The fearsome Tourmalet awaits the riders on the seventh and penultimate stage. There could also be a preliminary decision in the fight for the yellow jersey at the Tour de France Femmes. All eyes are on Annemiek van Vleuten and Demi Vollering.
“Caustic”, “ridiculous” and certainly a lot of coarser swear words were used by the SD Worx team after the fifth stage from Onet-Le-Chateau to Albi. What happened? Demi Vollering, one of the top favorites for overall victory and biggest competitor to cycling superstar Annemiek van Vleuten, was handed a 20-second time penalty. After a flat tire, she would have used the slipstream of her team vehicle to get back into the peloton.
The Dutchwoman only found out about the time penalty at the finish. “It’s very disappointing. I’m working hard to make my dreams come true. When something like this happens, it’s not fun,” Vollering told the Belgian TV station Sporza in the mixed zone. She lost her hard-earned but minimal lead over van Vleuten. After the sixth stage she is still 12 seconds behind van Vleuten. And that’s not all: SD Worx sports director Danny Stam was also excluded from the Tour de France Femmes after his rants against the officials.
Vollering and van Vleuten feel each other out
So far, the long-awaited duel van Vleuten against Vollering has not materialized. Instead, the two feel each other carefully, other drivers like Liane Lippert or the current leader Lotte Kopecky are in the limelight. Only in Rodez did Vollering set a first scent mark when she secured second place behind escapee Yara Kastelijn – but cheered as if she had won. She was a little embarrassed afterwards. “I thought to myself: I’ll just cheer, then we’ll at least have a jubilee photo – and if it doesn’t fit, then we’ll just delete it,” Vollering told Radsport News after the race. But it is also true that at this point she had already hoped for a larger gap to van Vleuten.
Fans and spectators are now looking forward to the showdown on the Tourmalet. At 2,115 meters, the mountain pass is the highest in the French Pyrenees and is an integral part of the men’s Tour de France, as no climb was a frequent part of the program. Now, for the first time in the still short history of the tour, the women can also struggle up the 17.1 kilometer long and steep ascent.
The route profile of the 7th stage
Demonstration of power at the premiere tour
If you ask Vollering and van Vleuten if they’re looking forward to the queen’s stage, the answers couldn’t be more different. “No, not at all. The Tourmalet means suffering,” said van Vleuten to the sports show. Only people who haven’t had to go up there themselves would ask this question, she adds with a grin. Totally different Vollering. “The view up there is supposed to be beautiful, so I hope to be the first to get there,” said the 26-year-old confidently during the interview. She can do that too, after all she came to the tour as the defending champion of the mountain jersey.
It is by no means the first time that the two best drivers in their country have fought a top-class duel. Last year, at the premiere of the Tour de France, it was Femmes Vollering against van Vleuten – with the better outcome for the multiple world champion and Olympic champion van Vleuten. The way she left her compatriot, who was fourteen years her junior, on the seventh stage up Le Markstein was like a demonstration of power.
Current status of the overall standings Arrow right
Vollering: Strong growth again
The fight for the yellow jersey could be closer this year, because Vollering has once again picked up speed. And that is reflected in their results. She has had five successes in the spring classics, including a flawless hat-trick with victories in the Amstel Gold Race, La Flèche Wallone and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. On the final stage of the Vuelta, the first major tour of the year, Vollering almost created a sensation, but van Vleuten was just able to save her nine-second lead to the finish.
“Annemiek and I really showed this year that we can compete with each other,” said Vollering, who started out as a speed skater before turning to cycling. But she would not underestimate other riders for the Tourmalet, such as currently runner-up Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio or Kasia Niewiadoma. Van Vleuten agrees. “Of course the fans love these duels in the sport, but I’d rather have more riders competing for a stage win on the Tourmalet.”
Dreams are there to be fulfilled
Vollering is sure of one thing, she sees herself on the podium tomorrow evening, in the yellow jersey. At least that’s her dream. And they are there to be fulfilled. “I’m trying anyway. If not this year, then it’ll work next year.” It would be inconceivable if this 20-second time penalty ultimately decided the yellow jersey.