Pauline Ferrand-Prévot was unstoppable in the queen stage of the Tour de France Femmes. On the Col de la Madeleine, the French rider left all her competitors behind. As a result, she is now in a commanding position for the overall victory in the Tour de France Femmes. "The reason I came back to road racing was the Tour," she said in the post-race flash interview.
"So it gives me great pleasure to win today," continued Ferrand-Prévot, who made her comeback to road racing this year after focusing mainly on mountain biking for a long time. "Today is proof that I made the right choice."
Ferrand-Prévot had not immediately expected to deliver such a blow. "I didn’t know what would happen until the foot of the Madeleine," said the Visma | Lease a Bike rider. "I had no idea how I compared to the other riders, so I was a bit uncertain. But from mountain biking, I’ve learned how to ride at my limit for an hour."
"The last kilometers were extremely painful, but I wanted to gain the greatest possible advantage with tomorrow in mind," she referred to the final stage of the Tour de France Femmes, which still includes the feared Joux Plane climb. "I also tried to enjoy it, but until the finish line, I thought: it’s not over yet. I just wanted to get to the finish as fast as possible. I’m so happy it worked out. I want to thank my team because they have been fantastic all week. I’m glad I could finish it off today."
Tour de France Femmes| Rank | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 03:47:24 | |
| 2 | + 01:45 | |
| 3 | + 02:15 | |
| 4 | + 03:03 | |
| 5 | " | |
| 6 | + 03:18 | |
| 7 | + 03:22 | |
| 8 | + 03:26 | |
| 9 | + 03:38 | |
| 10 | + 04:31 |
