The Classics-type course of the stage to Tournon-sur-Rhône was compared by many to Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and it was indeed a former winner of La Doyenne who came away with the victory. Kim Le Court-Pienaar (AG Insurance-Soudal) took an emphatic triumph after jumping across from the reduced Yellow Jersey group to the six-strong group at the head of the race, defeating her breakaway companions with a long, powerful sprint into the finish. Cédrine Kerbaol (EF Education-Oatly) and Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech) were second and third while the Mauritian national champion netted her second-ever stage win in the Grande Boucle. All favorites sticked together throughout the day, with a remarkable exception: UAE Team L’Imad’s Elisa Longo Borghini, who entered the late breakaway to climb up to the 4th place in the overall standings, still led by Marlen Reusser (Movistar Team) with 12” on Demi Vollering (FDJ United-Suez) and 1’17” on Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon//SRAM). The 2026 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift reaches its queen stage this Friday, with a 146,8-kilometre course from La Voulte-sur-Rhône to one of the most iconic summits in road cycling: the Mont Ventoux.
134 riders took the start in the 6th stage of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift as of 13:46 CEST. Ahead of them, 153.4 kilometres between Montbrison and Tournon-sur-Rhône, with a lumpy course towards the mountainous Ardèche department. There were two non-starters, both sick as per announced by their teams: Monica Trinca Colonel (Liv-AlUla-Jayco) and Barbara Malcotti (Human Powered Health). Early on, Eleonora Ciabocco (Picnic-PostNL) withdrew from the race too.
Three riders spent nearly 70 kilometres up the road
No moves went clear in the initial part of the stage and Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech) was first atop the Côte de Périgneux (Cat 4, km 20.2), scoring two more points for her in her quest to secure the polka dot jersey. Up the Côte de la Prunerie (Cat 4, km 26.6), a breakaway trio was established with Loes Adegeest (Lidl-Trek), Katrine Aalerud (Uno-X Mobility) and Nikola Nosková (Cofidis). The latter would rise to the occasion and claim maximum QOM points atop the aforementioned climb, as well as in the Côte d’Aurec (Cat 3, km 46.3) and in the Côte de Praneuf (Cat 4, km 68). Meanwhile, Aalerud was first across the Intermediate Sprint in Flaminges (IS, km 63.5). One kilometre from it, the breakaway clocked its maximum gap: 2’25”.
EF Education-Oatly then took the helm of the peloton, steadily reducing the breakaway’s advantage with a little help from Fenix-Premier Tech and putting riders like Anna Van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) or Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike) in trouble. After making first Nosková and then Aalerud crack, Loes Adegeest was caught by the peloton 54 kilometres from the finish, in the first slopes of the Col de Lalouvesc (Cat 2, km 105.6). Meanwhile, 2023 stage winner Yara Kastelijn (Fenix-Premier Tech) pulled out.
Late breakaway plays for the stage win
World champion Magdeleine Vallieres set a fierce pace up Lalouvesc, whittling the peloton down to 30 riders. Her work was interrupted by an abrupt yet unsuccessful attack from Paula Blasi (UAE Team L’Imad) 3 kilometres from the summit. Pieterse led the bunch across the Col, scooping up five more points for her polka dot jersey.
Down in the descent, Célia Gery (FDJ United-Suez) set off. The French national champion was racing in home turf and attacked time and again after finally creating a gap with 34.5 kilometres to go. Shortly after, she was joined by five other women at the front: Sarah Van Dam (Visma | Lease a Bike), Cédrine Kerbaol (EF Education-EasyPost), Liane Lippert (Movistar Team), Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team L’Imad) and the omnipresent Pieterse. They held a 30” gap on a reduced peloton led by Canyon//SRAM and Lidl-Trek at the foot of the Côte de Boucieu-le-Roi (Cat 3, km 137.5) that turned into 35” at the summit, where Pieterse was yet again first.
Riejanne Markus (Lidl-Trek) and Kim Le Court-Pienaar (AG Insurance-Soudal) attacked from the peloton with 15 kilometres to go, managing to join the six women in the lead right ahead of the Bonus Point in Saint-Barthélemy-le-Plain (B, km 144.2), where the Mauritian national champion claimed 6” bonus seconds while Longo Borghini took 4”. Despite repeated attacks by Markus, Kerbaol and Le Court-Pienaar herself, all came down to a sprint between the eight riders in the lead. The AG Insurance-Soudal rider launched her sprint with 300 metres to go and managed to keep her breakaway companions at bay. Meanwhile, the Yellow Jersey group crossed the finish line 28” in arrears, with nothing to write home about as Marlen Reusser (Movistar Team) kept the overall lead.
Stage 6
1 Kim LE COURT DE BILLOT-PIENAAR G INSURANCE – SOUDAL TEAM 04h 01′ 48” – B : 16” –
2 Cedrine KERBAOL EF EDUCATION – OATLY 04h 01′ 48” – B : 6” –
3 Puck PIETERSE FENIX-PREMIER TECH 04h 01′ 48” – B : 6” –
GC
- Marlen REUSSER, (MOVISTAR TEAM), en 19h 43′ 34”
- Demi VOLLERING, (FDJ UNITED-SUEZ), en 19h 43′ 46” +00′ 12”
- Katarzyna NIEWIADOMA-PHINNEY, (CANYON//SRAM), en 19h 44′ 51” +01′ 17”
