Team SD Worx could look back on the 2022 Tour de France Femmes as a race that brought both results and visibility. The team left with 2nd place overall through Demi Vollering, the polka dot jersey and a stage win thanks to Marlen Reusser, making it one of the most successful squads in the race even if yellow ultimately stayed out of reach.
Vollering capped her week on Super Planche des Belles Filles, where she was again the rider best able to limit the damage to an exceptional Annemiek van Vleuten. That final climb summed up her Tour well. She had been consistently strong throughout the race and finished the first edition of the revived Tour de France Femmes with both a podium place on the general classification and the mountains title.
“I don’t quite realise yet that in the first-ever Tour de France Femmes I won the mountain classification. My heartfelt gesture at the finish was for my fiancé Jan, who asked me to marry him the day before my reconnaissance here. And because I rode with my heart for the team and for Amy Pieters. I really suffered, but I told myself I had to do it for all the people who supported me. I am proud of my performance,” Vollering said.
The week was not without disruption. Reusser’s superb gravel stage win towards Bar-sur-Aube was one of the defining performances of the race, but she later abandoned after a crash left her with concussion. Lotte Kopecky and Chantal van den Broek-Blaak also crashed but were able to carry on, while Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio had to leave the race due to a viral infection. Even so, Team SD Worx remained one of the squads that most clearly shaped the race from start to finish.
That was reflected in the numbers as much as the impression. The team made the top 3 on six of the eight stages and regularly featured in the decisive moments. Only stage 2 was seen internally as a missed opportunity, while the rest of the week largely reinforced the team’s strength across different terrain and race situations.
Danny Stam said that made the overall verdict an easy one.
“This is a successful Tour de France Femmes for us. Only in the second stage we could beat ourselves up for missing the battle. Otherwise we were in the race for the prizes in almost every stage. We finished in the top three six times in eight stages and with the gravel stage we took one of the most beautiful stages of this Tour. In addition, we were the best team in three stages. Demi Vollering has put down a wonderful performance with her second place in the final classification and the polka dot jersey. She has made great strides in the past year. This promises for the future.”
The team also viewed the race in a wider context. For Team SD Worx, this was not just a good week of racing but part of a much bigger moment for the sport. The attention around the first edition of the modern Tour de France Femmes showed how far women’s cycling had moved and how much further it could still go.
Erwin Janssen said the event felt like a genuine milestone.
“This Tour de France Femmes is a milestone for women’s cycling. It was unprecedented how much interest there was in women’s cycling. This Tour de France was publicity for the sport. With this, women’s cycling has taken a big step towards further professionalisation.”
