Demi Vollering saved her biggest statement for the last day.
The Dutch rider won the 2026 Tour de France Femmes by taking the ninth and final stage in Nice, sealing her second title in the race after also winning in 2023.
Vollering, 29, finished the tour 1 minute, 18 seconds ahead of 2024 champion Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney of Poland. Niewiadoma-Phinney had started the day only eight seconds behind, but Vollering added a time bonus by winning the stage.
After crossing the line, Vollering raised her bike in the air. Later, as the Dutch national anthem played, she tried to hold back tears.
“It’s not only the dream of winning the Tour de France. It’s also the dream of living this life, of working hard along with passionate people,” Vollering said.
“It all starts with dreaming. Go chase the dreams and don’t let anyone stop you.”
Vollering began celebrating before the finish, raising her arm and tapping her head with her finger.
“I was thinking about a lot of things as I was approaching the finish line. I thought that I had never won in the yellow jersey before,” Vollering said.
“I thought about how much work has gone into this victory. I thought about the people who have been behind me.”
She won the stage by 1 minute, 4 seconds from Spaniard Paula Blasi Cairol and Niewiadoma-Phinney.
Former Giro d’Italia champion Elisa Longo Borghini of Italy finished third overall, 4:29 behind Vollering, after Marlen Reusser lost time in a downhill crash after the second of the day’s four climbs. Reusser dropped to 14th overall, nearly 26 minutes behind.
Niewiadoma-Phinney was unable to pressure Vollering on the final climb, with Vollering sitting on her wheel before attacking about 800 metres from the top and dropping her rival. Vollering had also beaten Niewiadoma-Phinney on Saturday’s eighth stage to take the overall lead.
Two years ago, Vollering missed Tour victory by four seconds to Niewiadoma-Phinney on the final stage. This time, she turned it around.
Vollering has now won five Grand Tours, including two Spanish Vuelta titles and the Giro d’Italia in June. She joined fellow Dutch rider Annemiek van Vleuten as the only female cyclist to have won all three Grand Tours.
“I still have a lot of dreams,” Vollering said. “On and off the bike.”
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