“In the final kilometre, I thought it could work” – Riejanne Markus comes within 500 metres of stunning Tour de France Femmes victory
CyclingSunday, 02 August 2026 at 21:30
Riejanne Markus admitted she briefly believed a remarkable Tour de France Femmes stage victory was within reach before her 39-kilometre solo attack was caught just 500 metres from the finish in Geneva.
The Lidl-Trek rider attacked with around 40 kilometres remaining and carried a lead of approximately one minute towards a finish expected to favour Lorena Wiebes and the other leading sprinters.
Markus still had around 30 seconds in hand inside the final five kilometres, forcing Team SD Worx – Protime to commit almost every available rider to the pursuit. Lotte Kopecky was eventually called into the chase before Wiebes was left to handle the sprint without a conventional lead-out.
Even Markus had not expected to remain clear for so long on terrain weighted heavily towards the peloton. “I think so, yes, a little,” Markus told WielerFlits when asked whether her performance deserved congratulations. “When you come that close in a sprint stage, I think that is worth congratulating. I did not expect to get so close myself.”
Markus allows herself to believe
With ten kilometres remaining, Markus still held an advantage of around one minute. She knew that margin offered no guarantees against a peloton gathering speed for the finish, particularly after almost 40 kilometres alone.
“At ten kilometres from the finish, when I still had one minute, I knew it was going to be very close,” she said. “The peloton simply carries so much speed in the finale. When you have been riding alone at the front for 40 kilometres, you know it is going to be very difficult.”
Her advantage began to disappear rapidly once SD Worx – Protime threw their remaining riders into the chase, but Markus passed beneath the flamme rouge still in front. “In the final kilometre, I maybe thought once that it could work,” she admitted. “I came close, but it was just a little too far.”
The catch came approximately 500 metres from the line. Wiebes then found space in the reduced sprint formation and accelerated to her second consecutive victory and a record seventh Tour de France Femmes stage win.
Aggressive start leaves Markus encouraged
Markus received the combativity prize after forcing the strongest sprint team in the race into a pursuit that lasted deep into the Geneva finale.
Although the result brought no stage victory, her condition across the opening weekend has encouraged her to continue searching for opportunities as the race develops. “I feel really good,” Markus said. “We have tried on both days. It has not worked, but we will keep trying. Who knows, maybe we will come close again.”
The 39-kilometre move ultimately earned Markus 76th place in the stage result, but the gap between a memorable victory and the returning peloton amounted to barely half a kilometre.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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