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Poland’s Niewiadoma clinches victory in the 2024 Tour de France Femmes

 Katarzyna Niewiadoma of Poland celebrates at podium as final overall Tour de France Femme winner. Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images
Katarzyna Niewiadoma of Poland celebrates at podium as final overall Tour de France Femme winner. Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images
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Poland’s Katarzyna Niewiadoma won the 2024 Tour de France Femmes in a thrilling finale to become the first Polish cyclist to win the world’s most prestigious race.

Niewiadoma sparked hopes of a podium finish after claiming the leader's yellow jersey during the fifth stage of the race and defending it through the sixth and seventh stages.

At the start of the decisive stage, Niewiadoma had a 27-second advantage over the Dutch rider Puck Pieterse and 37 seconds over the French rider Cedrine Kerbaol.

Although Niewiadoma had been crowned the best climber of the Tour in 2023, the demanding course of the final stage favored breakaways that are difficult to control, and last year’s overall winner Demi Vollering was by many considered to be a harsh rival to beat.

This proved right when with 52 km to go, Vollering attacked in the company of two riders, using a steep climb to leave Niewiadoma and the peloton behind.

Complicating matters, Niewiadoma’s teammates were unable to support her as they had fallen back. Pauliena Rooijakkers, seventh in the general classification, also joined the breakaway.

For several kilometers, Niewiadoma and the two Dutch riders exchanged the virtual lead in the general classification.

As the decisive climb approached, Niewiadoma's group began to gain ground, starting the final climb with a 40-second lead—a margin that favored the current leader.

The outcome of the entire eight-stage, nearly 1,000 km race was decided in the final kilometers.

The virtual classification was an ever-shifting kaleidoscope. Crossing the finish line in fourth place, Niewiadoma was initially uncertain if she had secured the overall victory. Vollering had crossed the line over a minute ahead, leaving Niewiadoma in suspense until moments later when she burst into tears of joy, realizing she had won the Tour de France.

Niewiadoma’s Sunday victory is the biggest success in the history of Polish starts at Tour de France. This major feat may let the Polish cyclist mitigate her loss at the Paris Olympics, where she finished eighth after a crash on the route of the race, despite being in top-notch form. Polish President Andrzej Duda, Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Sports Minister Sławomir Nitras expressed joy after Niewiadoma's victory, calling the athlete's triumph a great success for Polish sports.
Source: letourfemmes.fr, X
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