa until the very end, so I just focused on my own sprint.”
Skalniak-Sójka was content with fourth, especially given her recent illness. “I wasn’t feeling great earlier in the race, so to be in the mix today is really satisfying. It’s not a podium, but it’s my best WorldTour result so far.”
Race leader Marlen Reusser retained her yellow jersey, finishing safely in the front group alongside Demi Vollering. With one stage remaining and a steep double ascent of the Michaelskreuz still to come, the general classification remains delicately poised. Reusser leads Vollering by four seconds, with Niewiadoma-Phinney at 1:23, setting up an all-or-nothing finale in Lucerne.
2025 Tour de Suisse Women Stage 3 result
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Main photo credit: Getty
