Kim Le Court became the first African rider to win a stage of the Tour de France Femmes, clinching victory in a sprint finish in Guéret. The Mauritian also took the yellow jersey from Marianne Vos, who lost time after being dropped by a breakaway.
Le Court, riding for AG Insurance–Soudal, finished the 112km stage from Bastogne in 3hr 54min 07sec, edging out Demi Vollering and Anna van der Breggen. The victory was set up by a strong team performance, with Sarah Gigante playing a key role in supporting her leader.
“We came in with a clear plan, first to stay safe … it was difficult because it was flat and fast, a lot of big crashes … then the big goal was to take the bonus sprint, which I managed to do, then try for the victory,” Le Court said. “I couldn’t have done it without a teammate. Teamwork is what you need in the sport.”
The stage, which tested riders in the Massif Central, caused significant time gaps in the general classification. Lorena Wiebes, the green jersey wearer, lost over nine minutes after being dropped on the late climbs. Vos slipped to sixth overall, 37 seconds behind Le Court.
Le Court now leads the GC by 18 seconds from Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, with Vollering 23 seconds back and defending champion Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney a further second behind. With four stages remaining, the overall winner is expected to come from this group.
