Results Tour de France Femmes 2026 Stage 1 - Lorena Wiebes conquers uphill Lausanne finish to take first yellow jersey
Cycling
Lorena Wiebes powered to victory on the opening stage of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes, surviving a demanding circuit around Lausanne before beating Kim Le Court-Pienaar and Demi Vollering on the uphill finish.
The Team SD Worx – Protime leader had remained safely inside a heavily reduced peloton as repeated climbs removed several other fast finishers. Anna van der Breggen helped position Wiebes inside the final kilometre before Vollering accelerated with around 700 metres remaining.
Le Court-Pienaar followed the former Tour winner, but Wiebes remained close behind and launched her sprint with approximately 400 metres to go. Neither Le Court-Pienaar nor Vollering could match her acceleration, allowing the Dutchwoman to claim the stage and the first yellow jersey of the nine-day race.
Puck Pieterse finished fourth after another selective opening stage suited to the strongest all-round riders.
Wiebes survives as Kopecky and Kool are dropped
Although officially classified as a flat stage, the 137-kilometre route contained four categorised climbs and a final 2.5-kilometre ascent averaging 4.6 per cent. The repeated changes in gradient gradually reduced the peloton and removed several potential stage winners. Charlotte Kool was distanced on the Cote de Villars-le-Comte, while Lotte Kopecky lost contact on the following Cote de Vulliens.
Kopecky had been another leading option for SD Worx if the finish proved too difficult for Wiebes, but the European champion continued to survive each acceleration and reached the decisive climb with the front group.
AG Insurance – Soudal attempted to take control for Le Court-Pienaar in the closing kilometres. Shari Bossuyt moved to the front before Le Court-Pienaar attacked with 1.5 kilometres remaining, although the move was quickly absorbed.
Celia Gery then tried to anticipate the favourites before Van der Breggen lifted the pace for SD Worx. Vollering made the next acceleration, but her move ultimately provided Wiebes with the ideal launchpad.
The four-rider breakaway was caught with six kilometres remaining after spending most of the stage at the front. Idoia Eraso and Maud Rijnbeek had initiated the move before Nikola Noskova and Oceane Mahe bridged across, with the quartet later building an advantage of around six minutes.
Mahe secured the first polka-dot jersey after taking maximum points on the opening two categorised climbs. Noskova attacked over the Cote de Vulliens before Amanda Spratt joined Eraso and Rijnbeek in the chase, eventually restoring a four-rider group at the front.
Crashes disrupt nervous opening stage
Several crashes added to the tension around the rolling and technical Lausanne circuit. Zoe Backstedt, Le Court-Pienaar and multiple Fenix – Premier Tech riders were delayed by an early incident. Christina Schweinberger suffered pain in her wrist and later struggled to remain in contact after having the injury strapped.
Laura Tomasi, Lotte Claes and riders from Team Picnic PostNL were involved in another crash. Tomasi underwent an on-road concussion assessment before eventually becoming the first rider to abandon the 2026 Tour.
Marlen Reusser also faced a late scare when a Movistar teammate crashed in front of her on a descent. The Swiss GC contender was delayed while dealing with a mechanical issue but returned to the peloton with help from two teammates. Dominika Wlodarczyk and Letizia Paternoster then crashed inside the final two kilometres as the fight for position intensified.
Wiebes avoided the trouble and answered every question posed by the climbing route, taking the stage ahead of Le Court-Pienaar, Vollering and Pieterse to begin the Tour in yellow.
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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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