Annemiek van Vleuten soars into yellow with stunning show of dominance on Stage 7 of Tour de France Femmes

30.07.2022 - 20:11 eurosport.com

Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar Team) produced a ride for the ages to ride into yellow on Stage 7 of the Tour de France Femmes.

Van Vleuten and Demi Vollering (Team SD Worx) made their move on the first climb of the day — the Petit Ballon — to put distance into their rivals.

Van Vleuten then dropped the Team SD Worx rider a kilometre from the summit of the Col du Platzerwasel before sauntering home with Vollering some 3'26" in arrears.

Ad/> /> Tour de France Femmes‘They’d break!’ — Van Vleuten training regime beyond rest of peloton15 MINUTES AGO Featuring three unprecedented climbs, for a total of 3000m of climbing, as much as it would offer an opportunity for the likes of Van Vleuten the stage was always going to prove more of a challenge for many.

mountaineering Yellow on France

Adam Blythe and Orla Chennaoui believe that Annemiek van Vleuten's retirement from cycling could be good for the sport, hailing her as an «all-time great» but suggesting that the Dutch rider is perhaps too dominant. Van Vleuten secured overall victory at the Tour de France Femmes, dominating the final two stages of the race to take a commanding win more than three minutes ahead of Demi Vollering despite struggling with illness during the opening days of the Tour.

'It’s so steep!' – Camera motorbike topples over as Annemiek van Vleuten rides to Tour de France Femmes glory

A camera motorbike toppled over as it tried to track Annemiek van Vleuten’s progress up the brutal Super Planche des Belles Filles climb at the Tour de France Femmes on Sunday. As the Movistar rider closed on a final-stage victory in the yellow jersey, the motorbike's lens was diligently fixed upon her as it crawled alongside the Dutchwoman. Ad/> But such was the iconic ramp’s steepness, topping out at 24%, it started to grind to a halt before rolling backwards near the summit and awkwardly falling to eject its driver and camera operator.

Annemiek van Vleuten wins 2022 Tour de France Femmes

By Claire Colbert, CNN

Annemiek van Vleuten closes out 'dream' Tour triumph

Dutch rider Annemiek van Vleuten won the Tour de France Femmes after she tamed the brutal ascent to La Super Planche des Belles Filles in Sunday's final stage to grab the overall victory.

Opinion: Annemiek van Vleuten was the right winner of the first Tour de France of a new generation

Five days ago Annemiek van Vleuten was in trouble. A lot of trouble. Plagued by a stomach bug that meant she “couldn’t eat, couldn’t drink,” the Giro Donne champion was on the brink of abandoning the first women’s Tour de France in 33 years She didn’t.

‘No matter!’ – Breaking unwritten rules of cycling still wouldn’t have stopped Annemiek van Vleuten on Stage 8

Annemiek van Vleuten's dominance is such that even if her rivals attacked at the moment she had a mechanical on Stage 8 – and, in doing so, broke one of the unwritten rules of cycling — it would not matter, according to Adam Blythe speaking on The Breakaway. The Movistar rider suffered an untimely mechanical on Stage 8 of the Tour de France Femmes that saw her change bikes three times. She also suffered a puncture.