The Tour Cycliste Féminin International de l’Ardèche delivered a dramatic third stage, with Mischa Bredewold powering to the win in Pernes-les-Fontaines while her teammate and race leader Lotte Kopecky abandoned after an early crash.
The 119km stage, which set off from Avignon, was always likely to be decisive with the Col de Murs and Col de la Ligne providing back-to-back climbing tests in the second half. Before the climbs, though, the race lost its biggest name. Kopecky, who had taken the opening stage in Laudun-l’Ardoise and led overall, hit the deck inside the first 35 kilometres. She remounted briefly but soon stopped and climbed off, leaving the peloton without its most prominent figure and SD Worx-Protime without its leader. No official update on her injuries was provided, though she appeared to suffer from back pain.
The stage itself saw several moves go clear on the Col de Murs, including Nina Buijsman and Lauren Dickson, before Evita Muzic and Monica Trinca Colonel broke away on the following climb. The duo gained around 20 seconds, but UAE Team ADQ and Picnic PostNL led the chase, keeping the race under control. By the time the riders crested the final ascent of Col d’Unang, the gap was reduced to ten seconds, and the peloton regrouped with just three kilometres left.
The finale was set for a reduced sprint, and Bredewold delivered perfectly. She surged clear in the closing metres to take victory ahead of Amber Kraak of FDJ-Suez, while teammate Marta Lach secured third place to round off a strong day for SD Worx-Protime despite the disappointment of losing Kopecky.
Behind them, Eleonora Ciabocco of Picnic PostNL, who had finished second on stage 1, crossed the line in ninth. That was enough to inherit the race lead following Kopecky’s withdrawal. The Italian teenager will start stage 4 in the leader’s jersey, giving her team a morale boost after a testing day.
For Team Visma | Lease a Bike, the day passed without major incident, with Femke de Vries climbing to third overall ahead of Friday’s 20km individual time trial.
The victory for Bredewold was her first of the race and a much-needed highlight for SD Worx-Protime on a bittersweet day. The question now turns to whether Kopecky, who has already battled injury setbacks in 2025 and opted out of defending her world title in Kigali, will be able to resume racing again this season.
2025 Tour de l’Ardèche Stage 3 result
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Main photo credit: Getty
