"It's always the same person" - Furious Elisa Balsamo held up in crash and misses out on final sprint at Tour de France Femmes
Cycling
A furious Elisa Balsamo has hit out an unnamed rider after she found herself held up behind a crash in the finale of the Tour de France Femmes opening stage. The Lidl-Trek sprinter was unable to contest the finale as a result of the hold-up.
The incident came just over one kilometer from the line during the uphill finale of the Côte Saint-François as Balsamo placed 36th and finished 37 seconds behind the winner Lorena Wiebes.
At the front of affairs, SD Worx ProTime sprinter Wiebes demonstrated her impressive climbing level to fend off attacks from the climbers and puncheurs before delivering her trademark killer blow sprint to keep the rest firmly behind and seal the sixth Tour de France Femmes of her career.
Former world champion Balsamo has never won a stage in the Grand Tour, coming close on two visits to the podium, and was enraged in an interview after the stage. Not naming any individual riders, she implied that some had made mistakes in previous races.
Lorena Wiebes took the win on Saturday
Balsamo furious after the stage
"There are riders who make the same mistakes. If we look at past races, it's always the same person," Balsamo told Eurosport after the finish.
Meanwhile, defending champion Pauline Ferrand-Prévot got herself safely through the first hurdle on Saturday, finishing among the lead group. However, her day was partly in support of veteran Marianne Vos before Demi Vollering's attack interrupted that plan and Vos finished 18th on the day.
"I felt good during this first stage; it was really fast and a bit twisty, with lots of traffic islands in the villages," Ferrand-Prévot told L'Équipe.
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"It was quite a nervous race, but I was always well-positioned. It was great because my teammates really protected me all day long. I loved the day."
"At the end, our mission was to lead out Marianne for the sprint. I’d been asked to try setting a pretty hard pace, like last year, but the pace was already really high; if I’d gone any faster, I risked getting countered and losing time, so I tried to hold back a bit."
It's another day for the sprinters on Sunday as the Aigle to Geneva is set to favour the fast finishers. After her dominant display, Lorena Wiebes is the favourite to make it two from two.
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- It would likely be a very steep section of 4.1 km, not changing the average gradient considerably, with the climb remaining 10.1 km at 11.8%. It would reach 20% on the gravel. It would start 1.6 km in, and finish with 4.2 km left to climb (before the short final descent)
Rafionain-Glas02-11-2026
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