'All-out' nowhere near enough for defending champion Niewiadoma at Tour de France Femmes as Visma rejoice brutal victory from Ferrand-Prévot - "It feels like I’m on drugs"

Stage 8 of the Tour de France Femmes was the most important day of the race and atop the very long and hard Col de la Madeleine the differences were expected to be quite big. However not many expected the advantage to fall for Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, whose teammates were quite shocked to learn about the victory that may have cemented her overall win.

Visma had the women to make the difference on the day as Ferrand-Prévot attacked the final climb and bridged across to Marion Bunel at the right time. At the finish line, it was then a collective celebration, as explained by Femke de Vries: “Don’t even start talking about that yet, there’s still one more day. I can’t believe I get to be part of this, it feels like I’m on drugs,” she shared with In de Leiderstrui.

“I only heard about it through the earpiece, but it’s a fantastic day," Marianne Vos said. "We did a great job as a team, but especially Pauline was incredibly strong. I knew she was in top shape. She was ready, but you still have to go out and do it. And there’s still one hard day to come. But I always knew she was capable of something big [...] What she’s showing now is unbelievable. She should be very proud, but for now, she’s only thinking about Sunday". 

SD Worx worked for Anna van der Breggen early in the day but the veteran struggled on the final climb. Team DS Danny Stam bowed down to Ferrand-Prévot's ride. “The fact that she left everyone behind by two or three minutes, except for Gigante, is awe-inspiring, of course. But we also know that Pauline is a very special rider, who has shown her superiority many times in the past. When you see how fit she is. I didn’t expect the difference to be so big, but I had her among the favorites.”

However besides van der Breggen, the Madeleine was not a happy place for many riders. Amongst those is the woman that one year ago wore the yellow jersey at the final stage, something which Ferrand-Prévot seems set to do with the large lead she carved out in the Alps thus far.

Niewiadoma rode to eighth on the day and fourth in the GC, despite having put in her best-ever effort in this long of a climb. "On such a climb, yes, I had the best 90-minute, and in comparison to the last stage of the Tour de France Femmes last year. This is a lot higher. It's hard to feel good... I was going all-out".

However, the Polish rider's race hasn't finished on the Madeleine, and on the ninth and final day of racing she may be amongst those atracking the podium. "We hope to get a podium spot at the end. I'm thinking more that maybe Gigante can drop; there are technical descents, and not finishing on the tip of a climb".