Pauline Ferrand-Prevot boasts an impressive record of 15 world titles, with 14 earned in off-road cycling disciplines.
In a commanding performance, Pauline Ferrand-Prevot seized the leader’s yellow jersey in the Tour de France Femmes’ penultimate stage, triumphing on the challenging Col de la Madeleine.
Ferrand-Prevot, a prominent figure carrying French hopes, delivered a decisive performance on the race’s queen stage. Her victory propelled her to the top of the general classification, displacing Kim le Court ahead of Sunday’s final stage.
Stage eight presented a formidable challenge, featuring over 3,500 meters of climbing, culminating in the race’s third-highest summit finish at 2,000 meters above sea level.
Driven by the ambition to secure the coveted yellow jersey, Olympic mountain bike champion Ferrand-Prevot returned to road racing after a seven-season hiatus.
Her ambition is now within reach after crossing the finish line with a significant lead of one minute and 45 seconds over Sarah Gigante, who now sits second overall, two minutes and 37 seconds behind Ferrand-Prevot.
Demi Vollering, the 2023 champion, advanced to third place overall, finishing fourth on the stage behind Niamh Fisher-Black. Former leader Le Court dropped out of the top 10.
Prior to Saturday’s dramatic stage, the general classification was closely contested, with the top five riders separated by a mere 35 seconds.
Le Court, representing AG Insurance-Soudal, held a 26-second advantage over Visma-Lease a Bike’s Ferrand-Prevot, while defending champion Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney and Vollering were within 31 seconds of the lead.
Earlier in the day, Le Court suffered a crash on a descent, losing approximately one minute to the peloton, but managed to rejoin the main group with over 45km remaining.
Following her recovery, Le Court, instead of defending the yellow jersey she claimed in stage five, pushed the pace on the Col de la Madeleine to position her teammate Sarah Gigante for an attack.
However, Ferrand-Prevot responded, following Gigante and launching a counter-attack to take the lead with 7km to the summit.
Only Fisher-Black and Yara Kastelijn remained from the day’s breakaway, and Ferrand-Prevot swiftly demonstrated her superior strength, surging clear to the finish.
On the demanding final ascent of the hors categorie Col de la Madeleine, an 18.6km climb with an average gradient of 8.1%, the 33-year-old, who previously secured a solo victory at Paris-Roubaix in April, established a commanding position with only one day of racing remaining.
Sunday’s concluding stage presents a final opportunity for riders to improve their standings, featuring another mountainous 124.1km route from Praz-sur-Arly to Chatel with over 2,800m of ascent.
Pauline Ferrand-Prevot (Fra/Visma-Lease a Bike) 3hrs 47mins 24secs
Sarah Gigante (Aus/AG Insurance-Soudal) +1min 45secs
Niamh Fisher-black (Nzl/Lidl-Trek) +2mins 15secs
Demi Vollering (Ned/FDJ-Suez) +3mins 3secs
Yara Kastelijn (Ned/Fenix–Deceuninck) +3mins 3secs
Cedrine Kerbaol (Fra/EF Education-Oatly) +3mins 18secs
Dominika Wlodarczyk (Pol/UAE Team ADQ) +3mins 22secs
Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney (Pol/Canyon-Sram-ZondaCrypto) +3mins 26secs
Pauliena Rooijakkers (Ned/Fenix-Deceuninck) +3mins 38secs
Marion Bunel (Fra/Visma-Lease a Bike) +4mins 31secs
Pauline Ferrand-Prevot (Fra/Visma-Lease a Bike) 26hrs 16mins 11secs
Sarah Gigante (Aus/AG Insurance-Soudal) +2mins 37secs
Demi Vollering (Ned/FDJ-Suez) +3mins 18secs
Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney (Pol/Canyon-Sram-ZondaCrypto) +3mins 40secs
Cedrine Kerbaol (Fra/EF Education-Oatly) +4mins 11secs
Pauliena Rooijakkers (Ned/Fenix-Deceuninck) +4mins 26secs
Dominika Wlodarczyk (Pol/UAE Team ADQ) +5mins 2secs
Niamh Fisher-black (Nzl/Lidl-Trek) +5mins 52secs
Evita Muzic (Fra/FDJ-Suez) +5mins 58secs
Juliette Labous (Fra/FDJ-Suez) +7mins 14secs