Polish cyclist Katarzyna Niewiadoma secured her first Women’s Tour de France title on Sunday with a nail-biting finish, edging out the competition by a mere four seconds, France24 reports.
The 29-year-old Canyon SRAM rider held onto the yellow jersey despite finishing one minute and one second behind stage winner Demi Vollering during the grueling final ascent of the Alpe d’Huez mountain.
“I’ve gone through such a terrible time on this climb, like I hated everything, [then] arriving at the finish line and learning that I won Tour de France, which is insane! It’s so mind-blowing.”
The Tour was turned upside down on Thursday during the fifth stage when Vollering was caught up in a huge crash six kilometres from the finish in Amneville, losing 1min 47sec on the leader.
But the Dutchwomen fought her way back and going into the final stage, she had cut that gap down to one minute 15 seconds.
Reigning Tour champion Vollering then produced a barnstorming performance in Sunday’s 150km slog from Le Grand-Bornand to Alpe d’Huez, outsprinting compatriot Pauliena Rooijakkers to the line to claim the stage win.
Niewiadoma struggled on the Glandon ascent and seemed set to throw away her lead as her rival surged ahead and provisionally took the lead in the general ranking at several stages.
But the Polish rider managed to regroup and fought back in the final 5km to claw back precious seconds.
Both Vollering and Niewiadoma faced a nerve-wracking wait once across the line for the official confirmation of who was to be the last to hold the yellow jersey in the third edition of the women’s Tour.
The duo dissolved into tears of drastically varying emotions when the news filtered through that the Pole had claimed a historic win by the narrowest of margins.
After third-placed finishes in the previous two Tours and a disappointing eighth-place finish at the 2024 Olympic Games road race, the victory tasted even sweeter for Niewiadoma.
The cyclist crossed the finish line of the eight-stage tour in 24 hours, 36 minutes, and 7 seconds, securing her victory by a mere four seconds over second-placed Vollering. Rooijakkers completed the podium just six seconds behind Vollering, making for a thrilling and tightly contested race.
