Only one full-bright star could be seen this Friday from the observatory sitting at the summit of Mont Ventoux. Her name is Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon//SRAM), and she put out the bravest ride up the Mont Ventoux to conquer the Giant of Provence in its first appearance in the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift.
The Polish rider powered away from Demi Vollering (FDJ United-Suez) and Marlen Reusser (Movistar Team) 9.5km from the summit to raise her arms in victory for the first time in this race and take the Yellow Jersey off the shoulders of the Swiss rider.
Niewiadoma-Phinney is now on track to repeat her overall triumph in 2024 if she manages to defend her lead of 15 seconds on Vollering and 39 seconds on Reusser this weekend.
As of Saturday, the 2026 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift heads south towards the French Riviera. Stage 8 from Sisteron to Nice will be the longest in this edition of the event, with 171.9 kilometres that should end in a reduced bunch sprint.
On Sunday, Stage 9 will mark the great finale of the race, with four climbs up the Col d’Èze offering a chance for a definitive GC shake-up.