Lorena Wiebes wins Tour de France Femmes opener in Lausanne uphill sprint, takes yellow jersey

The stage win

Lorena Wiebes won the opening stage of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes on Saturday, powering clear on an uphill finish in Lausanne to claim the first yellow jersey. The 27-year-old SD Worx-Protime rider survived a fierce acceleration on the Côte de Saint-François (2.6 km at 4.6%) and launched a long sprint with 200 metres remaining, crossing the line a bike length ahead of Kim Le Court-Pienaar. Demi Vollering, who had attacked at 800 metres to go, took third. Defending champion Pauline Ferrand-Prevot finished in the same lead group.

I cannot believe it. Ferrand-Prevot went to the front and then Demi attacked so I knew I had to follow. It was a long sprint but I'm super-happy with it.

The victory is Wiebes' sixth at the Tour de France Femmes, extending her record for the most stage wins since the race returned to the World Tour in 2022. It also marked a sharp turnaround from her Giro d'Italia disqualification, when her bike was found to be 20 grams under the weight limit after she had won the opening stage.

Breakaway and mountains

A four-rider breakaway animated much of the stage. Nikola Noskova (Cofidis), Idoia Eraso (Laboral Kutxa-Fundacion Euskadi), Maud Rijnbeek (Volkerwessels) and Océane Mahé (Ma Petite Entreprise) escaped early and built a lead of up to six minutes. Noskova later attacked her companions to sweep up all three categorised climbs on the Côte de Vulliens, but it was Mahé who collected the most mountains points across the day's four difficulties, securing the polka-dot jersey with 8 points.

It's crazy. It's my first Tour de France, the first stage, the team's first Tour. We showed we don't have to be embarrassed behind the big teams. It's a completely mythical jersey. I'm going to look at myself in the mirror a lot, I think.

Mahé, a Savoyarde riding close to home, said her father was at the finish. "When I crossed the line, the first person I wanted to find was my dad, so he could see me in this outfit. He's super proud."

Classifications and jerseys

Wiebes leads both the general classification and the points classification, wearing yellow and green. Kim Le Court-Pienaar sits second overall, with Vollering third at four seconds. In the young rider competition, Spain's Pauia Blasi (UAE Team L'IMAD) holds the white jersey, level on time with Isabella Holmgren and Antonia Niedermaier. UAE Team L'IMAD tops the team classification, 14 seconds ahead of FDJ United-Suez.

Swiss riders delivered on the national holiday: Noemi Rüegg placed fifth and Marlen Reusser finished tenth despite crashing 21 kilometres from the finish. A separate incident brought down Puck Pieterse, but all involved were able to continue.

Reactions

Wiebes admitted she had doubts before the stage. "The team fully believed in me. Even I had some doubts," she said. "I was a bit boxed in at first, but I found an opening and knew I had to launch my sprint, even if it was still a bit far."

Mahé described the Swiss crowds as "incredible" and was struck by the shouts of "allez Océane" throughout the day. "I think the other girls in the breakaway were fed up, because it was only for me!"

What's next

The race stays in Switzerland for Sunday's second stage, a 147.9-kilometre flat route from Aigle to Geneva. The profile gives sprinters another clear opportunity, and Wiebes will start as the overwhelming favourite. The 2026 edition features nine stages and 147 riders, with a first-ever ascent of Mont Ventoux scheduled for stage seven.