Letizia Borghesi wins Eneco Tour Women Stage 4 on Col du VAM

Letizia Borghesi won Stage 4 of the 2026 Eneco Tour Women on the Col du VAM, opening a four-second gap over Pfeiffer Georgi and race leader Lieke Nooijen on the final ascent. Georgi took second for Team Picnic PostNL, with Nooijen third for Team Visma | Lease a Bike as she retained the orange leader’s jersey.

The 114.8km stage from Hoogeveen was the race’s main Col du VAM test and one of the most important days for the general classification. The women tackled the VAM circuit eight times, with the finish built around the two-part combination of the Col du VAM and the steeper VAMPad. The first section measures roughly 500 metres at 4%, before the VAMPad rises for around 300 metres at 6.3% with pitches close to 12%.

Nooijen started the day with a 28-second advantage over Femke Markus, while Nienke Vinke and Maud Rijnbeek were also within 45 seconds. That put Team Visma | Lease a Bike in a defensive position on a circuit where repeated short climbs could steadily erode the leader’s advantage rather than produce one long mountain effort.

How it unfolded

The structure of the stage made the repeated passages over the VAM more important than any single climb. The riders returned to the same short, sharp ramps throughout the afternoon, with little room to recover between the harder sections of the circuit. By the final passage the leading riders were still close enough together for both the stage win and the general-classification battle to be decided in seconds.

Borghesi made the decisive difference on the final climb. The AG Insurance – Soudal Team rider was able to distance the rest of the leading group on the run to the summit and reached the line in 2:58:05. Georgi followed four seconds later to secure second, with Nooijen third on the same recorded gap.

There was no tie for second despite the identical gaps. Georgi was second in the stage classification and Nooijen third. Florien Bolks, Maud Rijnbeek and Sandrine Tas followed at six seconds, while Quinty Ton, Nienke Vinke, Femke Markus and Lonneke Uneken completed the top 10 at ten seconds.

Borghesi delivers on a stage AG Insurance had targeted

The result fitted the way AG Insurance – Soudal Team had approached the Eneco Tour. Before the race, sports director Stijn Steels identified Borghesi as the team’s general-classification option and specifically pointed to the VAM-berg stage as one that should suit her. She had already been consistent through the week before turning that form into a win.

Borghesi began the race with eighth in the opening prologue, then finished seventh in the Tilburg time trial and fifth on Friday’s hilly stage to Watersley. Winning on the Col du VAM continued that progression and moved her from being a regular top-10 presence to the strongest rider on the race’s most distinctive uphill finish.

The victory was also very different from a large solo move. Borghesi won by creating a small but decisive separation on a climb where the leading riders remained packed closely together. Only ten seconds covered the entire top 10, but four seconds were enough to give her a clear stage win.

Nooijen strengthens her position before the final stage

Nooijen did not win the stage, but third place was an effective result in the overall race. She finished six seconds ahead of Markus on the road, with the stage bonus seconds further helping her position. Instead of seeing the 28-second advantage she carried into the stage reduced, the Team Visma | Lease a Bike rider left the Col du VAM with a stronger grip on the race.

Markus, who had won Stage 3 with a late solo attack, finished ninth at ten seconds. Vinke was eighth on the same gap, while Rijnbeek’s fifth place at six seconds kept her among the riders closest to the top of the classification. Borghesi’s win also moved her further into the general-classification conversation after a consistently strong week.

The Eneco Tour Women concludes on Sunday in Arnhem. After two consecutive selective stages at Watersley and the Col du VAM, Nooijen now has one final day to defend the orange jersey, while Borghesi heads into the finale with a stage win that confirmed the VAM finish was every bit as suitable for her as AG Insurance – Soudal Team had expected.

Eneco Tour Women Stage 4 2026 Result