“I really have no words, I think I’m dreaming!" - Justine Ghekiere speechless after stunning Tour de France Femmes stage win

Wearing the polka-dot jersey, Justine Ghekiere really did prove herself the Queen of the Mountains at the 2024 Tour de France Femmes on stage 7, securing a stunning, summit finish stage win.

“I really have no words, I think I’m dreaming!" AG Insurance - Soudal Team's 28-year-old Belgian reflected emotionally in her post-stage interview afterwards. "It’s crazy, I really want to thank my team today."

Having spent much of the day in the breakaway, Ghekiere was able to call upon the incredible support of her teammate Julie van de Velde in the lead group, a fact that was key in her eventual stage win. "The whole team was really at the front at the beginning to protect me and get me into the breakaway. Especially a really, really big thanks to Julie [Van de Velde], she rode a really strong race. She did everything for me to get me in position to start this climb and to save as much energy as possible,! Ghekiere explains. "This victory is also really thanks to Julie."

"When I took the last [Mountain] points I was really dead and I though, ‘I’ll just go at my own pace’. I was able to stay away at the front and I couldn’t believe it," Ghekiere concludes. "It will be a big present to ride a bike with polka dots and I’m really looking forward to ride the last stage of this Tour in this jersey. With the win already it is just brilliant.”