Results La Vuelta Femenina 2026 stage 3 | Cédrine Kerbaol takes another win for EF as Koch defends her lead through the pain

Stage 3 of La Vuelta Femenina was a difficult day on the bike with quite some climbing; and in the streets of A Coruña it was Cédrine Kerbaol who raised her arms in glory. The EF Education-Oatly rider was able to take the victory after a late attacked which saw her hold off the favourites' group.

However it was by no means easy to reach the finale of the Galician stage. With the final hour packed with small climbs, there were many that struggled through. Franziska Koch and Lotte Kopecky, first and third at the start of the stage, both had their difficulties on the final ascents which saw attacks from the likes of Katarzyna Niewiadoma repeatedly.

After the breakaway of Sterre Vervloet was nullified, the GC riders and classics specialists battled it out on the rugged terrain. Pauline Ferrand-Prévot and Olympic Champion Kristen Faulkner were also on the move, with the latter getting a dangerous gap, which would however be closed due to the work of SD Worx and FDJ United - Suez.

The two teams looked for a sprint finish, but this was not possible. The finale included a long cobbled sector and a small uphill ramp which opened things up, and with 2.2 kilometers to go Kerbaol launched an attack off the front of the peloton. Without the firepower to initiate a chase immediately, the French rider was able to sustain her lead to take the stage win - EF's second after Noëmi Ruegg won the opening day.

Lotte Kopecky sprinted to second place and reduced her gap to Koch for the yellow jersey, whilst Sarah van Dam was third.