"She looks much healthier" - FDJ - Suez thrilled with Demi Vollering's Tour time trial flier
CyclingTuesday, 04 August 2026 at 19:16
Stage 4 of the Tour de France Femmes delivered a lot of action and gaps in the race's sole individual time trial. In the 21 kilometers Demi Vollering lost time to Marlen Reusser; but may have been the biggest winner of the day after learning that she had won almost two minutes to Pauline Ferrand-Prévot.
Third for Vollering on key time trial
The Dutchwoman is a complete rider and over the opening days of the race she proved her form via several attacks she had launched over the hilly terrain. Whilst she didn't bring in time from them, into the race's decisive time trial, the FDJ - Suez rider had confidence, and that was visible on the bike.
"Looking at it this way, I am very happy. In the Giro we also rode a good time trial, but back then we were in a very different situation," team DS Lars Boom said in words to NOS following the stage. The mountains have not yet arrived, and Vollering has moved up to second place in the overall classification.
She has lost 17 seconds to Marlen Reusser on the day, but rode to a brilliant third place which not only saw her build a strong buffer over the grand majority of her rivals - allowing her to focus on Reusser; but also she won 1:55 minutes on Pauline Ferrand-Prévot. The two rivals had very different performances, with luck falling on the Giro Donne winner's side.
"Now we are in a different position. I am enormously proud of how Demi rode: fierce from the start, a high pace, and she listened well. That is very nice".
Demi Vollering following her effort at the Tour de France Femmes' time trial
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Vollering within reach of the yellow jersey
Whilst it was not a literal victory, it certainly felt like one after the 29-year old's effort. She now sits second in the overall classification, the position she finished in over the last two seasons; but is well within reach of a yellow jersey that is currently held by a rider she comfortably dropped at the Giro Donne.
Whilst the circumstances are not the same and the Movistar rider is in terrific form, the mythical Mont Ventoux will allow no-one to hide and favours the lighter riders, something Reusser may struggle with.
"It was an incredibly fast time trial and you can see that you really have to be able to deliver full power when it matters. We know that Demi can do that — and you can see that with Marlen too, of course. With Pauline, the focus is perhaps a bit more on the high mountains, which is why those differences arise".
When balancing the overall classification, Vollering has a 14-second deficit to Reusser and 1:59 minutes over Ferrand-Prévot into the first potentially decisive hilly stage of the race. Boom finished his remarks with a word of confidence after the French team's move up the rankings.
"I think we are in a very good position. I really see a very different Demi than last year. She looks much healthier and has a huge drive to race. Everything looks good and we are really looking forward to heading into the mountains tomorrow," he concluded.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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Rafionain-Glas04-08-2026 - They have been long term team building for 6-7 years, the team are a joke.
Senna196004-08-2026 - (does cutd read comments here to create new content?) Obviously. They want more views, so content that is more popular is clearly what they lean into to do that.Rafionain-Glas04-08-2026
- Mou, it is truly admirable how you manage to make every conversation an exercise in patience - yours and everyone else’s.anonymouscyclist04-08-2026
- Tadej is not (still) the potential G.O.A.T. ... Stop stuttering... He is THE G.O.A.T. - The Greatest Of All Time.PogiSloFans04-08-2026
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- When it comes to winning a Giro d'Italia, Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana, Maurizio Fondriest is sending a warning to Pogačar!?!? First of all, who is Fondriest to send "warnings"? Pogi doesn't know or care about him. Pogi and his trainers will be the ones to decide if he will take on all three GT's in one season. No one knows what will happen because it's never been tried before. I have the feeling that many former BS cyclists and commentators are smarter then Pogi and his team of cycling specialists.PogiSloFans04-08-2026
- You're wrong, it's not too late. This is how it's done: Pogi says "This year I want to do the Giro again, I just love this race." He does the Giro, wins, and then goes to the Tour. He talks nothing about the Vuelta, if asked he says "No, I'm not doing the Vuelta, I will focus on the WC." After winning the Tour he never mentions the Vuelta. Pogi and his trainer see if Pogi is feeling good and strong, if he still has good legs, then they decide. If they think he can do it, LET'S GO, POGI IS DOING THE VUELTA. OMG!!! Everyone is going crazy. But if Pogi isn't feeling the best, no one says anything, he just won't go, skip the Vuelta and once again win the WC. Capish?PogiSloFans04-08-2026
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