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Tour de France Femmes 2023: Lotte Kopecky breaks away to win stage one – as it happened

Belgium’s Lotte Kopecky escaped to win the opening 123.8km stage of the Tour de France Femmes in Clermont-Ferrand

• 23 Jul 2023 Lotte Kopecky wins first stage of Tour de France Femmes after gruelling climb
• 23 Jul 2023 Stage one top 10
• 23 Jul 2023 Kopecky speaks after her win…
• 23 Jul 2023 It's an SD-Worx one-two on stage one ...
• 23 Jul 2023 Kopecky takes the stage one win!!
• 23 Jul 2023 Lotte Kopecky attacks for the Queen of the Mountains jersey
• 23 Jul 2023 Results of the intermediate sprint
• 23 Jul 2023 Lizzie Deignan wins the intermediate sprint
• 23 Jul 2023 Crash ripples through the peloton
• 23 Jul 2023 Mireia Benito abandons
• 23 Jul 2023 They're racing in stage one!
• 23 Jul 2023 Stage one of the second edition of the Tour de France Femmes is underway
• 23 Jul 2023 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2023

Lotte Kopecky wins first stage of Tour de France Femmes after gruelling climb

Stage one report: Lotte Kopecky of Team SD Worx won the first stage of the 2023 Tour de France Femmes , taking a solo victory and the overall race lead by 41 seconds from her teammate Lorena Wiebes.

Thank you for joining me on this first stage of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2023. It’s been a pleasure to follow today’s action with you all and looking forward to more over the coming days. The stage report is coming in shortly…

Who’ll be wearing what jersey tomorrow: Kopecky is 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, 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)

Stage one top 10

Lotte Kopecky (SD-Worx) 3hr 04min 09sec

Lorena Wiebes (SD-Worx) +41sec

Charlotte Kool (DSM-Firmenich)

Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma)

Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AG Insurance–Soudal–Quick-Step) +43sec

Demi Vollering (SD-Worx)

Tamara Dronova (Israel Premier Tech Roland)

Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (FDJ-Suez)

Mavi García ( Liv Racing TeqFind)

Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek)

Kopecky speaks after her win…

“It was something that was on my mind for a long time,” she says with a big grin. “The last three weeks, it was something I was joking about with my best friend.”

Asked about attacking on the Côte de Durtol, she says: “I thought somebody would follow but nobody did.” Kopecky adds that going into today, SD-Worx had two strategies: one involved Wiebes going over the climb first and the other was if Kopecky managed it.

In regards to her team’s propensity to grab a one-two this season, she says: “I’m very happy. It’s amazing. In the team we laugh about it and we don’t understand it ourselves.”

Tomorrow you’ll wear the yellow jersey: “I think it will be something very special and I’m looking forward to it.”

It's an SD-Worx one-two on stage one ...

1. Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx) 2. Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx), +41'’ 3. Charlotte Kool (DSM-Fimernich) 4. Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma) 5. Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step)

Kopecky takes the stage one win!!

Kopecky has taken her first ever Tour de France Femmes stage win. Behind, Niewiadoma tried attacking but it ended in a bunch sprint for the second and third places. Those were taken by Wiebes and Kool respectively.

1km to go: The two chase groups have come back together. Big name sprinters, such as Wiebes and Kool are in there but Kopecky is flying.

3km to go: Kopecky’s lead has grown to around 45sec. There is a chasing group of 10 riders, including van Vleuten, Liane Lippert, Vollering, Ashleigh Moolman Pasio, Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig, Mavi Garcia and Kasia Niewiadoma. Is Kopecky heading for a win?

6km to go: Belgian rider Kopecky has taken the first QOM points of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2023. She attacked from a group of nine riders when there was about 400m to the ascent. Here are the results for the Côte de Durtol.

1. Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx), 3 pts 2. Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon//Sram), 2 pts 3. Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step), 1 pt

Lotte Kopecky attacks for the Queen of the Mountains jersey

9km to go: Kopecky attacks from the front group of 20-30 riders. She’s really accelerating away. Here is the excitement we were after today.

11km to go: As they hit the climb, Marlen Reusser (SD Worx) is at the front setting the pace. Lotte Kopecky, Vollering, Wiebes, Kool and van Vleuten are all up there.

12km to go: It’s getting faster and the peloton is fragmenting. Deignan is drilling it on the front with a grimace and Longo Borghini is tucked behind her.

14km to go: The teams are winding up for the Côte de Durtol. There’s an urgency that’s going to cause some splits here. This is what the whole day has been leading towards. The climb is 1.7km and has an average gradient of 7.2%.

Results of the intermediate sprint

1. Lizzie Deignan (Lidl-Trek), 25 pts 2. Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AG Insurance-Soudal Qucik-Step), 20 pts 3. Karlijn Swinkels (Jumbo Visma), 17 pts 4. Maria Confalonieri (Uno-X), 15 pts 5. Marianne Vos (Jumbo Visma), 13 pts 6. Léa Curinier (DSM-Firmenich), 11 pts 7. Yara Kastelijn (Fenix-Deceuninck), 10 pts 8. Anna Henderson (Jumbo Visma), 9 pts 9. Pfeiffer Georgi (DSM-Firmenich), 8 pts 10. Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek), 7 pts 11. Elise Uijen (DSM-Firmenich), 6 pts 12. Mischa Bredewold (SD Worx), 5 pts 13. Amanda Spratt (Lidl-Trek), 4 pts 14. Charlotte Kool (DSM-Firmenich), 3 pts 15. Julia Borgström (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step), 2 pts

21km to go: That intermediate sprint has caused some damage reports Slappendel. She says a few big names, including Elisa Balsamo have been dropped from the peloton.

23km to go: It’s just about 10km to the third-cat Côte de Durtol and the peloton are increasing the pace. There’s a few riders dropping off the back, while the teams at the front will be looking to dispatch as many sprinters as they can on the uphill.

Lizzie Deignan wins the intermediate sprint

27km to go: Deignan has taken the win in the intermediate sprint. She’s bagged the first points of this Tour. Strangely, it didn’t seem like any of the sprinters were interested then.

Crash ripples through the peloton

28km to go: There’s been a crash that’s taken down a number of riders but it doesn’t look to have resulted in anything serious.

28km to go: Lach has been caught. The teams are getting into formation for the intermediate sprint. There was a small coming together between India Granger and Amber Pate earlier but they have re-joined the peloton since. In this video, it looks like maybe their handlebars got locked together.

💥 Small crash at the back of the race between @indiagrangier and Amber Pate. Both have re-joined the back of the peloton. 💥 Petite chute à l'arrière entre @indiagrangier et Amber Pate. Les deux ont rejoint l'arrière du peloton. #TDFF2023 #WatchTheFemmes @GoZwift pic.twitter.com/SUg1WXhLa6 — Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) July 23, 2023

34km to go: After that drop in pace, it’s about to increase again as the peloton approach the intermediate sprint. It’s in about 7km to the start and then uphill from there.

38km to go: Lach’s lead was growing to almost a minute but has dropped towards 20sec as she goes up a false flat. In the second hour of racing, the pace has slowed slightly, bringing the peloton’s average speed 38.6kmph. Are there some saving energy for upcoming intermediate sprint?

45km to go: Polish rider Marta Lach of Ceratizit-WNT has attacked. She has around a 20sec gap.

46km to go: There is a lot of noise around who might take the win today. Lorena Wiebes, with eight wins already in 2023, seems to be a top pick (according to TV commentary and Twitter), but her teammate Demi Vollering is also tipped for potential success (she has 13 victories this year). Outside of SD-Worx, other names being thrown around are Charlotte Kool of DSM–Firmenich and Vos. A lot though depends on whether the sprinters make it up the third category climb with just over 9km to the finish.

53km to go: There are a few small hills coming up, which might encourage a breakaway attempt but for the moment, the peloton is being pretty cagey. My soigneur has just delivered a delicious bowl of noodles and broth to my desk. I will try and juggle eating that and posting updates. Wish me luck.

62km to go: Halfway in and the bunch is tightly packed together. There have been early attacks from Life-Plus Wahoo and Arkea riders but they have all been reeled in. Lidl-Trek, Liv Racing Teqfind, EF Education – Tibco-SV, Team DSM and Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step are setting the pace.

70km to go: This tweet sums up where the peloton are now pretty well. They are heading towards Bas-et-Lazet and have been cycling through a huge forest which looks spectacular from the overhead shots.

🏁74 KM We have no one in the lead following Typhaine Laurance's solo attempt, as different teams take their turn at the front Personne à l'avant depuis l'attaque de Typhaine Laurance, alors que différentes équipes se relaient das le peloton #TDFF2023 #WatchTheFemmes @GoZwift pic.twitter.com/HFhRyGnan6 — Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) July 23, 2023

75km to go: The peloton seem to be sticking together for the moment. There has been an update on Benito from her team: she is conscious and on her way to the hospital.

78km to go: Laurance is about to be swallowed up by the peloton after having her 30sec lead cut.

Lizzie Deignan (Lidl-Trek) spoke to Eurosport ahead of today’s stage and has shared her hope to be an “impactful” teammate for Elisa Longo Borghini. Due to being pregnant during the first edition of the Tour de France Femmes , this is Deignan’s debut. She says that although she is not physically in the “top tier”, she is mentally at an advantage. The British rider also says that she did not enjoy the recon of today’s stage and predicts a “fast and hectic” day.

"ᴄᴀʀɴᴀɢᴇ!" 😲 Lizzie Deignan, racing her first Tour de France Femmes, is expecting a hectic finish to Stage 1 on the final climb 📈 #TdFFemmes | #WatchTheFemmes | @lizziedeignan pic.twitter.com/xvwwy0sIPo — Eurosport (@eurosport) July 23, 2023

88km to go: Fouquenet gave it a try but couldn’t quite get across to Laurance so is sitting up and waiting for the peloton to reach her. Out front, Laurance has a gap of 32sec.

Mireia Benito abandons

89km to go: Spanish ITT champion Benito has had to abandon following a crash. It seems like the AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step rider clipped the edge of the road and went down heavily in a ditch.

94km to go: Amandine Fouquenet (Arkéa) is trying to join Laurance but the peloton are looming behind. There is around a 20sec gap for Laurance.

95km to go: Typhaine Laurance (Lifeplus Wahoo) attacked but her move was followed by the peloton. She tries again and has got a small gap. Behind, Mireia Benito of AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step has crashed and doesn’t look in a good way.

99km to go: With just under 110km to go, Le Deunff is reeled in and the peloton are all back together. Who is eyeing up a chance for the next attack?

100km to go: Tacey has been caught by the peloton but Le Deunff is still out there solo.

102km to go: British rider April Tacey (LifePlus Wahoo) has broken away to try and bridge over to Le Deunff. The Arkea rider has a gap of 30sec to the peloton.

104km to go: Marie Morgane Le Deunff for Arkéa Pro Cycling Team has attacked solo. There doesn’t seem to be any reaction from the peloton though. There is still a long way to go so a solo attack won’t bother them too much at the moment.

107km to go: As always, there are some beautiful looking bikes in the peloton, but Elisa Balsomo of Lidl-Trek is particularly proud of her steed. Take a look at that…

Ladies and gentlemen: my UNICORN bike 🦄 for Le Tour de France 🟡 Here's my new Project One ICON for #TDFF2023 ... the Chroma Ultra-Iridescent and isn't it beautiful?! pic.twitter.com/W2sCz5ULee — Elisa Balsamo (@Elisa_balsamo) July 23, 2023

109km to go: While the start looks calm, the racing is speedier thank it looks reports Slappendel. She’s estimating around 40-50kmph and not much chatting between the riders. As the commentators on Eurosport point out, the road is not conducive to an attack yet as the peloton can see about 4km ahead.

112km to go: Just as I was about to write that the bunch are all sticking together, there was a small attack. A few riders are testing their legs at the front of the bunch. Could we see a breakaway forming?

115km to go: While we wait for some more action – and an attack – it would be nice to share that there are a few birthdays today. So far I’ve seen that Esmée Peperkamp(Team DSM) and Norwegian champion Susanne AnderseN (Uno-X) are both celebrating their birthday.

120km to go: Almost half of the peloton is made up of debutants. Of the 154 riders, 72 of them are taking part in their first Tour. Dutch riders make for the biggest contingent, with 27 riders, ahead of the French (21) and Italians (19).

They're racing in stage one!

123km to go: Race director and former pro-cyclist, Marion Rousse, has waved the flag and the racing is officially underway. What is going to happen? Email or tweet me your thoughts.

Some thoughts from Iris: Former pro-rider, and absolute delight, Iris Slappendel is back on the motorbike for Eurosport and has been talking of her excitement for this year’s edition of the Tour de France Femme. She predicts that today will be a “nervous, chaotic stage with a tricky final.”

Over eight day’s worth of racing , the peloton will face one mountain stage , two hilly stages , four flat stages and an individual time trial to finish. You can see the full route in the image below.

🤩The official route of the #TDFF2023 avec @GoZwift ! 🤩 Voici le parcours officiel du #TDFF2023 avec Zwift ! #WatchTheFemmes pic.twitter.com/A7PJNR1UUI — Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) October 27, 2022

Stage one of the second edition of the Tour de France Femmes is underway

The riders are off and have a neutralised 7.7km to warm them up. Last year’s winner, Annemiek van Vleuten of Movistar is up front, as expected, along with the other big names, such as Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma) and Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek).

Here is how today’s stage profile looks:

⏱ Stage 1 / Étape 1 ⏱ 🚩 @ClermontFd - 🏁 @ClermontFd 📏124 km ⏰ 12:30 CEST > 15:28 CEST ⛰ 1x3️⃣c 💚 km 97,1 #TDFF2023 #WatchTheFemmes | @GoZwift pic.twitter.com/WOKAogzx2d — Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) July 23, 2023

Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2023

Welcome to the second ever Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. This year’s edition will feature 154 riders representing 22 different teams as they pedal their way along 956 kilometres of road over eight days. Today’s 123.8km stage will see the peloton roll out of Clermont-Ferrand in a day that might be suited to the sprinters.

Ahead of the start of the Tour de France Femmes 2023, my colleague, Jeremy Whittle has written some words on what we can expect:

The 2023 edition is bigger, more adventurous and, with the inclusion of the Pyrenees and a time trial, a far sterner test. After an opening stage that loops out and back from Clermont-Ferrand, the peloton heads south into the hills of Cantal, Correze, Dordogne and Tarn with finishes in Mauriac, Montignac-Lascaux, Rodez and Albi.

After a flatter stage to Blagnac, in the suburbs of Toulouse, next Saturday’s Pyrenean stage takes in the climb of the Col d’Aspin before the 17km haul to the 2,110 metre summit of the Tourmalet.

• Tour de France Femmes

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Lotte Kopecky wins first stage of Tour de France Femmes

Belgian attacks on the final climb to win solo

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Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx) attacked solo on the final climb to take victory on the opening stage of the Tour de France Femmes.

The Belgian burst out of the bunch 9.6km from the finish after her teammate Marlen Reusser had controlled the peloton on the climb, reducing it to just a handful of favourites. Nobody was able to follow her, and she soloed to the line to win by a comfortable margin of 41 seconds. 

Lorena Wiebes completed a one-two for SD Worx by winning the sprint for second ahead of Charlotte Kool (dsm-firmenich) and Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma), in a group of about 20 that included all of the top GC favourites.  

“On the final climb I had the feeling that I had something left, and I just went," Kopecky said. "I thought probably someone would follow, but nobody could follow. Once I was at the top I knew it was motley downhill, or slightly dragging down. If I could keep my power, they could not catch me back.”

She reached the top with a lead of only a few seconds ahead of a nine-woman chasing group, but after she committed and they struggled to organise, she expanded that lead on the downhill run-in to the finish. 

Her teammate Wiebes was one of the riders to rejoin that group during the run-in having missed the cut on the climb, and her struggles gave Kopecky the go-ahead to attack. 

“We had two strategies actually,” explained Kopecky. “If Lorena [Wiebes] could get over the climb then we should go for Lorena in the bunch sprint. But I also had the chance to go myself. I’m happy they gave me this chance, and I’m also very happy for the team, SD Worx, that I could finish it off like this.”

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The result continues what has been an exceptional 2023 for SD Worx. Remarkably, this is their 49th win of the season, and yet another one-two having done the same at races like Amstel Gold, the Tour of Flanders and Strade Bianche.

“It’s amazing. In the team, we’re also laughing about it, we don’t really understand it ourselves. In so many races we’ve been one-two. This year we just have a super-strong and super-good team together, and it’s really nice to race like this.”

It was a largely uneventful stage until that decisive final climb. Marie-Morgane Le Deunff (Arkéa-Samsic) and later Typhaine Laurance (Lifeplus Wahoo) both got up the road for a bit in solo breakaways, but neither lasted long, and with 78km to go the race was altogether. 

Marta Lach (Ceratizit-WNT) was the next to try 45km from the finish, but she too was reeled in 15km later.

After Lizzie Deignan (Lidl-Trek) won the intermediate sprint in the peloton, the pace started to pick-up on the approach to the climb, with Lidl-Trek doing most of the work. 

SD Worx then took over on the climb itself, and, after a powerful turn from Marlen Reusser, Kopecky launched her race-winning attack.

She’ll now have the honour of wearing the yellow jersey tomorrow. “I think it will be something special,” a delighted Kopecky said at the finish “and I really look forward to it.”

TOUR DE FRANCE FEMMES 2023 STAGE 1 RESULT CLERMONT-FERRAND > CLERMONT-FERRAND

1. Lotte Kopecky (Bel) SD Worx 03h 04’ 09”

2. Lorena Wiebes (Ned) SD Worx at 41”

3. Charlotte Kool (Ned) Team dsm-firmenich at 

4. Marianne Vos (Ned) Jumbo-Visma both at st

5. Ashleigh Moolman (RSA) AG Insurance-Soudal QuickStep at 43”

6. Demi Vollering (Ned) SD Worx

7. Tamara Dronova-Balabolina Israel Premier Tech Roland

8. Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Den) DFJ-SUEZ

9. Mavi García (Esp) Liv Racing TeqFind

10. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) Lidl-Trek all at s.t

TOUR DE FRANCE FEMMES GENERAL CLASSIFICATION AFTER STAGE 1

1. Lotte Kopecky (Bel) SD Worx 03h 03’ 59”

2. Lorena Wiebes (Ned) SD Worx at 45”

3. Charlotte Kool (Ned) Team dsm-firmenich at 47"

4. Marianne Vos (Ned) Jumbo-Visma both at 51"

5. Ashleigh Moolman (RSA) AG Insurance-Soudal QuickStep at 53”

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Stephen Puddicombe is a freelance journalist for Cycling Weekly , who regularly contributes to our World Tour racing coverage with race reports, news stories, interviews and features. Outside of cycling, he also enjoys writing about film and TV - but you won't find much of that content embedded into his CW articles. 

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La Vuelta España Femenina

Spin the district: union city, eschborn-frankfurt, spin the district: hapeville, giro d'italia, gp morbihan (coupe de france), lagrange cycling classic, uci mtb fort william, tro bro leon (coupe de france), spin the district: college park, tour de hongrie, circuit de wallonie (exterioo cycling c, uci bmx freestyle wcup - fise, 4 jours de dunkerque, vuelta a burgos féminas, grieving lotte kopecky wins first stage of 2023 tour de france femmes, lotte kopecky continued an impressive season overshadowed by the death of her brother by winning the first stage of the 2023 tour de france femmes..

Belgian Lotte Kopecky continued an impressive season overshadowed by the death of her brother by winning the first stage of the 2023 Tour de France Femmes on Sunday in Clermont-Ferrand.

Hours before Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard was due to be crowned men's champion on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, SD Worx rider Kopecky crossed the line alone, 41 seconds ahead of her Dutch teammate Lorena Wiebes.

2023 Tour de France Femmes

Race favorites Annemiek Van Vleuten and Demi Vollering, both also from the Netherlands, were among the leading group.

"My role doesn't change," said Kopecky, 24, who claimed her 10th win of the season. "I'm here to help Demi win the Tour, and if I have to sacrifice myself, I will." 

The Belgian rider has raced this season mourning the death of her 29-year-old brother Seppe, who died suddenly in March.

On Sunday, she attacked shortly before the summit of the Durtol, nine kilometers from the line, to seal victory.

As well as taking the leader's yellow jersey, Kopecky gets the green points classification and polka dot jerseys for the best climber.

"I had been thinking about this success for a long time," she said. "Sport is above all emotion. And this one is a beautiful one.

"It's a huge success, maybe not the most important because the Tour of Flanders and my track world titles also matter a lot. But this yellow jersey is really big."

If Kopecky "hopes to keep the jersey for a few days," she "does not forget" that she is on the Tour "with a single objective" to ensure that Vollering, second last year behind van Vleuten, wins the title.

"If I have to sacrifice my jersey in the coming days, I will do it," she added.

France's Juliette Labous, runner-up in this year's Giro d'Italia, was the main loser of the day, left behind in the Durtol ascent.

Monday's second stage takes the peloton from Clermont-Ferrand to Mauriac in Cantal, on a 151-kilometer route with six climbs, the last less than two kilometers from the line.

• Annemiek van Vleuten
• Team SD Worx
• Lotte Kopecky
• Demi Vollering
• Lorena Wiebes

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Lotte Kopecky to skip Tour de France Femmes after Olympics, SD Worx confirm

SD Worx manager Danny Stam confirmed that World Champion Lotte Kopecky will not take part in the Tour de France Femmes this year.

Kopecky was unsure whether she could race the Tour this year because the Olympic Games in Paris finish one day before the Tour de France Femmes Grand Départ in Rotterdam. Winning a medal at the Olympic Games is one of Kopecky's top priorities this season.

"The omnium ends on Sunday afternoon, the Tour starts on Monday morning. It is almost impossible to do that properly," Stam told Sporza .

"Combining those two events would also be a very difficult task mentally."

Kopecky won the opening stage of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift in 2023 and held the maillot jaune until the penultimate stage to the Col du Tourmalet when she lost touch on the final climb and the overall lead passed to teammate Demi Vollering.

At the Tour de France route presentation, Kopecky said she wanted to race the Tour because it has two stages that run on Belgian roads - stage 3 uses part of the Liège-Bastogne-Liège course and stage 4 departs from Bastogne.

"When I see the course, I definitely want to ride. The fact that it goes through Belgium is also a very nice thing. On the other hand, the Tour is every year while the Olympic Games are only once every four years. There are also very nice goals coming up after the Tour, so it is very unclear at the moment," said Kopecky.

"The switch from track to road is not a problem in itself, that is not my biggest fear. The Tour in itself is simply very tough and after such an omnium you have not only been physically very deep, but also mentally."

Kopecky put an emphasis on the Spring Classics this year knowing the decision on whether to race the Tour or not would come after. She won Strade Bianche, Nokere Koerse and Paris-Roubaix this year as well as the UAE Tour Women in February.

Her schedule includes the Tour of Britain Women (6-9 June) and Giro d'Italia Women (7-14 July) before the Olympics in Paris. She will set her sights on the World Championships in Zurich in the latter part of the season.

Tour de France Femmes 2023: Norsgaard wins from the breakaway, Kopecky still leader

Results 6th stage 2023 Tour de France Femmes

1. Emma Norsgaard (den) 2. Charlotte Kool (nld) + 0.01 3. Lotte Kopecky (bel) s.t. 4. Marianne Vos (nld) s.t. 5. Soraya Paladin (ita) s.t. 6. Chiara Consonni (ita) s.t. 7. Julie De Wilde (bel) s.t. 8. Marta Lach (pol) s.t. 9. Vittoria Guazzini (ita) s.t. 10. Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka (pol) s.t.

GC after stage 6 1. Lotte Kopecky (bel) 2. Ashleigh Moolman (rsa) + 0.53 3. Annemiek van Vleuten (nld) + 0.55 4. Elisa Longo Borghini (ita) s.t. 5. Kasia Niewiadoma (pol) s.t. 6. Yara Kastelijn (nld) + 1.04 7. Demi Vollering (nld) + 1.07 8. Liane Lippert (ger) + 1.29 9. Ricarda Bauernfeind (ger) + 1.42 10 Juliette Labous (fra) + 1.52

Race report Agnieszka Skalniak-Sojka and Sandra Alonso attack on the first climb of the day. The Polish rider heads out alone, while Emma Norsgaard rejoins Alonso. The three come together on the second climb, Côte de Puycelsi, and open open up a maximum lead of over 2 minutes.

The gap has fallen to 20 seconds when Skalniak-Sojka and Norsgaard up the pace. Alfonso can’t follow, while Nordgaars drops Skalniak-Sojka with another acceleration in the last kilometres. She opens her sprint with 500 metres to go and stays 1 second ahead of Charlotte Kool. The Dutch rider wins the bunch sprint, but not the race. Norsgaard pulls it off and wins a sprinters stage from the breakaway.

Lotte Kopecky finishes in third to extend her lead on GC.

Another interesting read: route 6th stage 2023 Tour de France Femmes.

Tour de France Femmes 2023 stage 6: routes, profiles, more

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Lotte Kopecky takes opening stage of 2023 Tour de France Femmes

Mathew Mitchell

• Published on July 23, 2023
• in Women's Cycling

Belgian champion Lotte Kopecky has claimed her first yellow jersey at the Tour de France Femmes after taking a brilliant victory in the opening stage at Clermont-Ferrand. The SD Worx rider launched a breakaway on the final climb, the Côte de Durtol, and was the first to cross the finish line. “On the final climb, I felt I had something left,” Kopecky said after the race. “I thought someone was going to follow me, but that didn’t happen.”

Kopecky confessed that wearing the yellow jersey had been a long-held ambition. “I’ve had the yellow jersey on my mind for a long time,” she said. “I’ve been joking with friends for weeks that it was time to get yellow.” She was grateful for the opportunity to take her chance.

Her SD Worx team also boasts pre-race GC favourite Demi Vollering and sprinter Lorena Wiebes. The team had two strategies according to Kopecky. They would either support Wiebes if she managed the climb, or Kopecky herself could take her chance. Wiebes did not disappoint, sprinting to second place behind Kopecky. “It’s been a great year for the team. We’re super strong and it’s great to race like this,” the Belgian rider said.

The race, officially known as the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, began at 12:30 in Clermont-Ferrand, with a largely flat stage of 123 kilometres. The only significant obstacle was the Côte de Durtol, located 10 kilometres from the finish.

The peloton kept a solid pace throughout the race, despite some early attempts at breakaways and a few crashes. As the race approached the hilly region, nervousness increased and more attempts were made to break away, but all were quickly thwarted. On the final climb, Kopecky broke away from a group of twenty riders just below the summit, grabbing the first mountain jersey. The Belgian champion then extended her lead in the descent and won the stage.

SD Worx made a strong start to the Tour de France Femmes. “Such a one-two is never to be planned, but it happens quite often,” said Demi Vollering, who finished sixth. “We did very well, we were really dedicated. The whole team worked hard to keep us safe.”

Not every GC rider had a successful day though , with the likes of Giro Donne runner-up Juliette Labous, Claire Steels, Riejanne Markus and Silvia Persico all losing some time.

The Tour de France Femmes continues on Monday with a stage from Clermont-Ferrand to Mauriac, where riders will face six categorised climbs.

2023 Tour de France Femmes Stage 1 result

Results powered by FirstCycling.com

Main photo credit: Getty Images

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Paris-Roubaix Femmes: Lotte Kopecky reveals key role played by team-mates in victory - 'Tried to make me laugh'

Published 06/04/2024 at 17:11 GMT

It was a first Paris-Roubaix Femmes triumph for Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime), as she added another title to her bulging palmares. The Belgian had said this was the main goal of her season, and she delivered when it mattered on the brutal parcours in Northern France, edging out Lidl-Trek's Elisa Balsamo and Britain's Pfeiffer Georgi in a frantic sprint.

Kopecky says influence of team-mates key to Paris-Roubaix Femmes triumph - 'Tried to make me laugh'

'Almost impossible to do properly' - Kopecky to skip TDF, will focus on Olympics

25/04/2024 at 08:06

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10/04/2024 at 21:34

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11/02/2024 at 15:44

‘We will see the best option’ – Kopecky unsure over Tour de France Femmes participation

26/10/2023 at 10:09

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Lotte Kopecky Won’t Be Racing the Tour de France Femmes

Lotte Kopecky announced two weeks ago that she would be riding the Giro d’Italia Women in July, but was still uncertain about the Tour de France Femmes . This week the SD Worx-Protime rider confirmed that she’d opt out of the French tour in order to keep her focus during the summer Olympic Games .

Last year at the Tour , Kopecky wore the yellow jersey before teammate Demi Vollering took it over on the Col du Tourmalet. Thanks to an impressive performance in the opening stage, Kopecky spent six stages in yellow. She attacked with about 10 km left and crossed the finish line 41 seconds ahead of the rest of the peloton. Kopecky ended up the overall runner-up.

This year, the Belgian will be going all-in at the velodrome, where she hopes to win the first Olympic medals of her career. Trying to transition immediately from track racing to the Tour would just be too much. “The Omnium ends Sunday afternoon, the Tour starts Monday morning. That is almost unfeasible to do that in a good way,” said sporting manager Danny Stam, according to Sporza .

“Combining those two events would also be a very difficult task mentally. If you were to take Olympic gold, it’s too short a day to start the next morning in the Tour. She can now fully focus on the Games,” Stam added.

GCN reported that Kopecky has “high hopes both on the road and track at the Olympics, where she will look to convert her successes from the World Championships into Olympic gold. The 28-year-old is a multiple world champion on the track across the Madison, Elimination, and Points race disciplines.”

So far, Kopecky’s best Olympic result was fourth place in the road race at the Tokyo Games.

Even though fans will be disappointed not to see Kopecky racing the Tour de France Femmes, there will still be plenty of action to watch. The World Champion will be racing the Tour of Britain Women in June before returning to the Giro d’Italia Women in July. And then, of course, the Olympics in Paris, which run from July 26 to August 11.

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Lotte Kopecky renonce au Tour de France pour se concentrer sur les JO 2024

Lotte Kopecky ne participera pas au Tour de France femmes 2024 pour se concentrer sur l'omnium aux JO de Paris, en cyclisme sur piste.

La championne du monde sur route en titre Lotte Kopecky ne sera pas au départ du Tour de France , le 12 août (jusqu'au 18 août), à Rotterdam, afin de se consacrer pleinement aux JO 2024 (26 juillet-11 août), a annoncé ce mardi son équipe SD Worx.

Kopecky, récente lauréate sur les Strade Bianche et Paris-Roubaix , visera l'or de l'omnium aux Jeux, épreuve sur piste qui bouclera le programme olympique le 11 août. « Combiner les deux événements impliquerait une trop grosse charge mentale, a expliqué Danny Stam, le manager sportif de SD Worx. Si elle est championne olympique, elle va lâcher trop d'influx nerveux pour être compétitive dès le lendemain. Et il lui sera en outre impossible de se rendre à Rotterdam en soirée. »

Kopecky avait pris la 2e place du général sur le Tour 2023 , derrière sa coéquipière Demi Vollering (qui quittera SD Worx à la fin de cette saison). La Belge avait empoché, en chemin, une victoire d'étape, le maillot vert et porté le maillot jaune pendant six jours. Cet été, Kopecky s'alignera également sur le Tour d'Angleterre (6-9 juin) et le Giro (7-14 juillet).

Lotte Kopecky and Jasper Philipsen crowned Flandrien of the year

Riders vote for Philipsen ahead of Evenepoel, while Kopecky completes Flemish prize awards haul

Lotte Kopecky and Jasper Philipsen have been crowned as the Flandrien and Flandrienne riders of the year at the Het Nieuwsblad awards ceremony in Ostend, with Kopecky completing a rare double, after also winning the Kristallen Fiets award in October.

European Champion Fleur Moors won the Junior award, Alec Segaert the Under 23 award, while Mathieu van der Poel was named as the International Flandrien for his world title and Classics success. Peter Sagan and Greg van Avermaet were given the Lifetime Achievement Award and were present in Ostend, with Sagan keen to point out he has retired from WorldTour road racing but not mountain biking, with the 2024 Paris Olympics still a goal.

Kopecky also won the Grand Prix Patrick Sercu award for winning the elimination and the points race world titles on the track and confirming her multitude of talents. She has now won the Flandrienne award for four consecutive years.

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In an online reader vote, Kopecky’s success at the Tour de France Femmes and how she fought but ultimately failed to keep the yellow jersey on the Col du Tourmalet was selected as biggest ‘spark’ moment of the season, ahead of Wout Van Aert allowing Christophe Laporte to win the E3 Saxo Bank Classic and him shouting at the television cameras.

“I look back on that week in the yellow jersey with great memories,” Kopecky said after collecting her trophy.

“That was a dream week, because that was perhaps my best week on the bike, while the Tour of the year before was perhaps my worst week on the bike.”

“I'm a bit surprised to win the ‘spark’ award but it’s a lot of fun as a woman to outdo those men.”

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Kopecky’s 2023 season also included wins at Omloop Nieuwsblad, Danilith Nokere Koerse and the Tour of Flanders for the second time. She was Belgian national champion in both the road and time trial, won the opening stage of the Tour de France Femmes and finished second overall  behind her SD Worx teammate Demi Vollering after six days in the yellow jersey. She then won the world road race title in Glasgow.

Sadly Kopecky also had to overcome the sudden loss of her brother Seppe during the spring of 2023.

“I learned a lot of hard life lessons and gained a lot of human knowledge. I can only hope that it has made me stronger,” she said.

“It's a great feeling when you’re racing,” Kopecky said, after seeing the video highlight of her season on a big screen.

“I remember the Tour of Flanders a few years ago, when I was among my group in the chasing group on the Oude Kwaremont. To be able to ride away whenever I want, that gives me a lot of self-confidence.”

Jasper Philipsen had just arrived in Belgium from the Saitama Tour de France criterium in Japan but put on a suit to collect his huge steel Flandrien trophy. 

He was the most successful professional racer in 2023, taking 19 victories, including four Tour de France stage wins and the green points jersey. He also finished second to teammate Van der Poel at Paris-Roubaix.

The men’s Flandrien award is decided by a vote and points score, including votes from Belgian professionals. Philipsen beat Remco Evenepoel, gaining 584 points, while the time trial world champion scored 538 points.

Arnaud De Lie was third (441 points), Wout van Aert fourth (408) and Cian Uijtdebroeks (204) fifth.

“I’m a bit surprised to win but that is the nicest appreciation you can get,” Philipsen said.

“Everyone in the peloton knows what cycling entails and how hard work it is. Receiving that appreciation from the peloton is very nice.”

Philipsen played down being the fastest sprinter in the world in an exclusive interview with Cyclingnews in Saitama but showed his ambitions for 2024.

"A championship jersey would be nice," he said. "I think this was my best season so far. I'm always there to try to improve and for sure there are also other goals left for next year and the coming years, so looking forward.

“It will be very, very difficult to do better in 2024,” Philipsen suggested at the Flandrien awards.

“The next step is to achieve top results in the spring classics. And the Olympic Games are also high on my list.”

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Stephen is the most experienced member of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. He has been Head of News at Cyclingnews since 2022, before which he held the position of European editor since 2012 and previously worked for Reuters , Shift Active Media , and CyclingWeekly , among other publications.

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• Lotte Kopecky renonce au Tour de France pour se concentrer sur les JO 2024
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Cyclisme Lotte Kopecky renonce au Tour de France pour se concentrer sur les JO 2024

La cycliste belge Lotte Kopecky, championne du monde en titre, ne disputera pas le prochain Tour de France (12-18 août) pour se consacrer exclusivement aux Jeux olympiques de Paris, a annoncé son équipe, SD Worx, mardi.

Kopecky avait été l'une des grandes animatrices de la Grande Boucle 2023 ( 1 victoire d'étape , maillot vert, 2e place finale après avoir porté le maillot jaune pendant 6 jours).

Le Tour s'élancera de Rotterdam aux Pays-Bas le 12 août soit au lendemain de l'épreuve des JO, l'omnium sur piste, où la coureuse flamande visera la médaille d'or.

«Trop d'influx nerveux »

« Combiner les deux événements impliquerait une trop grosse charge mentale », a expliqué Danny Stam, le manager sportif de l'équipe néerlandaise. « Si elle est championne olympique, elle va lâcher trop d'influx nerveux pour être compétitive dès le lendemain. Et il lui sera en outre impossible de se rendre à Rotterdam en soirée », a-t-il poursuivi.

Cette annéee, Kopecky a remporté les Strade Bianche et Paris-Roubaix. Pour préparer les Jeux, elle s'alignera sur le Tour d'Angleterre (6-9 juin) et au Giro (7-14 juillet).

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Marianne Vos and Mathieu van der Poel Were the Top Earners of the Spring Classics

However, stark differences in prize money distribution highlight the gender pay gap in pro cycling.

Close behind Vos and Van der Poel in earnings were Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime) with €35,081 ($38,589 USD), and Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) with €60,400 ($66,440 USD).

The third top earner for the women was Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek). The Italian won the Tour of Flanders and rode consistently all season. She had a payout of €31,892 ($35,081 USD) in total. She was followed by Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime), who earned €27,970 ($30,767 USD).

On the men’s side, Van der Poel and Philipsen were followed by Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates), who earned €41,000 ($45,100 USD), and Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), who earned €34,400 ($37,840 USD).

GCN reported that the prize money riders win is usually shared among teammates and members of staff. “With that in mind, one glance at the results shows that Alpecin-Deceuninck will be one happy team, with Van der Poel and Philipsen at the top of the prize money standings, collectively earning €144,900 for the team.”

And if it seems like there’s a frustratingly huge difference between what the top men make and what the top women make, there is. According to GCN , “The top 20 men earned €417,750 in prize money in the Classics. The top 20 women earned €253,076 across the same period—that’s before considering the difference in base salaries.”

But progress is (slowly) being made. Two years ago, Flanders Classics announced that they would award equal prize money to men and women at the Tour of Flanders. Then, a year later, they extended the deal to all races under their umbrella. This means that equal prize money was awarded to Vos and Jan Tratnik (Visma-Lease a Bike) at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. The same was true for both Wiebes and Pedersen at Ghent-Wevelgem, as well as Longo Borghini and Van der Poel at the Tour of Flanders.

Unfortunately, other organizers have yet to follow suit. According to GCN , “The biggest disparity was at Strade Bianche, where Lotte Kopecky’s winning ride earned her a measly €2,256 relative to Pogačar’s €16,000. It was a similar tale at Paris-Roubaix, where Kopecky was awarded €9,000 less than Van der Poel, and at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, where Grace Brown (FDJ-SUEZ) won €12,500 to Pogačar’s €20,000.”

Top 20 male earners in the Spring Classics

• Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck): €84,500
• Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck): €60,400
• Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates): €41,000
• Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek): €34,400
• Nils Politt (UAE Team Emirates): €22,100
• Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers: €20,300
• Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike): €17,600
• Stephen Williams (Israel-Premier Tech): €16,250
• Jan Tratnik (Visma-Lease a Bike): €16,000
• Michael Matthews (Jayco AlUla): €11,300
• Luca Mozzato (Arkéa-B&B Hotels): €11,200
• Romain Bardet (dsm-firmenich PostNL): €10,400
• Jasper Stuyven (Lidl-Trek): €10,200
• Maxim Van Gils (Lotto Dstny): €9,900
• Toms Skujiņš (Lidl-Trek): €9,700
• Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step): €8,800
• Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X Mobility): €8,800
• Marc Hirschi (UAE Team Emirates): €8,500
• Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ): €8,400
• Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike): €8,000

Top 20 female earners in the Spring Classics

• Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike): €38,173
• Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime): €35,081
• Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek): €31,892
• Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime): €27,970
• Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek): €24,130
• Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM): €23,226
• Grace Brown (FDJ-SUEZ): €12,500
• Pfeiffer Georgi (dsm-firmenich PostNL): €9,645
• Shirin van Anrooij (Lidl-Trek): €8,094
• Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime): €7,628
• Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck): €5,586
• Chiara Consonni (UAE Team ADQ): €4,505
• Ingvild Gåskjenn (Liv AlUla Jayco): €4,175
• Amber Kraak (FDJ-SUEZ): €3,468
• Charlotte Kool (dsm-firmenich PostNL): €3,425
• Thalita de Jong (Lotto Dstny Ladies): €2,900
• Elise Chabbey (Canyon-SRAM): €2,371
• Silvia Persico (UAE Team ADQ): €2,191
• Christina Schweinberger (Fenix-Deceuninck): €2,061
• Arlenis Sierra (Movistar): €2,030

Micah Ling is a freelance writer who lives in the mountains of Colorado. She splits her free time between mountain biking and trail running.

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Tour de France

Tour de france femmes: riders decry lack of cohesive chase as lotte kopecky attacks to victory, though several teams had multiple riders in the group behind the belgian, a fractured chase only helped to cement kopecky's advantage..

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CLERMONT-FERRAND, France — It was another SD Worx demonstration race as Lotte Kopecky delivered the team to victory and a yellow jersey on stage 1 of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift .

Meanwhile, the other teams in the pack were left scratching their heads as to how the Dutch squad was allowed to bully the pack in such a manner once again.

Kopecky attacked on the only classified climb of the day, the Côte de Durtol, and was never seen again. At first, the Belgian champion held a marginal advantage, but it exploded into an unassailable lead as the group behind dithered and struggled to rally together and she finished over 40 seconds ahead of the chasers.

“It’s really frustrating to be honest, because Kopecky was not that far in front of us. Over the top, she was still in sight and maybe 10 or 20 meters ahead so if we work together… I did immediately work with Kasia and an FDJ rider but we worked and there wasn’t any co-operation and it wasn’t my responsibility to chase, I was there alone,” Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio said after the finish.

• Lotte Kopecky turns last year’s frustrations into Tour de France Femmes yellow
• Keeping the Tour de France Femmes hype going: Riders weigh up the pros and cons of move away from Paris
• Tour de France Femmes stage 1: Lotte Kopecky blazes to solo victory and first yellow jersey

The bunch blew apart on the climb, fracturing only further when Kopecky made her move. Despite that, most of the main GC riders were ensconced in that first chasing group and some teams, like Movistar and FDJ-Suez had multiple riders in it.

However, there never seemed to be any concerted effort to reel Kopecky back in. It broke down further as riders tried to chase the move down solo, only to be caught moments later before the bunch briefly slowed.

The stop-start nature of the group’s effort only made it easier for Kopecky to extend her lead and give herself a cushion in the yellow jersey, making it more likely that she can keep it all the way until the mountain stages.

“On the climb, I feel like I made a mistake by getting myself trapped and not being able to react straight away to Lotte’s attack. Once she gained a couple of seconds, there was a move from the group but then we were already at the top of the climb, and we went onto the downhill,” Kasia Niewiadoma told Velo . “Personally, I am disappointed that I didn’t use my legs because I felt good. Also, it’s always like this, every time you’re behind one rider from SD Worx nobody wants to ride.

“I was surprised because Annemiek [van Vleuten] was there with [Liane] Lippert and I was surprised that they were not trying to contribute a little. Lippert could have a good sprint here. It’s always like this, for some reason.”

It wasn’t just the lack of cohesive chase that helped Kopecky up the road, her SD Worx team was doing its best to slow the pace down by pulling through to the front before easing off. By disrupting the chase group, it took the pressure off Kopecky up front.

“It’s their tactics, I’ve seen it on more than one occasion, especially from Demi [Vollering]. She rolls but doesn’t go through, which interrupts the chaser. I don’t think it’s necessary, I think it’s really low. Being such a strong team, I don’t think it’s necessary,” Moolman-Pasio said.

Marta Cavalli, who was one of three FDJ-Suez riders in that main chasing group, had a different opinion of the tactics. While they were annoying, she said, it was just part of the sport.

“[It was] to allow Kopecky to keep a bigger gap and to secure the first place. They want to make our pace slow to make it harder to come back,” Cavalli said at the finish. “It’s cycling. Sometimes it doesn’t look fair, but it’s cycling. It’s part of the game and we can’t do anything.

“We just enjoy and try to do our job. For today it was good for them, and I hope tomorrow and the next days it will be for us. We are a good team, and we will try to improve our communication there. I hope it will pay soon.”

While Kopecky is not likely to be a threat in the overall classification, despite the substantial advantage she’s got on everyone else, other teams will be frustrated to have allowed SD Worx to get the 2023 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift started on their own terms.

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Pogacar wins Liege with epic solo break, launching bid for Giro d’Italia and Tour de France

Tadej Pogacar won the Liege-Bastogne-Liege bike race on Sunday thanks to a solo break 30km from home launched on a steep climb and sustained to the finish line.

Issued on: 21/04/2024 - 17:07

Ahead of Pogacar 's Giro d'Italia and Tour de France double bid the 25-year-old Slovenian blew the opposition away with a maverick acceleration that none could answer on the 254km race in the Ardennes forests that marks the end of the spring classics.

Billed as a duel between Pogacar and winner of Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders Mathieu van der Poel, the Dutchman came in a commendable third but was far from going shoulder-to-shoulder for the title.

Frenchman Romain Bardet was second, also solo 1min 39sec off the pace with Van der Poel leading a bunch home at 2min 02sec.

Another pre-race favourite was Briton Tom Pidcock, who was 10th on the day after a mechanical problem at a key moment hindered his day.

The win puts to bed Pogacar's fall here last season that broke his wrist and blighted his Tour de France bid.

"It was an emotional day of riding for me," a drained-looking Pogacar said.

"Not just because of my hand but also because two years ago just before the race Urska's mother died, so I was riding for her today," Pogacar said referring to his professional cyclist partner Urska Zigart.

Pogacar also won here in 2021 and this was his sixth one-day Monument win with three wins at the Tour of Lombardy and his 2023 Tour of Flanders triumph.

Champion Remco Evenepoel, former winner Primoz Roglic and Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard would all have been suited to this course but are injured after a mass fall at the Tour of the Basque Country.

Pogacar came into the race fresh from altitude training and at the start line said he had "no regrets about not racing la Fleche", referring to the frozen and drenched midweek race in the same region.

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