{"id":732729,"date":"2026-08-09T18:46:20","date_gmt":"2026-08-09T18:46:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/732729\/"},"modified":"2026-08-09T18:46:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-09T18:46:20","slug":"as-it-happened-the-favourites-take-control-in-final-stage-of-the-tour-de-france-femmes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/732729\/","title":{"rendered":"As it happened: The favourites take control in final stage of the Tour de France Femmes"},"content":{"rendered":"

2026-08-09T18:03:04.960Z<\/p>\n

Okay, that is us done for the live coverage of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes. Thank you for joining us, hope you enjoyed the race as much as we did!<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T17:57:03.298Z<\/p>\n

Your 2026 Tour de France Femmes winner!<\/p>\n

\n

\"Demi\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T17:51:07.906Z<\/p>\n

It’s not only the dream to win in yellow here, to win a second Tour de France, but it’s the dream to live this life, to work hard together with people with a lot of passion. I think that’s the whole dream<\/p>\n

Demi Vollering (FDJ United – SUEZ)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T17:44:45.217Z<\/p>\n

And the top 10 in the stage<\/p>\n

1 Demi Vollering (Ned) FDJ United-SUEZ 2:44:43<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2 Paula Blasi Cairol (Spa) UAE Team L’IMAD 0:1:04<\/p>\n

3 Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney (Pol) Canyon-SRAM 0:1:04<\/p>\n

4 Niamh Fisher-Black (NZl) Lidl-Trek 0:1:04<\/p>\n

5 Antonia Niedermaier (Ger) Canyon-SRAM 0:1:06<\/p>\n

6 Isabella Holmgren (Can) Lidl-Trek 0:1:08<\/p>\n

7 Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) UAE Team L’IMAD 0:1:14<\/p>\n

8 Femke de Vries (Ned) Visma-Lease a Bike 0:1:57<\/p>\n

9 Dominika Wlodarczyk (Pol) UAE Team L’IMAD 0:1:57<\/p>\n

10 Cedrine Kerbaol (Fra) EF Education-Oatly 0:1:57<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T17:40:24.063Z<\/p>\n

Final general classification<\/p>\n

1 Demi Vollering (Ned) FDJ United-SUEZ 30:54:51<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2 Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney (Pol) Canyon-SRAM 0:1:18<\/p>\n

3 Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) UAE Team L’IMAD 0:4:29<\/p>\n

4 Antonia Niedermaier (Ger) Canyon-SRAM 0:5:10<\/p>\n

5 Paula Blasi Cairol (Spa) UAE Team L’IMAD 0:6:13<\/p>\n

6 Cedrine Kerbaol (Fra) EF Education-Oatly 0:6:41<\/p>\n

7 Dominika Wlodarczyk (Pol) UAE Team L’IMAD 0:7:53<\/p>\n

8 Isabella Holmgren (Can) Lidl-Trek 0:9:12<\/p>\n

9 Kim le Court Pienaar (Mau) AG Insurance-Soudal 0:14:04<\/p>\n

10 Niamh Fisher-Black (NZl) Lidl-Trek 0:15:14<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T17:17:40.956Z<\/p>\n

Here are the classification winners of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes:<\/p>\n

GC – Demi Vollering (FDJ United -SUEZ)<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Points – Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx – Protime)<\/p>\n

QoM – Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech)<\/p>\n

Youth – Antonia Niedermaier (Canyon\/\/SRAM)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T17:05:47.072Z<\/p>\n

Demi Vollering just became the first person to win the Tour de France Femmes twice, and she did it in style.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Demi\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T17:01:43.666Z<\/p>\n

That was a tough final climb for Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney but she has still finished the race on the podium. After heartbreak for Marlen Reusser, Elisa Longo Borghini moves up into third place in the GC.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Demi\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:57:48.805Z<\/p>\n

Demi Vollering has won the stage and the 2026 Tour de France Femmes.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:55:53.705Z<\/p>\n

Demi Vollering is about to become the first two time winner of the Tour de Frances Femmes, and she looks very happy about it.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Demi\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:51:14.899Z
\n5km to go<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:49:21.838Z<\/p>\n

45 second gap to Niewiadoma-Phinney now, the white jersey group are closing in and will catch are soon. Vollering is putting in a very impressive descent as she rides toward her second Tour de France Femmes GC win.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:46:21.709Z
\n10km to go<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:44:20.286Z<\/p>\n

The gap to Niewiadoma-Phinney has gone out to 32 seconds on the descent. The white jersey group is only 10 seconds behind that.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:40:18.776Z<\/p>\n

Vollering reaches the summit of the climb with an 18 second lead over Niewiadoma-Phinney.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:38:01.746Z<\/p>\n

Vollering attacks again and opens up a gap.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:34:53.401Z<\/p>\n

There is a 33 second gap to the white jersey group, which consists of Niedermaier, Blasi, Longo Borghini, Fisher-Black and Holmgren.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:30:41.386Z<\/p>\n

Demi Vollering takes a turn on the front and accelerates slightly, looks behind her to see Niewiadoma-Phinney’s reactions. They stay together.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:28:22.131Z<\/p>\n

Holmgren is caught as Niewiadoma-Phinney attacks past her. Vollering goes with her and is looking very comfortable.<\/p>\n

\n

\"FDJ-SUEZ's\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:24:12.665Z<\/p>\n

Juliette Berthet’s job is done for the day and she’s dropped off the back of group 2. Gap to Holmgren is now only 14 seconds.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:21:57.343Z<\/p>\n

Group 2 are now on the climb with a 26 second gap to Holmgren ahead.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:20:56.540Z<\/p>\n

Our on the ground journalists are letting us know that a thunderstorm is coming over Nice. The final descent could get very tricky.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:13:26.576Z<\/p>\n

The gap between Holmgren and group 2 has shrunk to 40 seconds. Group two will be setting themselves up for the fourth and final ascent of Col d’\u00c8ze, which actually takes a differnt, steeper route up the climb than the previous ascents. We are pretty much certain to see attacks from Vollering and Niewiadoma-Phinney once we reach the climb.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:09:11.036Z
\n30km to go<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T16:00:19.878Z<\/p>\n

Isabella Holmgren has reached the top of Col d’\u00c8ze for the third time and takes max QoM points, but Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech) only has to finish the stage to claim the polka dot jersey.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:55:21.107Z<\/p>\n

Paula Blasi (UAE Team L’IMAD) attacks from group 2, but is shut down by Antonia Niedermaier (Canyon\/\/SRAM). C\u00e9drine Kerbaol (EF Education-Oatly) was distanced but has managed to get back on to the back of the group.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:49:04.534Z<\/p>\n

Juliette Berthet (FDJ United – SUEZ) is on the front, controlling the group of favourites for Demi Vollering. The gap to Holmgren has grown to 58 seconds.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:44:54.619Z<\/p>\n

Isabella Holmgren (Lidl-Trek) attacks from the front group! It’ll be interesting to see if the GC teams are willing to let the stage win go up the road or if they’ll put energy into closing the gap, which is currently 31 seconds.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:38:19.884Z<\/p>\n

Our front group are 1:58 ahead of group 2 as they prepare to climb Col d’\u00c8ze once again. If there was ever any doubt it seems clear now that the fight for the stage win will be coming from our group of GC favourites.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:33:51.939Z
\n50km to go<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:27:23.604Z<\/p>\n

Reusser is back on her bike, surrounded by teammates. While this isn’t the way she would have wanted today to go, hopefully she can still finish the stage and celebrate her impressive week of racing.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:25:05.031Z
\nCrash<\/p>\n

Marlen Reusser has crashed on the descent and looks very upset. Hopefully she is okay and can get back on the bike to finish the stage.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:20:29.813Z<\/p>\n

At the start of the day the gap between Reusser and Longo Borghini on GC was just under 2 minutes. Reusser is now in a group of 5, 1:12 behind the front group.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:12:30.870Z<\/p>\n

Marlen Reusser (Movistar) has also been dropped! This opens up a huge opportunity for Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team L’IMAD) to jump onto the podium at the end of the day. What an incredible ride from Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Zoe\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:10:20.781Z<\/p>\n

C\u00e9lia Gery (FDJ United – SUEZ) has been dropped from the front group. I’m sure Vollering would have wanted to have her with her for longer today.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:08:12.074Z<\/p>\n

Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt is currently ripping the race up on the front of the yellow jersey group, doing what she can to try and isolate Demi Vollering. The group has thinned out massively. This is a great effort in service of team leader Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:02:38.360Z<\/p>\n

Enjoying our live race coverage? Subscribe to Cyclingnews for an all-access pass to our unrivalled reporting of WorldTour racing, bike tech and exclusive in-depth features. Plus, access to the Cyclingnews app to follow the action on-the-go!<\/p>\n

(edited)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T15:01:02.012Z<\/p>\n

Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt (Canyon\/\/SRAM) is pulling hard on the front of the peloton.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:56:11.624Z<\/p>\n

Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx – Protime) secures 17 points at the sprint, which I believe is enough to say that she has won the green jersey.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:51:21.049Z<\/p>\n

Quick correction that it is actually Malwina Mul (Cofidis) in group 1, and she is now joined by Paula Ostiz (Movistar) as the pair approach the intermediate sprint.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:46:11.563Z<\/p>\n

Franzi Koch (FDJ United – SUEZ) is back in the peloton and trying to close the gap to race leader Nikola Noskov\u00e1 (Cofidis).<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:42:11.962Z<\/p>\n

Squiban has been caught and Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx – Protime) is controlling the front of the race. She will be looking to secure max points at the intermediate sprint to finish the race with the green jersey.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:33:32.486Z<\/p>\n

Maeva Squiban (UAE Team L’IMAD) attacks over the top of the climb!<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:32:33.631Z<\/p>\n

You can see how much the hot temperatures today could impact the racing with riders loading up on bidons and ice packs as we approach the top of the climb.<\/p>\n

\n

\"The\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:26:44.753Z<\/p>\n

While so many others are struggling Demi Vollering and Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney are chatting away in the peloton.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:24:05.119Z<\/p>\n

Franzi Koch (FDJ United – SUEZ) is among those who have been dropped, which could be an early blow for team leader Demi Vollering.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:19:20.945Z<\/p>\n

No attacks have stuck yet but we are already seeing riders dropping off the back with how hard they are riding at the front. It’s going to be a really tough day for those who are struggling this early.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:12:59.157Z<\/p>\n

And we are racing! No surprise to see attacks right away.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:11:26.743Z<\/p>\n

We have a short stage today but it is sure to be full of action right from the start as we go straight into the first ascent of Col d’\u00c8ze. With only 8 seconds separating race leader Demi Vollering (FDJ United – SUEZ) and Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon\/\/SRAM), both are sure to be giving everything they have to try and secure the win.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T14:01:23.169Z<\/p>\n

The neutralised rollout will begin in about 5 minutes, with the race officially starting at 16:10 CEST.<\/p>\n

2026-08-09T13:53:51.726Z<\/p>\n

If you need a quick refresher on what happened yesterday you can check that out here<\/p>\n

Tour de France Femmes: Demi Vollering seizes maillot jaune on stage 8 with searing late attack<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\"NICE,\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)
\n<\/p>\n

Good afternoon and welcome to our live coverage for the final stage of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"2026-08-09T18:03:04.960Z Okay, that is us done for the live coverage of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes. Thank…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":732730,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-732729","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/732729","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=732729"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/732729\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/732730"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=732729"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=732729"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=732729"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}