A prodigious talent across multiple different discipline, just what is the ceiling for Pieterse on her Tour de France Femmes debut? Although she's yet to win a senior race on the road, top-10 finishes at the likes of Strade Bianche, Tour of Flanders, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Gent Wevelgem point to the 22-year-old's immense potential.
“I will probably get a free role. It would be nice to really compete at the front in the tougher stages," says the
Fenix-Deceuninck rider, who is likely to be joined the team's star riders, Yara Kasteleijn and
Pauliena Rooijakkers. "I don’t have the pressure to take the Yellow Jersey, for example. If I lose half an hour in the first stage, it doesn’t really matter. Then I can set other goals again. The nice thing is that nothing has to be done.”
Whilst the Yellow Jersey may admittedly be out of reach for Pieterse, the White Jersey for Best Young Rider, will be something she has more than one eye on. "It is really cool to experience, especially because I am still a promise. Do I secretly have ambitions for the white jersey? As I said: losing time in the general classification is really no drama. But if I were to go for something, it would be the youth classification," Pieterse concludes.