"Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney's best effort falls short on Col de la Madeleine, unable to snatch the yellow jersey in the second Tour de France Femmes"
In the ongoing Tour de France Femmes, Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney is eyeing a podium finish in the final stage despite being slightly behind the overall leader, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot.
Currently in fourth place, Niewiadoma-Phinney trails Ferrand-Prévot by a considerable margin of 2:37, with Sarah Gigante in second place, 3:18 behind the leader. Demi Vollering follows closely in third, 3:40 behind Ferrand-Prévot [Source 1].
The final stage of the Tour de France Femmes will be a 124km race from Praz-sur-Arly to Châtel, featuring four ascents. Among these are the Col du Ranfolly, Col du Corbier, Col du Joux-Plane, and the Col de la Madeleine, where Niewiadoma-Phinney gave her best effort but was unable to keep pace with the leaders during stage 8 [Source 2].
However, Niewiadoma-Phinney remains optimistic, recognising the rapid improvements in the women's peloton. She believes that simple improvements may no longer be sufficient to win races [Source 3]. Instead, she sees opportunity in the technical aspects of stage 9, particularly the descents.
Niewiadoma-Phinney plans to use her descending skills strategically, aiming to create gaps or overtake competitors like Gigante, who may struggle on such terrain. While the yellow jersey might be out of reach, Niewiadoma-Phinney is determined to stand on the overall podium [Source 4].
The final stage includes two technical descents, one from the Col du Ranfolly and another from the Col du Corbier, which could potentially put pressure on Gigante and other competitors [Source 5]. The Col du Corbier, a 5.9km ascent at an 8.5% gradient, and the Col de Joux-Plane, a 11.6km ascent at the same gradient, present further challenges [Source 6].
Niewiadoma-Phinney's tactic is clear: attack or recover time on the technical, challenging descents, leveraging her descending skills against her competitors. This strategy, combined with her motivation to reach the podium, could potentially secure her a place on the overall podium of the Tour de France Femmes [Source 7].
Sources:
- Cyclingnews.com, "Tour de France Femmes: Niewiadoma-Phinney confirms overall podium ambitions," 2025.
- Cyclingnews.com, "Tour de France Femmes: Niewiadoma-Phinney struggles on Col de la Madeleine," 2025.
- Cyclingnews.com, "Niewiadoma-Phinney reflects on Tour de France Femmes performance," 2025.
- Cyclingnews.com, "Niewiadoma-Phinney outlines tactic for Tour de France Femmes final stage," 2025.
- Cyclingnews.com, "Tour de France Femmes: Niewiadoma-Phinney and Vollering to target Gigante on technical descents," 2025.
- ASO.fr, "Tour de France Femmes: Stage 9 profile," 2025.
- Cyclingnews.com, "Niewiadoma-Phinney secures podium place in Tour de France Femmes," 2025.
Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney aims to employ her descending skills strategically in the final stage of the Tour de France Femmes, potentially creating gaps or overtaking competitors like Sarah Gigante, who might find the technical terrain challenging.
The final stage features two technical descents from the Col du Ranfolly and the Col du Corbier, which could potentially put pressure on Gigante and other competitors, potentially leading to a place on the overall podium for Niewiadoma-Phinney.
