Monday, August 19, 2024 at 9:14 AM
One, two, three, four… That was the difference between winning and losing for Demi Vollering in the Tour de France Femmes 2024. The leader of SD Worx-Protime missed out on the final victory on Alpe d’Huez, because Kasia Niewiadoma kept four seconds of her lead at the finish. A very small difference, as it turns out. Only once was a Grand Tour decided by an even smaller difference.
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From information from CyclingFlash it turns out that if we look at the history of grand tours (and their predecessors in the past) in men’s and women’s cycling, only in 1991 was the difference smaller than four seconds. Then we have to go back to the Tour de la CEE féminin, a female counterpart of the Tour de France at that time. The yellow jersey was won by the Dutch Astrid Schop, who won with a two (!) second lead over Leontien van Moorsel.
Then follows the thrilling conclusion of the Tour de France Femmes 2024 between Niewiadoma and Vollering, with a finish on Alpe d’Huez. Vollering started with a 1.15 minute deficit and took back 1.01 minutes and 10 bonus seconds at the finish, but that was not enough for the final victory. Four mere seconds ensured a historic Polish final victory.
Further down the list of ‘smallest differences in a grand tour’ is the 1984 Vuelta a España for men, when Éric Caritoux won by six seconds from Alberto Fernández. Followed by the historic 1989 Tour denouement between eventual winner Greg LeMond and home favourite Laurent Fignon: eight seconds difference after the final time trial to Paris.
Demi Vollering is now twice in the top 5 of this list as a loser, because last year she lost La Vuelta Femenina by only nine seconds to compatriot Annemiek van Vleuten.
Smallest differences ever in Grand Tours (men + women)
1991 Women’s EEC Tour: 2 seconds between Astrid Schop and Leontien van Moorsel
Tour de France Women 2024: 4 seconds between Kasia Niewiadoma and Demi Vollering
Tour of Spain 1984: 6 seconds Eric Caritoux and Alberto Fernández
Tour de France 1989: 8 seconds between Greg LeMond and Laurent Fignon
The Women’s Vuelta 2023: 9 seconds between Annemiek van Vleuten and Demi Vollering
Women’s Giro d’Italia 2006: 11 seconds between Edita Pučinskaitė and Nicole Brändli
Giro d’Italia 1948: 11 seconds tuss Fiorenzo Magni and Ezio Cecchi
