Mont Ventoux decides the Tour de France Femmes 2026: preview of the queen stage

The battle for the Tour de France Femmes 2026 reaches its decisive point this Friday. Marlen Reusser will defend just 12 seconds over Demi Vollering in a queen stage that will finish at Mont Ventoux, where the differences should no longer be measured in bonuses, but in minutes.

The Tour Femmes 2026 is played on the slopes of Mont Ventoux

After six stages, the classification keeps Reusser in the lead, but Vollering has proven to be the most aggressive rider in the climbs. The Dutchwoman won in Belleville-en-Beaujolais, has attacked every time the terrain has become tougher, and approaches the Ventoux as the favorite to take the yellow from the Swiss.

Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney is in third place at 1:17, while Elisa Longo Borghini, Antonia Niedermaier, and Dominika Wlodarczyk are already more than two minutes behind. With a final ascent of 15.7 kilometers at 8.8%, the stage could definitively narrow the fight for the Tour to two or three riders.

Keys to the queen stage

• Date: Friday, August 7.
• Route: La Voulte-sur-Rhône–Mont Ventoux - 146.8 kilometers.
• Start: 12:50, Spanish peninsular time.
• Estimated arrival: around 17:17.
• Scoring climbs: Col de la Grande Limite, Col du Colombier, Col de Suzette, and Mont Ventoux.
• Final climb: 15.7 kilometers at 8.8%.

A controllable route before the great battle

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The stage will start from La Voulte-sur-Rhône and will have a first half less decisive than its consideration as a queen stage might suggest. The Col de la Grande Limite, with 6.6 kilometers at 5%, and the Col du Colombier, of 3.2 kilometers at 6.4%, will serve to form the breakaway and begin to wear down the peloton.

More important may be the Col de Suzette, a 3.9-kilometer climb at 6.5% located before the final approach to the Ventoux. Although it should not cause significant differences among the favorites, it may force teams to expend domestiques and leave some leaders with less support for the decisive part.

Everything will change in Bédoin. From there, the ascent to Mont Ventoux will begin, with 15.7 kilometers at 8.8%. The steepest ramps will appear soon within the forest, with numerous sections above 10%. After Chalet Reynard, the landscape will be completely open, and the wind may become an added factor.

The last kilometers will harden again near the communications tower. The average of the final two kilometers exceeds 9%, so any weakness will be exposed before the finish line.

Vollering starts as the favorite, but Reusser has held on so far

Demi Vollering arrives as the main favorite. She has been the most aggressive climber of the race, won the fifth stage, and has already shown in previous seasons that she thrives in major climbs. In 2023, she built her victory in Tourmalet, and a year later, she won in Alpe d’Huez. The Ventoux seems the perfect stage to launch her most important attack.

Marlen Reusser will face a very different test from the time trial that took her to the lead. The Swiss does not have the profile of a pure climber, but she has responded so far to all of Vollering's moves and overcame Mont Brouilly without giving in. Her margin is only 12 seconds, so she will hardly be able to limit herself to controlling.

Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney is the third major candidate. The Pole followed Vollering and Reusser in the tough finish of the fifth stage and has the necessary ability to maintain a high pace in a long climb. She is 1:17 behind the yellow, a significant difference, but recoverable in a climb like this.

Antonia Niedermaier, Dominika Wlodarczyk, and Isabella Holmgren will seek to confirm their excellent Tour and advance in the general classification. Niedermaier will also defend the lead in the young riders' classification against Holmgren.

Elisa Longo Borghini and Paula Blasi offer two alternatives for UAE Team L’IMAD, although both will need to improve on what they showed in the more explosive climbs. Cédrine Kerbaol and Kim Le Court arrive somewhat further back, but they can aspire to finish among the best of the day.

Pauline Ferrand-Prévot faces the Ventoux with no realistic options to defend her title after the time lost in the time trial and in the Beaujolais stage. Still, a long and steady climb may suit her characteristics better and offer her the opportunity to regain sensations.

The breakaway will find it difficult to contest the victory. The approach is relatively controllable, and Vollering needs to toughen the race to try to take the yellow. Everything points, therefore, to a direct battle between the best climbers in a climb that could practically resolve the Tour de France Femmes 2026.