Friday, August 16, 2024 at 4:42 PM
Satisfaction at Demi Vollering after the sixth stage of the Tour de France Femmes. The Dutch rider – who crashed hard on Thursday in the final of stage five – did not encounter any problems along the way and managed to parry all attacks. “Without too many problems,” she told the NOS.
The 27-year-old leader of SD Worx-Protime feared the aftermath of the crash before the start, but it turned out to be not so bad. “It went well. My tailbone wasn’t too bad, fortunately. I’m happy about that. Fortunately, today wasn’t a crazy day either. I survived the ride well,” she says.
“I also wasn’t afraid that they (refers to her competitors for the final victory, ed.) would harass me. If they want to do that, they have to Kasia (Niewiadoma, ed.) already do that and then you also waste energy. I had to close some gaps, but I could keep up every time, without too many problems.”
And so Vollering – who is now tenth in the general classification, 1:19 behind Niewiadoma – is looking forward to the two remaining stages through the Alps. “I am confident that things will go well. I am very keen to take back the yellow jersey, perhaps even more than before.”
Alps
“What are the proportions? You never know. I have the idea that Kasia has taken another step in the mountains. We’ll see who’s the best.” Vollering will still be presented with enough climbs on the way to Le Grand-Bornand (Saturday) and Alpe d’Huez (Sunday) to make the difference. For example, the final stage will feature no fewer than two climbs of the hors categorie on the program.
