The sixth stage of the Tour de France Femmes unfolded over a challenging 159.2 kilometres from Remiremont to Morteau, featuring five categorised climbs that tested the peloton’s endurance and tactics. The stage began with a series of relentless attacks, which saw an early breakaway group of 18 riders forge ahead. Among them were notable names like Marianne Vos and Fem van Empel. The breakaway worked well together, but the peloton, keeping them within sight, never allowed the gap to extend much beyond two minutes.
As the race reached the final climbs, the intensity increased. The Côte des Fins, the last significant ascent of the day, proved decisive. Juliette Labous launched multiple attacks, attempting to split the group of favourites. However, it was Cédrine Kerbaol, who bided her time and then struck at the perfect moment, launching a solo attack just over 14 kilometres from the finish. She quickly distanced herself from the group, using her descending skills to build a significant gap.
Pauliena Rooijakkers briefly joined her, but Kerbaol’s pace proved too much, and she continued alone, holding her lead to the finish line. She crossed the line 21 seconds ahead of a chasing group that included Marianne Vos and Liane Lippert, making history as the first Frenchwoman to win a stage in the revived Tour de France Femmes.
Photo Credit: ASO-Charly LopezReflecting on her victory, Kerbaol expressed her disbelief and joy. “It’s a bit crazy. I mean, the first French winner at the Tour de France Femmes, it’s something super cool,” she said. “I have never won a race like this; it’s legendary. I didn’t think about the fact that [Rooijakkers] was with me and then a few minutes later, she was not there anymore. I took a lot of pleasure in the downhill.”
The victory also propelled Kerbaol into second place in the general classification, just 16 seconds behind the yellow jersey holder, Kasia Niewiadoma. Niewiadoma, who had been carefully managing her lead throughout the day, was momentarily at risk of losing the maillot jaune as Kerbaol’s lead grew to nearly 40 seconds. However, the combined efforts of her Canyon-SRAM teammates and FDJ-Suez kept the gap manageable.
“We were not stressing too much about it,” Niewiadoma said post-race. “We had Neve [Bradbury] who was pulling together with FDJ, so I knew that when we came closer to the finish line, teams would be engaged in setting a harder pace.”
Marianne Vos, despite being distanced on the final climb, managed to fight her way back to the front group on the descent. She then sprinted to second place, securing valuable points to take the lead in the green jersey competition. “It was a tough fight today,” Vos admitted. “It’s a shame Cédrine had already opened up a big gap; otherwise, I might have sprinted for the win. Unfortunately, that was beyond my control.”
Vos now leads the points classification with 145 points, 25 ahead of her closest rival, Charlotte Kool. Determined to keep the jersey, Vos said, “I really want to bring the green jersey to the finish of the Tour de France Femmes, but first, I need to recover from this gruelling effort.”
As the Tour heads into its final mountain stages, the competition for both the yellow and green jerseys remains fierce, with everything still to play for.
Photo Credit: ASO-Thomas Maheux2024 Tour de France Femmes Stage 6 result
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