Liane Lippert wins stage two of Tour de France Femmes after rainswept drama
Thanks for joining and following along on this dramatic, and damp, stage two of the Tour de France Femmes. Here’s the stage two report: Liane Lippert of the Movistar team won stage two of the Tour de France Femmes in Mauriac, after the climbs of the Cantal proved as disruptive as predicted with multiple riders distanced in the 151.7km stage.
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Lippert speaks after winning stage two...
Lippert, soaked to the skin, looks happy but shocked at her win today. She says she was glad when it started raining as she races well in wet conditions. Speaking after her win, she said: “It will stake a bit of time to realise it [she’s won]. I’m really happy. It’s so special. I’m really happy and proud of this [winning in her national jersey].”
The stage started with a crash. How did you manage to concentrate for the finish? “I actually crashed twice: once in the neutral [start] and then on a climb. It was a bit of stress but the team did so well. Everybody was a big, big part of this. We came back after the crash and stayed calm in this rain. I always race well in the rain, so I was actually happy when it started.”
Did you think you were going to win? “I didn’t think I was going to win… I didn’t believe it even when I crossed the line. I thought maybe there was a breakaway gone or something. I still need some time to realise. I’ve been waiting so long for a win and to win at the Tour de France…I couldn’t wish for more.”
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Who’ll be wearing what jersey tomorrow:
Kopecky has retained the maillot jeune and is still top placed for the points classification. She will be in the yellow jersey again tomorrow, while the second placed in points, Moolman Pasio will be in the green jersey. Kastelijn will be in the polka-dot jersey and Cédrine Kerbaol will again wear the white jersey as top placed youth rider. Koster has been named most combative rider of stage two.
Yellow: Lotte Kopecky (SD-Worx) 7hr 17min 36sec
Green: Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AG Insurance–Soudal–Quick-Step) 90pts
Polka-dot: Yara Kastelijn (Fenix–Deceuninck) 7pts
White: Cédrine Kerbaol (Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling)
Stage two top five
Here is the top five on stage two:
1. Liane Lippert (Movistar)
2. Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx)
3. Silvia Persico (UAE Team ADQ)
4. Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step)
5. Christina Schweinberger (Fenix-Deceuninck)
Liane Lippert takes the stage two win!!
Liane Lippert (Team Movistar) comes out from behind Kopecky to take the win. Some might say Kopecky had a bit too much to do there, but happily for her, she retains the yellow jersey.
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500m to go: Looks like Kopecky is being lined up for a second win by Vollering…
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1km to go: There are 25 riders at the front and Reusser attacks with 200m to the summit but Longo Borghini shuts it down. They all reach the top together.
2km to go: Told you it was raining…
🌧️Weather update : Wet.
— Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) July 24, 2023
🌧️Alerte météo : Il pleut. #TDFF2023 #WatchTheFemmes @Gozwift pic.twitter.com/bmaEdtihq9
2km to go: The front group are ascending up the last climb of the day, the cat-three Côte de Trébiac (3.4km at 5.8%). It’s 1.5km to the summit now and the GC contenders are exchanging blows but no one has managed to get away yet.
3km to go: Niewiadoma and Moolman Pasio are in the front group with a roster of GC contendors, including Longo Borghini, van Vlueten and Demi Vollering. Kopecky is also present.
4km to go: Van Agt is the Jumbo-Visma rider who crashed on the downhill and into a barrier. It looked pretty nasty. Koster and Kastelijn are caught by Niewiadoma and Moolman Pasio.
6km to go: Crashes are happening all over the place in these grim conditions. An Uno-X rider went down and off into the pavement, while a Jumbo-Visma rider has crashed into a barrier.
9km to go: There’s a very wet and horrible looking corner, which the lead trio managed to just navigate. Lauretta Hanson (Lidl-Trek) wasn’t quite so lucky – she hit the deck and skidded for a little while. She’s up and probably a bit bruised but looks to be getting back on to the bike.
10km to go: Interesting fact coming from Eurosport and being popped on here for you all: Van Agt, who is 26 years-old, only turned pro last year and comes from a background of field hockey. The final climb is coming up in around 5km.
14km to go: The weather must be bad…Slappendel has taken off her sunnies. She doesn’t look like she’s enjoying being on the back of a motorbike anymore – she says it’s 10C and the roads are slippery.
16km to go: The breakaway group has gone back out to 50sec and it has started chucking it down. This could have a real impact on the finish. Ton has been caught and the GC teams are coming to the front of the bunch as they sense danger in these wet conditions. It looks like proper British weather…
22km to go: Juliette Labous (DSM-Firmenich) attacks but Reusser shuts it down straightaway and it takes 30sec out of the breakaway’s lead. Quinty Ton (Liv Racing Teqfind) is next to go and the peloton don’t seem bothered as she has quite a big gap to bridge. Also, below are the results from the last climb. Kastelijn still leads the QOM standing with 7pts.
Results at Côte de Merlhac:
1. Yara Kastelijn (Fenix-Deceuninck), 2pts
2. Anouska Koster (Uno-X), 1pt
25km to go: The lead trio of Kastelijn, van Agt and Koster have a gap of around 47sec. The group behind the peloton, which includes Wiebes, are almost 5min behind.
34km to go: The riders have reached Mauriac. They now have a 36.7km loop and two categorised ascents before they wrap up for the day.
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Anouska Koster wins the the intermediate sprint
36km to go: Koster is first to cross the line at the intermediate sprint. Back in the bunch, Kopecky follows to take fourth place after the lead trio.
Results of the intermediate sprint:
1. Anouska Koster (Uno-X), 25pts
2. Eva van Agt (Jumbo-Visma), 20pts
3. Yara Kastelein (Fenix-Deceuninck), 17pts
4. Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx), 15pts
5. Maria Confalonieri (Uno-X), 13pts
6. Eleonora Gasparrini (UAE Team ADQ), 11pts
7. Julia Borgström (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step), 10pts
8. Mischa Bredewold (SD Worx), 9pts
9. Silvia Persico (UAE Team ADQ), 8pts
10. Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AG Insurance Soudal Quick-Step), 7pts
11. Lucinda Brand (Lidl-Trek), 6pts
12. Demi Vollering (SD Worx), 5pts
13. Romy Kasper (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step), 4pts
14. Lauretta Hanson (Lidl-Trek), 3pts
15. Amanda Spratt (Lidl-Trek), 2pts
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37km to go: Kastelijn has been joined by Eva van Agt (Jumbo Visma) and Anouska Koster (Uno X). They have a gap of around 35sec. The intermediate sprint is coming up.
42km to go: So straight after the second-cat Côte des Plaines, the riders were treated to the cat-four Côte des Boissières. Kastelijn manages to hold on and is first over the top even after Marta Cavalli (FDJ-Suez) and Eva van Agt (Jumbo Visma) try to thwart her efforts. Here are the results from this latest categorised climb:
Results at Côte des Plaines:
1. Julie Van de Velde (Fenix-Deceuninck), 5pts
2. Yara Kastelijn (Fenix-Deceuninck), 3pts
3. Anouska Koster (Uno-X), 2pts
4. Magdeleine Vallieres (EF Education-Tibco-SVB), 1pt
44km to go: Van de Velde managed to hold on and take the points at the top of the Côte des Plaines but has now been caught. Her teammate Yara Kastelijn is at the front with Soraya Paladin (Canyon//Sram) and Anouska Koster (Uno-X). As predicted, these two climb have exploded the group. The peloton has fractured and riders are dropping off the back of the group as the peloton pace it up another climb.
Van Vleuten and Longo Borghini are caught in a crash
46km to go: Last year’s Tour de France Femmes winner, Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar Team) and Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek) have been caught in a crash. Van Vleuten gets back up and has three of her teammates to help pace her back to the bunch quickly. Wiebes (SD Worx) has been dropped.
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46km to go: Van de Velde goes again with a big effort. Riders are being dropped: Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek) and Coryn Labecki (Jumbo-Visma) are among those off the back.
49km to go: Agnieszka Skalniak-Sojka (Canyon//Sram) attacks and Évita Muzic (FDJ-Suez) follows. Julie Van de Velde (Fenix-Deceuninck) goes also but Marlen Reusser (SD Worx) doesn’t let her get away and the rest of the group are on them.
51km to go: Canadian national champion and Paris-Roubaix Femmes avec Zwift 2023 winner, Alison Jackson (EF Education-Tibco-SVB) has gone down with Dilyxine Miermont (St Michel-Mavic-Auber93) and Spela Kern (Cofidis). It looks like Jackson may have slipped on a greasy road and has a small cut on her arm. All three riders are up and back on their bikes.
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54km to go: Williams and Ludwig have finally been caught by the peloton. As they see the bunch approaching, the two riders look at each other, smile and shake hands. The riders are all together now as they head towards the cat-two Côte des Plaines. It’s a 4.5km climb with an average gradient of 5.5%. The riders will want to position themselves well going into this climb as it might well all kick off here.
🤝 End of the road for our lead duo with just over 50 KM remaining
— Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) July 24, 2023
🤝Aventure terminée pour notre duo de tête, alors qu'il reste un peu plus de 50 KM
#TDFF2023 #WatchTheFemmes @Gozwift pic.twitter.com/cg9plWzbfl
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56km to go: The peloton are speeding up ahead of the next – and hardest – climb of the day. Williams and Ludwig’s gap is down to 10sec but it doesn’t look like the peloton are actively trying to pull them in. It’s more a case of the accelerating speed within the bunch naturally moving them closer to the breakaway. Arianna Fidanza (Jayco-Alula) crashed at the back of the bunch but is already back in the peloton.
60km to go: Some numbers have been crunched here by Le Tour Data. I’ll pop it here for those of you who love analysing the stats.
The 2 leading riders have been travelling faster than the peloton on the damp 💦 downhill stretch from Côte de la Stèle, increasing their lead by 2.4" per km as a result! The gap increased by 48" over the 20km descent #TDFF2023 #TDFFdata pic.twitter.com/RpxCd2cdbh
— letourdata (@letourdata) July 24, 2023
62km to go: Here’s an update from Slappendel on the back of the motorbike. She says the day started with a sunny 25C and the temperature has since dropped. “The first part of the race was pretty technical: climbing and descending. There’s been rain showers so parts of the road are dry, some parts are wet. It’s been challenging.” She adds that it now seems like “an easier part of the day” but the speeds are still testing and there is a nervousness in the bunch.
69km to go: The leading pair have been out front for 70km now. There’s just under another 70km to go. Can they keep the gap going? It’s dropped slightly to 1min 03sec.
75km to go: Williams and Ludwig have a gap of around 1min 30sec to the peloton. There’s been some spots of rain and a couple of riders have reached for rain jackets from their team cars. It looks a bit grey and blustery in the coverage but not too wet. The women’s peloton are being treated to quite different temperatures at the moment to what we saw in the men’s race. It’s about 18.4C out there, so it will be a bit chilly for the riders descending at their speeds.
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84km to go: Ahead of today’s stage Matt Stephens asked Iris Slappendel on Eurosport what she would say to the riders if she was a directeur sportif and wanted to beat the dominance of SD Worx. She says: “The strength is their depth of riders. I’d say try to surprise them and try to isolate them.”
💛The @MaillotjauneLCL at the back of the group, they trail 30" behind the lead duo.
— Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) July 24, 2023
💛La @MaillotjauneLCL à l'arrière du groupe, qui se situe à 30" du duo de tête.#TDFF2023 #WatchTheFemmes @Gozwift pic.twitter.com/xaIO7nnpmy
88km to go: Taking a look at today’s stage profile, it’s a pretty lumpy one. Lots of ups and downs even without the categorised climbs. It’s going to be a real test of the legs for these two time trialists. They’re descending now but the hardest climb of the day is coming up next: the cat-two Côte des Plaines. It will be swiftly followed by the cat-four Côte des Boissières.
97km to go: Williams has swept up two more QOM points to place her one point ahead of Kopecky.
Results at Côte de la Stèle:
1. Georgia Williams (EF Education-Tibco-SVB), 2pts
2. Hannah Ludwig (Uno-X), 1pt
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100km to go: Williams and Ludwig’s gap has grown again and now stands at 50sec. It seems like the peloton aren’t too worried about catching them at the moment. The riders are starting to climb the second categorised climb of today, the fourth-cat Côte de la Stèle. It stretches for 1.8km, has an average gradient of 5.1% and with a summit at 1,250m.
105km to go: The peloton are gaining and the gap between them and the breakaway duo has been reduced to 25sec. I think we know which riders crested the Côte du Mont-Dore first, but here are the results anyway.
Results at Côte de Mont-Dore:
1. Georgia Williams (EF Education-Tibco-SVB), 2pts
2. Hannah Ludwig (Uno-X), 1pt
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107km to go: The gap to the breakaway pair has been reduced to 45sec. Interestingly, both Williams and Ludwig, who are out front, are time trial experts. Williams is a five-time New Zealand ITT champion, while Ludwig is a two-time U23 European ITT champ. I would love to see this pair time trial to the finish but I think that might be bit of a stretch…
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110km to go: The lead of 1min 35sec for Williams and Ludwig is remaining steady but they are about to hit the first categorised climb of the day. At 1.3km long, the cat-four Côte du Mont-Dore has an average gradient of 6.6% and tops out at 1,145m.
117km to go: Williams and Ludwig have grown their lead to 1min 35sec ahead of the peloton. Will they manage to stay away? There is still a very long way to go and in around 6-7km they’ll start the first of the six categorised climbs of the day.
124km to go: Williams and Ludwig have seen their lead drop from slightly to just 1min. Kastelijn’s attempt to get across to them has proved unsuccessful as she’s been caught by the bunch. Wiebes, who had been dropped, is safely back in the peloton.A few riders have tried to get away from the peloton but the bunch are fast to react.
130km to go: Vos has made her way back into the bunch. Williams and Ludwig are still out front and Kastelijn carries on trying to bridge across. Elsewhere, Amandine Fouquenet (Arka) has had to abandon. Apparently, she started today’s race with stomach issues but isn’t feeling great and is unable to keep up.
⏱️1' lead for the duo upfront, with one rider in pursuit
— Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) July 24, 2023
⏱️1' d'avance pour le duo de tête, et une coureuse en chasse-patate
🇳🇿Georgia Williams
🇩🇪Hannah Ludwig
--- 45"
🇳🇱@Yarakastelijn#TDFF2023 #WatchTheFemmes @Gozwift pic.twitter.com/pP8q5ouI5z
134km to go: A group of around 40 riders, including Wiebes (I think), have managed to make it back to the bunch as the pace relents a little.
136km to go: Williams and Ludwig’s lead has increased to 1min on the peloton. Yara Kastelijn (Fenix-Deceuninck) is chasing and is 45sec behind the lead pair.
139km to go: Georgia Williams (EF Education-Tibco-SVB) and Hannah Ludwig (Uno-X) have opened a gap of around 255sec to the bunch. Vos is 20sec behind the peloton. Cycling commentator Hannah Walker is predicting fireworks on today’s stage. What do you think?
A 'relentless stage with little time for respite'... @spannawalker thinks we should expect some fireworks 🎇 during today's 151.7km route from Clermont-Ferrand to Mauriac #TDFF2023 #TDFFdata pic.twitter.com/nyvfpJFP0g
— letourdata (@letourdata) July 24, 2023
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140km to go: There’s been a crash, which I don’t have much detail on, but I hear that Margaux Vigié (Lifeplus Wahoo) and Elena Hartmann (Israel Premier Tech Roland) have quickly made their way back to the bunch. There is around a 20sec gap between the yellow jersey group and the grupetto.
141km to go: Earlier, during the neutralised zone, Liane Lippert (Movistar Team) crashed but got back on her bike. I’ve now got the race tour radio blaring which is making me feel very much like I’m riding in one of the official cars.
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145km to go: As the road starts to rise, some riders are already starting to drop off. I’m hearing that Christine Majerus (SD Worx) and Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma) are among the riders struggling with the pace at this time.
Racing is underway on stage two
148km to go: The flag has been waved and the peloton are off! The first attack comes from the Polish national ITT champion Agnieszka Skalniak-Sojka (Canyon//Sram). Although other riders move to join her, the bunch quickly reacts. There are already splits forming in the bunch after a fast start.
We’re rolling on stage two of the Tour de France Femmes
152km to go: After a bit of a delay, the peloton have started rolling out. Today, 152 riders have started, with two abandons so far. They are Mireia Benito (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step) who crashed out yesterday, and now Lara Viecelli (Israel Premier Tech), who is a non-starter due to “a stomach issue”. The update on Benito from her team is that she has suffered a concussion but there were no further complications.
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Who’s wearing what jersey?
Kopecky is currently top in three classifications: the GC ranking, points and the mountains. Of course, she can only wear one jersey, so she will be in the maillot jaune today, while the second placed in points and mountain categories will wear the green sprinters jersey and polka-dot jersey, respectively. Cédrine Kerbaol of Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling will be in the white jersey as top placed youth rider.
Yellow: Lotte Kopecky (SD-Worx) 3hr 03min 59sec
Green: Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AG Insurance–Soudal–Quick-Step) 36pts
Polka-dot: Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon–SRAM) 2pts
White: Cédrine Kerbaol (Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling)
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The peloton was due to roll out at 1.05pm French time / 12.05pm UK time but are still making their to the start. Unfortunately, Eurosport’s live coverage doesn’t begin until 2pm UK, meaning we’ll miss around 65km of racing. It’s a bit rubbish but I will try my very best to bring you as many updates as I can via the live tracker and anything on social media until we have rolling TV coverage.
Lotte Kopecky wins first stage of Tour de France Femmes after gruelling climb
Jeremy Whittle’s Tour de France Femmes stage one report is here: Lotte Kopecky won the first stage of the 2023 Tour de France Femmes after a late solo breakaway to lead the overall standings by 45 seconds from her teammate Lorena Wiebes.
What can we expect on stage two?
On the third-category climb of the the Côte de Durtol, in the shadow of the Puy de Dôme, Lotte Kopecky attacked yesterday to take the first Tour de France Femmes 2023 stage win, in Clermont-Ferrand. After attacking with 400m to the summit of the only real climb of the day, the Team SD Worx shot off to ride to victory, with the peloton failing to send any one after her.
Teammate, Lorena Wiebes rolled in 45 seconds later to make it a one-two for SD Worx, while Charlotte Kool of Team DSM-Firmenich took third place. Today, the race shifts south for a hilly 148km from Clermont-Ferrand to Mauriac.
Unlike yesterday’s flat stage, today the riders face a mix of categorised climbs. There are six, in fact, with four cat-fours, one cat-three and one cat-two. The first categorised climb, the cat-four Côte du Mont-Dore arrives at 42.6km, while the final of the six categorised climbs, the Côtede Trébiac offers up an uphill finish for the riders.
Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon–SRAM) starts in polka-dots after placing second in the Queen of the Mountains classification behind Kopecky, who will be clad in the maillot jaune today. The day’s solitary intermediate sprint comes at Mauriac after 112km.
Yesterday’s racing was speedy but cagey and we didn’t see any successful attacks really until Kopecky’s. With such a hilly stage, surely the peloton will fragment throughout the day but will we see any early attacks?
Stage start: 12.05pm UK time
🚲 Stage 2 / Étape 2 🚲
— Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) July 24, 2023
🚩 @ClermontFd 🏁 Mauriac
📏 151,7 km
⏰ 13:25 CEST > 17:31 CEST
⛰ 1x2️⃣c, 1x3️⃣c, 4x4️⃣c
💚 km 112,6
💛#TDFF2023 pic.twitter.com/jqiUJZvxyz
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