Niewiadoma accuses FDJ of closing her against the barriers during Vollering's attack: "I have lost all respect for them"

The eighth stage of the Tour de France Femmes has ended with Demi Vollering taking the yellow jersey by just 8 seconds, but also with significant controversy between FDJ United-SUEZ and Canyon//SRAM. Kasia Niewiadoma accuses Célia Gery of deliberately closing her against the barriers just as Vollering launched the decisive attack of the day.

Niewiadoma lashes out at FDJ: "If they want to compete, they should do it cleanly"

The images of the moment show how Gery, positioned behind her leader, moves towards the outside of the road at the entrance to the final climb and reduces the space available for Niewiadoma, who has to brake and look for a way around. The Polish rider interpreted the maneuver as deliberate and finished the stage visibly angry.

Having seen the French TV footage, Kasia Niewiadoma was right.

FDJ-Suez' strategy was clearly for Vollering (P2) and Gery (P1) to switch positions before the corner, to have Gery slow down afterwards to open up a gap in front of her, forcing Niewiadoma to pass Gery first, and…

— Benji Naesen (@BenjiNaesen) August 8, 2026

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Niewiadoma did not hold back her opinion after crossing the finish line. The Canyon//SRAM cyclist stated that Gery had blocked her "on purpose" against the barriers and that the maneuver had even forced her to stop pedaling.

"If they want to compete, they should compete cleanly and not try to close me against the barriers because it seems very childish to me. Honestly, I have lost all respect for them because of that", she stated.

The tension continued after the finish. Niewiadoma went directly to Gery to ask for explanations: "Why did you do that? Why did you close me against the barriers? Was it part of the plan?".

The question was not casual because, as FDJ United-SUEZ later acknowledged, part of what happened did respond to a pre-prepared tactic, although the team denies that this strategy included obstructing Niewiadoma.

FDJ acknowledges the tactic but denies any intention to close Niewiadoma

Lars Boom, sports director of FDJ United-SUEZ, explained to WielerFlits that the plan was for Gery to stay on Vollering's wheel until after the corner and then let a gap open up when her leader attacked.

"The plan was for Célia to stay on Demi's wheel until after the corner. Then, when Demi took off, she had to let the gap open up calmly," Boom explained.

However, the director of the French team rejects that Gery had instructions to block the then leader of the Tour.

"Célia says: 'I didn't do anything wrong'. We need to review it well, but it is not in Célia's nature to push someone against the barriers. She would never do that", he assured.

Vollering also did not directly see the incident, as she was ahead starting her acceleration. The Dutch rider defended her teammate and pointed out that such situations can occur during a race without necessarily being intentional.

"I'm sure she didn't do it on purpose," Vollering explained. "These kinds of things just happen sometimes in racing. It's the complicated part of cycling."

Canyon//SRAM took the incident to the UCI

Canyon//SRAM decided to file a formal complaint with the UCI jury, which reviewed the footage after the stage. Several commissioners were seen analyzing the sequence, although ultimately no sanction was imposed for what happened.

The new images allow for a better appreciation of the maneuver and also provide an important detail to assess its sporting influence. Niewiadoma has to brake and momentarily loses position when Vollering accelerates, but later manages to regain contact with the Dutch rider. Her definitive loss of wheel occurs further on, near the summit.

Vollering ended up winning the stage with 17 seconds advantage over Elisa Longo Borghini and Niewiadoma, a result sufficient to take the lead from the Polish rider.

The controversy adds even more tension to a final stage that will start with Vollering dressed in yellow and only 8 seconds over Niewiadoma. Two years after Kasia won the 2024 Tour by just four seconds over Vollering herself, both will once again contest the race practically to the second in Nice.