The penultimate stage of the Tour de France Femmes took the riders over 166.4km of challenging terrain from Champagnole to Le Grand-Bornand. As the longest stage of the race, it featured five categorised climbs, providing a stern test for the climbers.
The race started cautiously, with no successful attacks in the first two hours. However, the action ramped up as Puck Pieterse claimed the QOM points on the Col de la Croix de la Serra, briefly closing the gap in the mountains classification. Shortly after, a breakaway of six riders formed, including Justine Ghekiere, her AG Insurance-Soudal teammate Julie Van de Velde, green jersey holder Marianne Vos, Sara Martín, Ruth Edwards, and Sarah Roy.
With the breakaway’s lead extending beyond two minutes, Vos briefly became the virtual GC leader, although her main focus was securing maximum points in the intermediate sprint to consolidate her lead in the green jersey. As the break continued to work together, they managed to maintain a significant gap over the peloton as they approached the decisive climbs.
With 16km remaining, the Col de Saint-Jean-de-Sixt loomed. Van de Velde gave one final effort, dropping two riders from the breakaway before Ghekiere launched a solo attack, leaving Vos and Martín behind. By the time she reached the summit, Ghekiere had built a 2:32 minute lead over a reduced peloton.
On the final climb, Montée du Chinaillon, Ghekiere faced a tough challenge but managed to maintain her advantage, crossing the finish line 1:15 minutes ahead of Maëva Squiban, who had attacked from the peloton to take second place. The battle for third saw Demi Vollering sprint past yellow jersey holder Kasia Niewiadoma, gaining valuable bonus seconds and reducing her overall deficit ahead of the final stage.
Photo Credit: ASO-Thomas MaheuxRider Reactions
After her remarkable victory, Justine Ghekiere was still in disbelief, saying, “I really have no words. I think I’m dreaming, it’s crazy. I want to thank my team today, the whole team was at the front and protected me well and helped me to get in the breakaway. And then especially really big thanks to Julie, she rode a really strong race, she did everything for me to get in the best position to start this climb and to save as much energy as possible. This victory is also for her.”
Ghekiere continued to reflect on her performance, especially the crucial moment on the Col de Saint-Jean-de-Sixt: “When I took the last points [on the Col de Saint-Jean-de-Sixt], I was really dead and I thought, ‘yeah, I just go my own pace’. And I could stay away, I can’t believe it, I really can’t believe it. I’m really looking forward to riding the last stage of this Tour in this skinsuit and with a win already, it’s just a dream.”
Demi Vollering, who managed to reduce her overall deficit with a third-place finish, was pleased with her efforts on the final climb. She remarked, “The body was good today, I’m happy with that. The final climb wasn’t steep enough to create big gaps, but I tried to make Kasia nervous, and I think it worked because she kept looking back. It feels good to have gained a few seconds, and I hope tomorrow’s climbing will be enough for me to make the difference.”
Meanwhile, Marianne Vos, despite being caught by the peloton on the final climb, was content with securing the green jersey. She said, “Today, I suffered a lot again, especially towards the end of the stage. The thought of winning the stage crossed my mind, but Justine Ghekiere was clearly the strongest today. It wasn’t too far anymore, so I gritted my teeth… But of course, I still have to finish on Alpe d’Huez tomorrow. That’s not going to be easy. It will be a tough day, but one I can approach with confidence.”
Yellow jersey holder Kasia Niewiadoma also shared her thoughts after holding onto the overall lead: “It was a good day, we had everything under control. The team took good care of me today. I could feel that the peloton was getting a bit tired, so the pace dropped, which worked in my favour.”
Responding to Vollering’s claim that she had made her nervous, Niewiadoma said, “Oh, did she say that? Interesting! If that’s really the case: c’est la vie! We’ve worked on my endurance, so hopefully, I can finish it off tomorrow.”
As the riders prepare for the final stage on Alpe d’Huez, the race for the yellow jersey remains wide open, with everything to play for on the iconic climb.
Photo Credit: ASO-Thomas Maheux2024 Tour de France Femmes Stage 7 result
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