Niewiadoma-Phinney Wins on Mont Ventoux to Seize Tour de France Femmes Lead
The 2024 champion attacked six miles from the summit to claim her first Tour stage win and take the yellow jersey from Marlen Reusser with two stages left.
MONT VENTOUX, France — Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney attacked on the slopes of Mont Ventoux to win the seventh stage of the Women's Tour de France on Friday and take the overall lead from Marlen Reusser.
The 2024 champion was in tears as she pulled on the yellow jersey. She now leads 2023 winner Demi Vollering by 15 seconds and Reusser by 39 seconds with two stages remaining.
"I'm just so tired and so blown away with what just happened," Niewiadoma-Phinney said. "When I started climbing I looked to the right and I saw my parents standing on the roadside. They came today by surprise. I saw my father yelling for me and I thought I had to make him proud."
Neither Reusser nor Vollering could follow when the Polish rider broke away about nine kilometers (six miles) from the top of Ventoux, one of cycling's most iconic climbs with its barren, lunar landscape. The final ascent measured 15.7 kilometers (about 9.8 miles) at a gradient of nearly 9% and was rated Hors Catégorie, the hardest classification. Three smaller climbs preceded it.
It was a first Tour stage win for Niewiadoma-Phinney, who took the 2024 edition without winning a stage. Gritting her teeth over the final few hundred meters, she raised her arms at the line, then nearly lost her balance from fatigue and had to be helped off her bike. Moments later she sat on the road, smiling and pouring water over her head.
"I never chase victories for the sake of winning, I target them because I like this beautiful feeling I have right now," said Niewiadoma-Phinney, who is married to former men's Tour sprinter Taylor Phinney. She said she had ridden the climb three times on an earlier visit with friends and her husband.
Vollering dropped Reusser late in the climb. The Swiss world time trial champion finished fourth on the stage, behind Vollering and two-time Giro d'Italia winner Elisa Longo Borghini of Italy.
"My idea was that I had to make it to Chalet Reynard on my own," Niewiadoma-Phinney said of the point six kilometers from the finish, citing a strong headwind beyond it.
Saturday's eighth stage is a flat 172-kilometer (107-mile) route for sprinters finishing in Nice. Sunday's closing stage features four climbs of the Col d'Èze above Monaco. Two years ago, Niewiadoma-Phinney beat Vollering on the final day to win the race by four seconds.
This article was produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI), in accordance with our editorial policy.