Lorena Wiebes wins Tour de France Femmes opener in Lausanne

Lorena Wiebes won the opening stage of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes in Lausanne on August 1, outsprinting Kim Le Court and Demi Vollering on the uphill finish.

The Dutch SD Worx-Protime rider stayed with Vollering’s late acceleration before using her finishing speed to take her sixth career stage victory in the race.

Wiebes leads the general classification by four seconds over Le Court and six seconds over Vollering. Defending champion Pauline Ferrand-Prévot finished eighth and is 10 seconds behind the race leader.

Four breakaway riders led part of the rolling stage before the main field caught them with six kilometres remaining. Vollering moved to the front inside the final 600 metres, but Wiebes passed her in the sprint and Le Court also crossed ahead of Vollering.

The victory gives Wiebes an immediate response after her opening-stage win at the Giro d’Italia Donne in May was removed when her bicycle was found to be below the sport’s 6.8-kilogram minimum weight. Her team has disputed the weighing process.

Stage two is scheduled to start in Aigle and finish in Geneva. Its flat finale could again suit Wiebes, although five classified climbs and high temperatures are expected to test the field.