Stage 5 of the 2025 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift resulted in an exhilarating finish after the descent of Le Maupuy, with a seven-rider group contesting the win and Kim Le Court-Pienaar (AG Insurance-Soudal Team) ultimately taking the glory in Gueret. After the longest stage of this year’s race (165.8 km) it all came down to a sprint finish amongst the GC contenders with Le Court-Pienaar winning it, celebrating early but just clinching it on the line ahead of Demi Vollering (FDJ - SUEZ). Anna van der Breggen (Team SD Worx - Protime) was third, with Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto) and Pauline Ferrand-Prevot (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) completing the top five. Le Court-Pienaar also regained control of the Yellow Jersey, now leading the GC by 18" from Ferrand-Prevot, with Vollering third at 23”.
The action begins at the Futuroscope Park
Polish rider Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka, teammate of Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon//SRAM zondacrypto), did not take the start, meaning there were 143 riders left in the 2025 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift peloton as the stage commenced at the Futuroscope Park in Chasseneuil-du-Poitou. In addition, there were several withdrawals in the first part of the stage, with the likes of Olympic champion Kristen Faulkner (EF Education-Oatly), as well as Monica Trinca Colonel (Liv AlUla Jayco) and Elisa Balsamo (Lidl - Trek) forced to abandon. Faulkner was struggling with illness and had crashed on three successive stages.
Five in the breakaway
The pace in the early running was very fast, with 46.5 km covered in the first hour, during which Green Jersey holder Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx - Protime), winner of the last two stages, was delayed by a large crash that split the peloton into several groups. There was another crash at around km 92 for Marion Bunel (Visma|Lease a Bike), with the French climber remaining on the ground and requiring some assistance to remount and get going again. A breakaway of Alison Jackson (EF Education-Oatly), Brodie Chapman (UAE Team ADQ), Francesca Barale (Team Picnic PostNL), Catalina Soto Campos (Laboral Kutxa - Fundación Euskadi) and Anneke Dijkstra (VolkerWessels Cycling Team) had formed before that and by km 105 they were riding 3’50” ahead of the peloton.
Intermediate sprint quickly followed by three climbs
Jackson was the first of the five breakaway riders as they rolled through the Intermediate Sprint (Dun-Le-Palestel - km 126.8), with Green Jersey leader Wiebes the first of the riders in the peloton in the sprint. On the Côte de Chabannes (Category 4, 1.4 km at 5.2%) Chapman led at the summit, with Barale second after Dijkstra and Soto were distanced and the peloton began to close in to within 1’45”. Next it was the Côte du Peyroux (Category 4, 3.3 km at 4.3%), where Chapman attacked to go solo, distancing Jackson and then Barale on the first ramps of the ascent. Chapman reached the top first, though by then the peloton led by Elise Chabbey (FDJ – SUEZ) in the polka dot jersey were only 18” behind, whilst the likes of Wiebes and her world champion teammate Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx – Protime) were dropped.
On to the final climb
Chapman was caught before the last climb of the day (Le Maupuy, category 3, 2.8 km at 5.3%), with Ferrand-Prevot attacking as she approached the Bonus Point, but it was Le Court-Pienaar who took the lead, taking a 6" bonus ahead of the Frenchwoman (4") and Niewiadoma-Phinney (2”). At the summit of the Maupuy climb Van der Breggen, Le Court-Pienaar, Niewiadoma-Phinney, Ferrand-Prevot, Vollering, Sarah Gigante (AG Insurance-Soudal Team) and Pauliena Rooijakkers (Fenix-Deceuninck) had pulled away, leaving the likes of Yellow Jersey Marianne Vos (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) behind. After the 5km descent of Maupuy the seven favourites powered through the remaining 2km to the line in Gueret where Le Court-Pienaar took the victory.
