{"id":2065719,"date":"2026-07-28T16:09:56","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T13:09:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2065719"},"modified":"2026-07-28T16:09:56","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T13:09:56","slug":"ive-not-reached-my-absolute-potential-yet-kim-le-court-pienaar-sets-sights-on-tour-de-france-femmes-top-five-after-shock-to-the-system-success-in-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2065719","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;I&#8217;ve not reached my absolute potential yet&#8217; \u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar sets sights on Tour de France Femmes top five after &#8216;shock to the system&#8217; success in 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NsjeSbhYWNXiWVshUACcmB-2500-80.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article class=\"m-0 box-border flex flex-row items-center pr-2.5 gap-[15px] w-[278px] h-20 flex-none upnext-article-divider\" role=\"listitem\" aria-label=\"Recommended article 1 of 3\">\n<div class=\"relative flex-none w-20 h-20\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/hR7NGbgjrJkexsJ9woJGzc.jpg\" alt=\"Belgian Remco Evenepoel of Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe crosses the finish line of stage 21 of the 2026 Tour de France cycling race, a stage of 130km from Thoiry to Paris Champs-Elysees , on Sunday 26 July 2026. The 113th edition of the Tour de France starts on Saturday 4 July in Barcelona, Spain, and will finish in Paris, France on the 26th of July. BELGA PHOTO JASPER JACOBS (Photo by JASPER JACOBS \/ BELGA MAG \/ Belga via AFP)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] w-20 h-20 object-cover flex-none rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"flex items-center justify-center absolute w-4 h-6 left-0 top-0 bg-white\/90 flex-none z-[1]\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n                                    <span class=\"font-normal text-base leading-[17px] tracking-[1.3px] uppercase text-black flex-none\">1<\/span>\n                                <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex flex-col items-center justify-center gap-1.5 w-[173px] h-20 flex-none\">\n<p class=\"font-article-heading font-medium text-base leading-[21px] text-gray-800 w-[173px] line-clamp-3 group-hover:underline\">\n                                    &#8216;I&#8217;ve shown I deserve to dream&#8217; &#8211; Remco Evenepoel says second place in Tour de France confirms belief as he pursues future Grand Tour victories\n                                <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"m-0 box-border flex flex-row items-center pr-2.5 gap-[15px] w-[278px] h-20 flex-none upnext-article-divider\" role=\"listitem\" aria-label=\"Recommended article 2 of 3\">\n<div class=\"relative flex-none w-20 h-20\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RktS6xfeM3cRGVHJ8omGz6.jpg\" alt=\"Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon\/SRAM) in yellow at the Tour de France Femmes 2024 (Photo by Alex Broadway\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] w-20 h-20 object-cover flex-none rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"flex items-center justify-center absolute w-[18px] h-6 left-0 top-0 bg-white\/90 flex-none z-[1]\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n                                    <span class=\"font-normal text-base leading-[17px] tracking-[1.3px] uppercase text-black flex-none\">2<\/span>\n                                <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex flex-col items-center justify-center gap-1.5 w-[173px] h-20 flex-none\">\n<p class=\"font-article-heading font-medium text-base leading-[21px] text-gray-800 w-[173px] line-clamp-3 group-hover:underline\">\n                                    &#8216;New opportunity, a fresh page&#8217; \u2013 Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney chases another Tour de France Femmes victory with team that delivers debuts for B\u00e4ckstedt, Kl\u00f6ser, Niedermaier\n                                <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"m-0 box-border flex flex-row items-center pr-2.5 gap-[15px] w-[278px] h-20 flex-none\" role=\"listitem\" aria-label=\"Recommended article 3 of 3\">\n<div class=\"relative flex-none w-20 h-20\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/x2erRPrkRHSd8wS8rNtXkN.jpg\" alt=\"Collage of Kasia Niewiadoma, Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] w-20 h-20 object-cover flex-none rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"flex items-center justify-center absolute w-[18px] h-6 left-0 top-0 bg-white\/90 flex-none z-[1]\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n                                    <span class=\"font-normal text-base leading-[17px] tracking-[1.3px] uppercase text-black flex-none\">3<\/span>\n                                <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex flex-col items-center justify-center gap-1.5 w-[173px] h-20 flex-none\">\n<p class=\"font-article-heading font-medium text-base leading-[21px] text-gray-800 w-[173px] line-clamp-3 group-hover:underline\">\n                                    Tour de France Femmes contenders \u2013 Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot poised for fantastic duel with Ventoux finale\n                                <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"page-content-onecol flex-1\nnews-article article\n\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"widget-area-group widget-area-group-2col flex flex-wrap box-border\">\n<div id=\"widgetArea16\" class=\"widget-area basis-full md:basis-2\/3 widget-area-g-md-vp-2-3 widget-area-g-lg-vp-2-3 widget-area-g-xl-vp-2-3 page-widget-area-16\">\n<div data-widget-type=\"hero\" id=\"hero\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-hero widget-hero widget-hero-hero widget-hero widget-hero-fter-news\">\n<div class=\"clear-both widget-header\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"news-article\">\n<header data-component-name=\"Article:Hero\">\n<div id=\"kiosq-metered-message\" class=\"kiosq-metered-message-content\"><\/div>\n<nav class=\"breadcrumb\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumbs\">\n<ol>\n<li>\nPro Cycling\n<\/li>\n<li>\nRacing\n<\/li>\n<li>\nWomen&#8217;s Cycling\n<\/li>\n<li>\nRoad\n<\/li>\n<li>\nTour de France Femmes\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/nav>\n<h1>&#8216;I&#8217;ve not reached my absolute potential yet&#8217; \u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar sets sights on Tour de France Femmes top five after &#8216;shock to the system&#8217; success in 2025<\/h1>\n<div class=\"byline-social\">\n<div class=\"vds-byline-block flex flex-row flex-nowrap my-1.5 gap-2 text-left items-start justify-start\" data-component-name=\"Article:BylineBlock\">\n<p>News<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-auto vds-simple-byline\">\n<span class=\"inline-block vds-author\"><br \/>\nBy<br \/>\nMatilda Price <\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"inline-block h-3 my-auto border-l border-solid vds-simple-byline__divider max-sm:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"flex gap-1 vds-byline-with-avatar__meta\">\n<span class=\"vds-date block font-normal tracking-normal normal-case text-xs\"><br \/>\nPublished<br \/>\n<time data-component-name=\"UI:DateTime\" datetime=\"2026-07-28T16:09:56Z\" class=\"relative-date\"><br \/>\n28 July 2026<br \/>\n<\/time><br \/>\n<\/span>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"strapline\">Mauritian rider back from injury-disrupted spring and ready to chase big results as AG Insurance-Soudal confirm team line-up<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"text-gray-700 flex items-center mx-0 my-5 p-0 justify-start text-left\" id=\"affiliate-disclaimer\" data-component-name=\"AffiliateDisclaimer\" data-hawk-message=\"Affiliate disclaimer removed because hawk deemed there are no affiliate links on this page\">\n<p class=\"text-[color:var(--affiliate-disclaimer--text-color,inherit)] mb-2 text-[length:var(--affiliate-disclaimer--font-size,0.75rem)] leading-[18px] md:text-[13px] [&amp;&gt;a]:text-inherit [&amp;&gt;a]:underline\">\nWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here\u2019s how it works.\n<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"contentparsed\" id=\"content\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-contentparsed widget-content widget-contentparsed-content widget-content-parsed widget-content-parsed-content_document \">\n<div class=\"wcp-item-content\">\n<section class=\"content-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"box less-space hero-image-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"mb-0\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NsjeSbhYWNXiWVshUACcmB.jpg\" alt=\"Kim Le Court in the yellow jersey at the 2025 Tour de France Femmes\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] block-image-ads hero-image absolute top-0 left-0 w-full h-full object-center\" data-component-name=\"Image\"><figcaption class=\"font-article-copy text-(--image--text--color) font-article-copy mt-2\"> <span class=\"caption-text font-article-copy\">Le Court-Pienaar had a memorable Tour last summer<\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"credit font-article-copy\">(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/span><br \/>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div data-component-name=\"Article:JumpTo\" class=\"contents\" data-only-inline=\"1\">\n<div class=\"visible flex flex-row flex-nowrap sticky max-lg:-ml-5 top-[var(--site-header-height,60px)] sm:top-0 z-[9994] w-screen lg:w-full h-[50px] bg-white p-0 mb-5 border-neutral-200 border border-solid\" data-component-name=\"Article:JumpTo:Variants:Inline\" data-analytics-id=\"sticky-nav\" id=\"sticky-nav--inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"sticky-nav\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-row w-full h-full overflow-x-scroll overflow-y-hidden tracking-normal overscroll-x-contain\" id=\"sticky-nav__scroll-container\">\n<span class=\"pl-4 my-auto text-base font-semibold font-article-heading lg:pl-3 lg:text-sm whitespace-nowrap uppercase\">Jump To:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"flex flex-row w-auto border-y-0\">\n<li class=\"inline-flex after:content-[&apos;&apos;] after:inline-block after:relative after:h-3\/6 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class=\"m-0!\">\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>Facebook<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>X<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>Pinterest<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<p>Email<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-share-this-article\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nShare this article\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<p>    <span class=\"ml-1 inline-flex h-5 px-2 shrink-0 items-center justify-center self-center overflow-hidden whitespace-nowrap rounded-[10px] bg-primary-500 text-[11px] leading-none font-ui-heading font-semibold text-white\">0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-join-the-conversation\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nJoin the conversation\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"flex gap-2 text-[#333] subcontainer\">\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<p>Follow us<\/p>\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-add-us-as-a-preferred-source-on-google\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nAdd us as a preferred source on Google\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<div class=\"font-ui-heading max-sm:hidden tooltip absolute left-1\/2 bg-gray-900 text-white text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-subscribe-to-our-newsletter\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nSubscribe to our newsletter\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76bd50-8a9c-11f1-9b8c-a301dae7d1c4\">2025&#8217;s breakthrough rider Kim Le Court-Pienaar and her AG Insurance-Soudal team are hoping to build on the success of last year&#8217;s Tour de France Femmes to reach even higher heights this summer.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ad-unit-1\" class=\"ad-unit\"><\/div>\n<p>Last year, Le Court-Pienaar had already made history well before the Tour with her Monument win at Li\u00e8ge-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge, less than two years into her road racing career, and then took things even further with a stage win and four days in yellow at the Tour.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-seasonal\"><\/a><\/p>\n<aside data-article-category=\"pro-cycling\" data-block-type=\"embed\" data-render-type=\"fte\" data-skip=\"dealsy\" data-widget-type=\"seasonal\" class=\"hawk-root\"><\/aside>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76bd50-8a9c-11f1-9b8c-a301dae7d1c4-2\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Her general classification ambitions faded in the final weekend as she switched her focus to riding for Sarah Gigante, who finished sixth overall with Le Court-Pienaar in 16th, but with the Australian out of action this year, it will be down to the Mauritian rider to lead the team&#8217;s overall ambitions.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-6 w-full overflow-hidden rounded-[10px] lg:my-8\" data-component-name=\"JwPlayer:Carousel\" data-jwp-carousel data-jwp-carousel-payload=\"{&quot;ids&quot;:{&quot;playerID&quot;:&quot;jYDCcabO&quot;,&quot;searchPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;divID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;fallbackPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;fallbackDivID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;key&quot;:&quot;X9\/mXVGac0NphghLH9hZaqWA5d3dhAM\/Ih07grnEyMLjuO2E&quot;,&quot;tintLogo&quot;:true,&quot;useSearchPlaylist&quot;:false,&quot;enabled&quot;:true},&quot;signPostingEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;signPostingLinkEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;waitForAdLoad&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnDesktop&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnMobile&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnTablet&quot;:false}\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-nowrap items-center justify-between gap-3 bg-zinc-900 px-[14px] py-3\" data-jwp-carousel-header>\n<div class=\"flex min-w-0 shrink items-center\"><span class=\"inline-flex items-center gap-1.5 text-sm font-article-heading capitalize leading-5 text-white whitespace-nowrap\"><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-mobile\"><\/span><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-desktop\">Latest Videos From<\/span><span class=\"jwp-carousel-brand\">Cyclingnews<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"aspect-video w-full min-h-[200px] lg:min-h-[330px] relative overflow-hidden bg-black\" data-jwp-carousel-container>\n<div class=\"absolute inset-0 size-full\" data-jwp-carousel-player-host><\/div>\n<div class=\"absolute inset-0 size-full items-center justify-center bg-white\" data-jwp-carousel-fallback><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"min-h-[44px] bg-zinc-900 px-[14px] py-3\" data-jwp-carousel-signposting><a class=\"invisible block truncate text-sm font-bold leading-5 text-white underline decoration-solid underline-offset-2\" data-jwp-carousel-signposting-link href target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span data-jwp-carousel-signposting-title>Watch full video here: <\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Despite the heights we have seen Le Court-Pienaar reach over the last two years, the 30-year-old is confident that she still has more to give and performances to unlock.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ad-unit-2\" class=\"ad-unit\"><\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;To be honest, I think I&#8217;m still discovering myself as a rider and as a leader and in general as a road cyclist,&#8221; she told <em>Cyclingnews<\/em> and other media on Tuesday afternoon, from her base in Girona after a three-week training camp in Tignes.<\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet class=\"clear-both pt-2 pb-0 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"\n            flex\n            after:content-[&apos;&apos;] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]\n            before:content-[&apos;&apos;] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]\n            font-article-heading pb-0 text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,1em)] uppercase sm:text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,0.875em)] font-bold\n        \"><br \/>\n            You may like<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"flex flex-col gap-0 m-0 max-w-full\">\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-1\" id=\"recirculation-inline-1\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-inline-1\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-inline-1\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/USWmXwaeCV4Nk3qpvg6w4K.jpg\" alt=\"Alice Towers and Mauritian champion Kim Le Court-Pienaar leading the breakaway during stage 3 of the 2026 Tour de Suisse Women\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;It wasn&#8217;t planned&#8217; \u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar back to full strength in Tour de Suisse breakaway after two-month injury layoff<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-2\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-inline-2\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-inline-2\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AKPYwTXys5nHGBTjMjRD6H.jpg\" alt=\"Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt (Canyon-SRAM) racing up Cheddar Gorge for Red Bull UK\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;My first big hit out against every single big rider&#8217; \u2013 Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt relishes star-studded time trial test at debut Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ccc] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-3\" id=\"recirculation-inline-3\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-inline-3\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-inline-3\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/x2erRPrkRHSd8wS8rNtXkN.jpg\" alt=\"Collage of Kasia Niewiadoma, Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">Tour de France Femmes contenders \u2013 Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot poised for fantastic duel with Ventoux finale<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/aside>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I&#8217;ve been in this sport two and a half years now, and I still don&#8217;t feel like I&#8217;ve found myself yet. Of course we have an idea of what my potential and capabilities on the road bike are, but I feel like we&#8217;ve not reached my absolute potential yet.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Where the limit of her potential may be, no one quite knows, but when it comes to the Tour, she believes that a top five is possible, and her team know they are able to deliver a rider to a solid GC finish, even if perhaps they aren&#8217;t looked at as favourites.<\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W\" class=\"slice-container newsletter-inbodyContent-slice newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W slice-container-newsletterForm\">\n<div data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"newsletter-form__wrapper newsletter-form__wrapper--inbodyContent\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__container\">\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__top-bar\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__header\">Get The Leadout Newsletter<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__main-section\">\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<footer class=\"newsletter-form__footer \">By submitting your information you agree to the Terms &amp; Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.<\/footer>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I think we&#8217;re coming in, as I said, with a bit more experience and a bit more ambition. Now we know what we can do, and we know we&#8217;ve done it before and we want to do it again,&#8221; she explained.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure inline-layout kiosq-b\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-9d76be9a-8a9c-11f1-a661-0df972bd51aa\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/qycCMQDCyfARDTvUysmLoB.jpg\" alt=\"Kim Le Court in the yellow jersey at the 2025 Tour de France Femmes\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] inline\">\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" inline-layout\"><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76bf1c-8a9c-11f1-84b5-5f40091d0d04\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;Of course, stage wins will be the first objective, and then of course we want to aim for the highest [GC] result possible, which would be top five. Anything above that is obviously a bonus, but we have to take it as it comes.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;We&#8217;re not the team that everyone would look at, and I think everyone else has much more experience than we do of doing this and going for the GC and things like that. We&#8217;re going in a bit more as underdogs, and we just want to do the best we can. We know we can; we&#8217;ve trained hard for it, we have the potential, so now we just have to see what comes out of it.<\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet class=\"clear-both pt-2 pb-0 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"\n            flex\n            after:content-[&apos;&apos;] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]\n            before:content-[&apos;&apos;] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]\n            font-article-heading pb-0 text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,1em)] uppercase sm:text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,0.875em)] font-bold\n        \"><br \/>\n            What to read next<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"flex flex-col gap-0 m-0 max-w-full\">\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-1\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2-1\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-2-inline-1\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-2-inline-1\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mdqopQBsyVu8WSwCgaooQM.jpg\" alt=\"USA&amp;#039;s Veronica Ewers last raced 11 months ago for EF Education-Oatly and then paused her racing career for health reasons\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;Big shock to the system&#8217; &#8211; Former WorldTour rider Veronica Ewers resumes slow return to peloton with &#8216;experiment&#8217; at French ProTeam&#8217;s Tour de France Femmes training camp<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-2\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2-2\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-2-inline-2\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-2-inline-2\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RktS6xfeM3cRGVHJ8omGz6.jpg\" alt=\"Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon\/SRAM) in yellow at the Tour de France Femmes 2024 (Photo by Alex Broadway\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;New opportunity, a fresh page&#8217; \u2013 Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney chases another Tour de France Femmes victory with team that delivers debuts for B\u00e4ckstedt, Kl\u00f6ser, Niedermaier<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ccc] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-3\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2-3\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-2-inline-3\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-2-inline-3\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/FGpVkMj8UKBWMxNMGYhv5b.jpg\" alt=\"Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ) is congratulated by teammate Juliette Berthet after winning Omloop Het Nieuwsblad 2026 (Photo by Luc Claessen\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">Chasing Tour de France Femmes victory with Demi Vollering &#8216;realistic and incredibly motivating&#8217; says key lieutenant Juliette Berthet<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/aside>\n<p><a id=\"elk-9d76bf94-8a9c-11f1-82c0-7bc3851173c5\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"returning-from-injury-3\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Returning from injury<\/h2>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76c016-8a9c-11f1-9106-d745b52403eb\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">The one hiccup to Le Court-Pienaar&#8217;s build-up to a hopefully triumphant Tour return was the crash she suffered at the Tour of Flanders, which left her with a broken wrist, missing her favoured Ardennes Classics and several weeks of training and racing.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;It wasn&#8217;t really quick, unfortunately,&#8221; she said of her recovery. &#8220;It wasn&#8217;t really smooth sailing, but now we&#8217;ve put everything behind us, and it&#8217;s over now. Now it&#8217;s just dealing with still some rehab of the wrist and making sure everything&#8217;s fine. I&#8217;ve got a good team behind me, so they&#8217;re looking after me pretty well, making sure that my rehab and recovery goes well. So I&#8217;m putting that behind me; it hasn&#8217;t been a smooth road mentally or physically, but good things are to come now.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">There were already positive signs at her comeback race, the Tour de Suisse, where she finished fourth, before doing the double at the Mauritian National Championships ahead of her final altitude training camp.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;For me to go to Suisse was a bit of a challenge, mentally and physically, because I had no idea where I would be and what my level would be at the time,&#8221; she said. &#8220;But Suisse was more like &#8216;Let&#8217;s not stress about it, let&#8217;s see what my body can do,&#8217; and with a month and a half of training, where I am and what my pace is and what we need to improve before the Tour. So it was more a test and more training than anything else. Then in Tignes it was more of the little last adjustments of preparation for the Tour.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"elk-DbL6pejDUDq\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">\n<div class=\"instagram-embed\">\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-version=\"6\">\n<p>A post shared by Kim Le Court-Pienaar, MSK \ud83c\udf96\ufe0f (@kimlecourt)<\/p><figcaption><cite><\/p>\n<p>A photo posted by on <\/p>\n<p><\/cite><\/figcaption><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76c0f2-8a9c-11f1-951a-65eaa45091f2\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">We know well how Le Court-Pienaar and her Belgian squad can perform in the Classics, but a nine-day Grand Tour will offer up new challenges and demands. After missing out on many of the Classics, Le Court-Pienaar is only more motivated to make the most of the Tour.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I think I&#8217;m quite different in terms of physiology and also mentally,&#8221; she said of her shape coming into August compared to the spring.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;In a Grand Tour you&#8217;ve got more opportunities, but it&#8217;s also quite scary in a way, because you need to stay healthy for nine days, you need to make sure you&#8217;re on top of your game for nine days, you need to make sure mentally you&#8217;re still in for the fight and that the mental side doesn&#8217;t go down. So there&#8217;s a lot of different mental and physical aspects in terms of an athlete. I would say I&#8217;m still the same person, I just have more hunger now because I&#8217;ve missed a lot of races and I&#8217;ve missed out on a lot of opportunities in the beginning of the season.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">That hunger and ambition also comes from the experience and growth of the team, which came along quite rapidly after what, Le Court-Pienaar admits, was a Tour even above their expectations last summer.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;We gained a lot of experience all at once last year over the nine days, so I think we can take a lot out of that. Last year, we also went for stage wins and to see what we could do out of it, and it was a great year, but it was also kind of a &#8216;Wow, OK, we knew we could do something special, but we didn&#8217;t know it was going to be that amazing&#8217;. So it was a more of a bonus, shock to the system, and this year we come more with our heads on shoulders, we know what&#8217;s to come and we know what our potential is as a team.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Not only does the AG Insurance-Soudal team have potential and strength by the bucketload \u2013 Le Court-Pienaar will be joined by the likes of Ur\u0161ka \u017digart, Mireia Benito and Justine Ghekiere \u2013 but her teammates also have full faith in their leader.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;As Kim said, now we know what can be done, what we can realistically achieve, and this is super motivating for me, because as a domestique of course I would always give my 200 per cent for the team, but knowing that we can achieve amazing things here, it&#8217;s always an extra,&#8221; Benito added.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;When you&#8217;re suffering, then you can do a bit extra, that you don&#8217;t even know that you had in you, and I think this is going to be the case for this Tour de France. Everyone is super motivated and clearly here for one goal. If we ride like the way we usually ride, as a Wolfpack, I think we will get really nice results, and for sure we will give our best.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-ag-insurance-soudal-for-the-2026-tour-de-france-femmes\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"article-body__section kiosq-b\" id=\"section-ag-insurance-soudal-for-the-2026-tour-de-france-femmes\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><span>AG Insurance-Soudal for the 2026 Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul id=\"elk-9d76c278-8a9c-11f1-a28d-5fd551f7f0ba\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">\n<li>Kim Le Court-Pienaar<\/li>\n<li>Justine Ghekiere<\/li>\n<li>Shari Bossuyt<\/li>\n<li>Mireia Benito<\/li>\n<li>Letizia Borghesi<\/li>\n<li>Ur\u0161ka \u017digart<\/li>\n<li>Lore De Schepper<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76c2f0-8a9c-11f1-a2db-9571e2fe0d14\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><em><strong>Support our unrivalled coverage of the Tour de France Femmes and women&#8217;s cycling by subscribing to Cyclingnews. In return, you get unlimited access to high-quality journalism, with breaking news, race analysis, and expert insight from inside the women&#8217;s peloton. Plus, the Cyclingnews app lets you follow the action wherever you go! <\/strong><\/em><u><em><strong>Join today.<\/strong><\/em><\/u><em><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"kiosq-app-paywall-js\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"this-will-be-used-for-mpu-2\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"slice-container-authorBio-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W\" class=\"slice-container slice-author-bio authorBio-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W slice-container-authorBio\">\n<div class=\"author author__default-layout author--separator author--collapsible\" data-hydrate=\"true\">\n<div class=\"author__header\">\n<div class=\"author__heading\">\n<div class=\"author__name\">Matilda Price<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__social\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"author__role\">Assistant Features Editor<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__bio-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"author__biography\">\n<p>Matilda is an NCTJ-qualified journalist based in the UK who joined <em>Cyclingnews <\/em>in March 2025. Prior to that, she worked as the Racing News Editor at <em>GCN<\/em>, and extensively as a freelancer contributing to <em>Cyclingnews, Cycling Weekly, Velo, Rouleur, Escape Collective, Red Bull <\/em>and more. She has reported on the ground at all of the biggest events on the calendar, including the men&#8217;s and women&#8217;s Tours de France, the Giro d&#8217;Italia, the Vuelta a Espana, the Spring Classics and the World Championships. She has particular experience and expertise in women&#8217;s cycling, and women&#8217;s sport in general. She is a graduate of modern languages and sports journalism.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<div id=\"viafoura-comments\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative max-w-[1070px] viafoura-twig-component mt-6 mx-4 lg:mx-0\" data-component-name=\"Viafoura:Comments\" data-nosnippet data-community-guidelines-text=\"&lt;p class=&apos;vfcustom-community-guidelines&apos;&gt;Please follow our &lt;a href=&quot;https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/about\/#section-community-guidelines&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;community guidelines&lt;\/a&gt;.&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-join-the-conversation-text=\"Join the Conversation\">\n<div class=\"relative h-(--truncate-height) sm:h-(--truncate-desktop-height) overflow-hidden transition-[height] duration-150\" data-test-id=\"container\" data-component-name=\"Util:Truncate\" id=\"viafoura-comments-container\">\n<div class=\"relative z-10 viafoura rounded-[var(--comment-widget-border-radius,0)]\" id=\"viafoura-comment-wrapper\" data-test-id=\"content\">\n<div class=\"viafoura\">\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"absolute bg-gradient-to-t from-[var(--truncate-gradient-color,white)] from-50% h-28 z-20 w-full bottom-0 flex items-end justify-center px-0 rounded-none\">\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"absolute top-0 left-0 w-full h-full flex items-center justify-center z-50 bg-white\/90 border-1 rounded-b-[var(--comment-widget-border-radius,0)]\">\n<div class=\"p-2 text-center\">\n<p class=\"mb-3 text-lg!\">You must confirm your public display name before commenting<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-3 text-sm!\">Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"infinite-container\" data-analytics-id=\"infinite-container\" data-component-name=\"SponsoredScroll\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"infinite-container\">\n<div class=\"infinite-trigger\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<section class=\"mx-2 my-5 sm:mx-0\">\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-adviser:hybrid\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Read more<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/USWmXwaeCV4Nk3qpvg6w4K.jpg\" alt=\"Alice Towers and Mauritian champion Kim Le Court-Pienaar leading the breakaway during stage 3 of the 2026 Tour de Suisse Women\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;It wasn&#8217;t planned&#8217; \u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar back to full strength in Tour de Suisse breakaway after two-month injury layoff<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AKPYwTXys5nHGBTjMjRD6H.jpg\" alt=\"Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt (Canyon-SRAM) racing up Cheddar Gorge for Red Bull UK\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;My first big hit out against every single big rider&#8217; \u2013 Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt relishes star-studded time trial test at debut Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/x2erRPrkRHSd8wS8rNtXkN.jpg\" alt=\"Collage of Kasia Niewiadoma, Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Tour de France Femmes contenders \u2013 Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot poised for fantastic duel with Ventoux finale<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mdqopQBsyVu8WSwCgaooQM.jpg\" alt=\"USA&amp;#039;s Veronica Ewers last raced 11 months ago for EF Education-Oatly and then paused her racing career for health reasons\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;Big shock to the system&#8217; &#8211; Former WorldTour rider Veronica Ewers resumes slow return to peloton with &#8216;experiment&#8217; at French ProTeam&#8217;s Tour de France Femmes training camp<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RktS6xfeM3cRGVHJ8omGz6.jpg\" alt=\"Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon\/SRAM) in yellow at the Tour de France Femmes 2024 (Photo by Alex Broadway\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;New opportunity, a fresh page&#8217; \u2013 Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney chases another Tour de France Femmes victory with team that delivers debuts for B\u00e4ckstedt, Kl\u00f6ser, Niedermaier<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/FGpVkMj8UKBWMxNMGYhv5b.jpg\" alt=\"Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ) is congratulated by teammate Juliette Berthet after winning Omloop Het Nieuwsblad 2026 (Photo by Luc Claessen\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Chasing Tour de France Femmes victory with Demi Vollering &#8216;realistic and incredibly motivating&#8217; says key lieutenant Juliette Berthet<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-solr:latest-category\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Latest in Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/pMM4KNDeR3gXoihPHY2iL4.jpg\" alt=\"New Canyon-SRAM kit, featuring a light white background with colorful accents of pink, blue, orange and green, plus a pink and yellow &amp;#039;We Femmes&amp;#039; logo\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Canyon-SRAM reveal colourful kit for Tour de France Femmes backing ambitious new &#8216;We Femmes&#8217; campaign<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4med5CP39G7x8K3sFRjWu9.jpg\" alt=\"GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - JUNE 08: (L-R) Cat Ferguson of Great Britain and Team Movistar on second place, race winner Ally Wollaston of New Zealand and Team FDJ - SUEZ - Green Leader Jersey and Karlijn Swinkels of Netherlands and UAE Team ADQ on third place pose on the podium ceremony after the 10th Tour of Britain Women 2025, Stage 4 a 82.2km stage from Glasgow to Glasgow \/ #UCIWWT \/ on June 08, 2025 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Alex Broadway\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The Tour of Britain Women past winners<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AKPYwTXys5nHGBTjMjRD6H.jpg\" alt=\"Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt (Canyon-SRAM) racing up Cheddar Gorge for Red Bull UK\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;My first big hit out against every single big rider&#8217; \u2013 Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt relishes star-studded time trial test at debut Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/T8FnfhuQeMdMCotfxPmKW9.jpg\" alt=\"Collage of Maeva Squiban and Mavi Garcia both celebrating winning stage at the 2026 Tour de France Femmes\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;I never imagined it would happen&#8217; \u2013 What does it mean to win your first Tour de France Femmes stage? Two 2025 winners relive their victories<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4zKMy9RWdACwW2D5a6kSK9.jpg\" alt=\"Mackenzie Coupland smiles alongside her teammates\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Australian national champion Mackenzie Coupland debuts in varied Liv AlUla Jayco line-up for Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/XsitVR4NeLFF9LwfGXucxn.jpg\" alt=\"Dominika W\u0142odarczyk wearing new UAE Team L&amp;#039;IMAD jersey\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">UAE Team ADQ get new name for Tour de France Femmes and beyond<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-solr:latest-articletype\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Latest in News<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PUEEi2WzDZNWhsdyiYZCF.jpg\" alt=\"Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia and UAE Team Emirates-XRG celebrates at finish line as final overall winner during the 113th Tour de France 2026\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Tadej Poga\u010dar and UAE Team Emirates meet to discuss and decide on targeting Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/XbKLrGYSPE2FCzMYbQtSVP.jpg\" alt=\"Remco Evenepoel of Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe and Belgian Rune Herregodts of UAE Team Emirates-XRG sprint to the finish of the &amp;#039;Natourcriterium Aalst&amp;#039; cycling event, Monday 27 July 2026 in Aalst. \" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;I&#8217;ll stay focused until Saturday&#8217; \u2013 Remco Evenepoel&#8217;s 24 hours of Tour de France celebrations end with a criterium win and a night at home<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        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data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LZbxQRLVyt6Rt5ZWmPkNeH.jpg\" alt=\"Paul Seixas on a climb during the 2026 Tour de France\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">What next for Paul Seixas? Two weeks of rest, more training and racing, and the long-term picture post-Tour de France debut<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/pMM4KNDeR3gXoihPHY2iL4.jpg\" alt=\"New Canyon-SRAM kit, featuring a light white background with colorful accents of pink, blue, orange and green, plus a pink and yellow &amp;#039;We Femmes&amp;#039; logo\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Canyon-SRAM reveal colourful kit for Tour de France Femmes backing ambitious new &#8216;We Femmes&#8217; campaign<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PqHT6tAEcmKoD5jmV4kymX.jpg\" alt=\"PARIS, FRANCE - JULY 26: Egan Bernal of Colombia, Thymen Arensman of Netherlands, Tobias Foss of Norway, Filippo Ganna of Italy, Dorian Godon of France, Michal Kwiatkowski of Poland, Joshua Tarling of Great Britain, Kevin Vauquelin of France and Netcompany INEOS Cycling Team react after the 113th Tour de France 2026, Stage 21 a 89km stage from Paris to Paris \/ #UCIWT \/ on July 26, 2026 in Paris, France. (Photo by Tim de Waele\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;It was a tough race&#8217; &#8211; Netcompany Ineos kick-off Tour de France review after failing to win a stage<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"related-articles-block\">\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"ads\" id=\"ads-middle-1\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-ads widget-ads-middle-1 widget-ads-ads-middle-1 widget-no-data widget-ads-flexi_ads_middle1\">\n<div id=\"bdx_flexi_ads_middle1\" data-type=\"ads\" data-ads-type=\"bordeaux\" class=\"flexi_ads_middle1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"widgetArea17\" class=\"widget-area md:basis-1\/3 widget-area-g-md-vp-1-3 widget-area-g-lg-vp-1-3 widget-area-g-xl-vp-1-3 page-widget-area-17\">\n<div data-widget-type=\"empty\" id=\"sidebar\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-empty widget-sidebar widget-empty-sidebar widget-no-data widget-empty\">\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"empty\" id=\"sidebar-top\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-empty widget-sidebar-top widget-empty-sidebar-top ad-unit widget-no-data widget-empty\">\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"contentparsed\" id=\"follow-us-on-google-news\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-contentparsed widget-follow-us-on-google-news widget-contentparsed-follow-us-on-google-news widget-content-parsed widget-content-parsed-curated \">\n<div class=\"wcp-item-content\">\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"empty\" id=\"sidebar-popular-top\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-empty widget-sidebar-popular-top widget-empty-sidebar-popular-top ad-unit widget-no-data widget-empty\">\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"dynamic\" id=\"popular-data\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-dynamic widget-popular-data widget-dynamic-popular-data widget-dynamic-fter-popular-box\">\n<div class=\"clear-both widget-header\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wdn-fte-pb pos-relative space-t20\n\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"slice-container popular-box-slice\">\n<section class=\"popular-box\" data-component-name=\"Slice:PopularBox\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__label\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__label__tab popular-box__label__tab--active\" role=\"heading\">\nLATEST ARTICLES\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<ol class=\"popular-box__articles-list popular-box__articles-list--active\">\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__image-wrapper\">\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NsjeSbhYWNXiWVshUACcmB.jpg\" alt=\"Kim Le Court in the yellow jersey at the 2025 Tour de France Femmes\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] popular-box__article-list__image image__image\"><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">1<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">\n<p>&#8216;I&#8217;ve not reached my absolute potential yet&#8217; \u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar sets sights on Tour de France Femmes top five after &#8216;shock to the system&#8217; success in 2025<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">2<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">\n<p>How to watch Tour de France Femmes 2026 \u2013 Live streams and official broadcasters<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">3<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">\n<p>Tour de l&#8217;Ain: Noah Hobbs claims opening stage win in Bourg-en-Bresse<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">4<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">\n<p>Save $200 on the Wahoo Kickr V6 \u2013 our top choice for a smart trainer is at its lowest price of the year<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">5<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">\n<p>Tadej Poga\u010dar and UAE Team Emirates meet to discuss and decide on targeting Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"empty\" id=\"sidebar-popular-bottom\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-empty widget-sidebar-popular-bottom widget-empty-sidebar-popular-bottom ad-unit widget-no-data widget-empty\">\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"page-content-onecol flex-1\nnews-article article\n\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"widget-area-group widget-area-group-2col flex flex-wrap box-border\">\n<div id=\"widgetArea16\" class=\"widget-area basis-full md:basis-2\/3 widget-area-g-md-vp-2-3 widget-area-g-lg-vp-2-3 widget-area-g-xl-vp-2-3 page-widget-area-16\">\n<div data-widget-type=\"hero\" id=\"hero\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-hero widget-hero widget-hero-hero widget-hero widget-hero-fter-news\">\n<div class=\"clear-both widget-header\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"news-article\">\n<header data-component-name=\"Article:Hero\">\n<div id=\"kiosq-metered-message\" class=\"kiosq-metered-message-content\"><\/div>\n<nav class=\"breadcrumb\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumbs\">\n<ol>\n<li>\nPro Cycling\n<\/li>\n<li>\nRacing\n<\/li>\n<li>\nWomen&#8217;s Cycling\n<\/li>\n<li>\nRoad\n<\/li>\n<li>\nTour de France Femmes\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/nav>\n<h1>&#8216;I&#8217;ve not reached my absolute potential yet&#8217; \u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar sets sights on Tour de France Femmes top five after &#8216;shock to the system&#8217; success in 2025<\/h1>\n<div class=\"byline-social\">\n<div class=\"vds-byline-block flex flex-row flex-nowrap my-1.5 gap-2 text-left items-start justify-start\" data-component-name=\"Article:BylineBlock\">\n<p>News<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-auto vds-simple-byline\">\n<span class=\"inline-block vds-author\"><br \/>\nBy<br \/>\nMatilda Price <\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"inline-block h-3 my-auto border-l border-solid vds-simple-byline__divider max-sm:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"flex gap-1 vds-byline-with-avatar__meta\">\n<span class=\"vds-date block font-normal tracking-normal normal-case text-xs\"><br \/>\nPublished<br \/>\n<time data-component-name=\"UI:DateTime\" datetime=\"2026-07-28T16:09:56Z\" class=\"relative-date\"><br \/>\n28 July 2026<br \/>\n<\/time><br \/>\n<\/span>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"strapline\">Mauritian rider back from injury-disrupted spring and ready to chase big results as AG Insurance-Soudal confirm team line-up<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"text-gray-700 flex items-center mx-0 my-5 p-0 justify-start text-left\" id=\"affiliate-disclaimer\" data-component-name=\"AffiliateDisclaimer\" data-hawk-message=\"Affiliate disclaimer removed because hawk deemed there are no affiliate links on this page\">\n<p class=\"text-[color:var(--affiliate-disclaimer--text-color,inherit)] mb-2 text-[length:var(--affiliate-disclaimer--font-size,0.75rem)] leading-[18px] md:text-[13px] [&amp;&gt;a]:text-inherit [&amp;&gt;a]:underline\">\nWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here\u2019s how it works.\n<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"contentparsed\" id=\"content\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-contentparsed widget-content widget-contentparsed-content widget-content-parsed widget-content-parsed-content_document \">\n<div class=\"wcp-item-content\">\n<section class=\"content-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"box less-space hero-image-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"mb-0\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NsjeSbhYWNXiWVshUACcmB.jpg\" alt=\"Kim Le Court in the yellow jersey at the 2025 Tour de France Femmes\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] block-image-ads hero-image absolute top-0 left-0 w-full h-full object-center\" data-component-name=\"Image\"><figcaption class=\"font-article-copy text-(--image--text--color) font-article-copy mt-2\"> <span class=\"caption-text font-article-copy\">Le Court-Pienaar had a memorable Tour last summer<\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"credit font-article-copy\">(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/span><br \/>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div data-component-name=\"Article:JumpTo\" class=\"contents\" data-only-inline=\"1\">\n<div class=\"visible flex flex-row flex-nowrap sticky max-lg:-ml-5 top-[var(--site-header-height,60px)] sm:top-0 z-[9994] w-screen lg:w-full h-[50px] bg-white p-0 mb-5 border-neutral-200 border border-solid\" data-component-name=\"Article:JumpTo:Variants:Inline\" data-analytics-id=\"sticky-nav\" id=\"sticky-nav--inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"sticky-nav\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-row w-full h-full overflow-x-scroll overflow-y-hidden tracking-normal overscroll-x-contain\" id=\"sticky-nav__scroll-container\">\n<span class=\"pl-4 my-auto text-base font-semibold font-article-heading lg:pl-3 lg:text-sm whitespace-nowrap uppercase\">Jump To:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"flex flex-row w-auto border-y-0\">\n<li class=\"inline-flex after:content-[&apos;&apos;] after:inline-block after:relative after:h-3\/6 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text-xs leading-none px-3 py-1.5 rounded-md z-[10001] whitespace-nowrap\" id=\"tooltip-subscribe-to-our-newsletter\" role=\"tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\nSubscribe to our newsletter\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76bd50-8a9c-11f1-9b8c-a301dae7d1c4\">2025&#8217;s breakthrough rider Kim Le Court-Pienaar and her AG Insurance-Soudal team are hoping to build on the success of last year&#8217;s Tour de France Femmes to reach even higher heights this summer.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ad-unit-1\" class=\"ad-unit\"><\/div>\n<p>Last year, Le Court-Pienaar had already made history well before the Tour with her Monument win at Li\u00e8ge-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge, less than two years into her road racing career, and then took things even further with a stage win and four days in yellow at the Tour.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-seasonal\"><\/a><\/p>\n<aside data-article-category=\"pro-cycling\" data-block-type=\"embed\" data-render-type=\"fte\" data-skip=\"dealsy\" data-widget-type=\"seasonal\" class=\"hawk-root\"><\/aside>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76bd50-8a9c-11f1-9b8c-a301dae7d1c4-2\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Her general classification ambitions faded in the final weekend as she switched her focus to riding for Sarah Gigante, who finished sixth overall with Le Court-Pienaar in 16th, but with the Australian out of action this year, it will be down to the Mauritian rider to lead the team&#8217;s overall ambitions.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-6 w-full overflow-hidden rounded-[10px] lg:my-8\" data-component-name=\"JwPlayer:Carousel\" data-jwp-carousel data-jwp-carousel-payload=\"{&quot;ids&quot;:{&quot;playerID&quot;:&quot;jYDCcabO&quot;,&quot;searchPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;divID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;fallbackPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;fallbackDivID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;key&quot;:&quot;X9\/mXVGac0NphghLH9hZaqWA5d3dhAM\/Ih07grnEyMLjuO2E&quot;,&quot;tintLogo&quot;:true,&quot;useSearchPlaylist&quot;:false,&quot;enabled&quot;:true},&quot;signPostingEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;signPostingLinkEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;waitForAdLoad&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnDesktop&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnMobile&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnTablet&quot;:false}\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-nowrap items-center justify-between gap-3 bg-zinc-900 px-[14px] py-3\" data-jwp-carousel-header>\n<div class=\"flex min-w-0 shrink items-center\"><span class=\"inline-flex items-center gap-1.5 text-sm font-article-heading capitalize leading-5 text-white whitespace-nowrap\"><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-mobile\"><\/span><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-desktop\">Latest Videos From<\/span><span class=\"jwp-carousel-brand\">Cyclingnews<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"aspect-video w-full min-h-[200px] lg:min-h-[330px] relative overflow-hidden bg-black\" data-jwp-carousel-container>\n<div class=\"absolute inset-0 size-full\" data-jwp-carousel-player-host><\/div>\n<div class=\"absolute inset-0 size-full items-center justify-center bg-white\" data-jwp-carousel-fallback><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"min-h-[44px] bg-zinc-900 px-[14px] py-3\" data-jwp-carousel-signposting><a class=\"invisible block truncate text-sm font-bold leading-5 text-white underline decoration-solid underline-offset-2\" data-jwp-carousel-signposting-link href target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span data-jwp-carousel-signposting-title>Watch full video here: <\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Despite the heights we have seen Le Court-Pienaar reach over the last two years, the 30-year-old is confident that she still has more to give and performances to unlock.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ad-unit-2\" class=\"ad-unit\"><\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;To be honest, I think I&#8217;m still discovering myself as a rider and as a leader and in general as a road cyclist,&#8221; she told <em>Cyclingnews<\/em> and other media on Tuesday afternoon, from her base in Girona after a three-week training camp in Tignes.<\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet class=\"clear-both pt-2 pb-0 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"\n            flex\n            after:content-[&apos;&apos;] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]\n            before:content-[&apos;&apos;] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]\n            font-article-heading pb-0 text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,1em)] uppercase sm:text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,0.875em)] font-bold\n        \"><br \/>\n            You may like<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"flex flex-col gap-0 m-0 max-w-full\">\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-1\" id=\"recirculation-inline-1\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-inline-1\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-inline-1\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/USWmXwaeCV4Nk3qpvg6w4K.jpg\" alt=\"Alice Towers and Mauritian champion Kim Le Court-Pienaar leading the breakaway during stage 3 of the 2026 Tour de Suisse Women\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;It wasn&#8217;t planned&#8217; \u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar back to full strength in Tour de Suisse breakaway after two-month injury layoff<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-2\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-inline-2\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-inline-2\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AKPYwTXys5nHGBTjMjRD6H.jpg\" alt=\"Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt (Canyon-SRAM) racing up Cheddar Gorge for Red Bull UK\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;My first big hit out against every single big rider&#8217; \u2013 Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt relishes star-studded time trial test at debut Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ccc] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-3\" id=\"recirculation-inline-3\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-inline-3\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-inline-3\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/x2erRPrkRHSd8wS8rNtXkN.jpg\" alt=\"Collage of Kasia Niewiadoma, Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">Tour de France Femmes contenders \u2013 Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot poised for fantastic duel with Ventoux finale<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/aside>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I&#8217;ve been in this sport two and a half years now, and I still don&#8217;t feel like I&#8217;ve found myself yet. Of course we have an idea of what my potential and capabilities on the road bike are, but I feel like we&#8217;ve not reached my absolute potential yet.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Where the limit of her potential may be, no one quite knows, but when it comes to the Tour, she believes that a top five is possible, and her team know they are able to deliver a rider to a solid GC finish, even if perhaps they aren&#8217;t looked at as favourites.<\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W\" class=\"slice-container newsletter-inbodyContent-slice newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W slice-container-newsletterForm\">\n<div data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"newsletter-form__wrapper newsletter-form__wrapper--inbodyContent\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__container\">\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__top-bar\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__header\">Get The Leadout Newsletter<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__main-section\">\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<footer class=\"newsletter-form__footer \">By submitting your information you agree to the Terms &amp; Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.<\/footer>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I think we&#8217;re coming in, as I said, with a bit more experience and a bit more ambition. Now we know what we can do, and we know we&#8217;ve done it before and we want to do it again,&#8221; she explained.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure inline-layout kiosq-b\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-9d76be9a-8a9c-11f1-a661-0df972bd51aa\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/qycCMQDCyfARDTvUysmLoB.jpg\" alt=\"Kim Le Court in the yellow jersey at the 2025 Tour de France Femmes\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] inline\">\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" inline-layout\"><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76bf1c-8a9c-11f1-84b5-5f40091d0d04\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;Of course, stage wins will be the first objective, and then of course we want to aim for the highest [GC] result possible, which would be top five. Anything above that is obviously a bonus, but we have to take it as it comes.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;We&#8217;re not the team that everyone would look at, and I think everyone else has much more experience than we do of doing this and going for the GC and things like that. We&#8217;re going in a bit more as underdogs, and we just want to do the best we can. We know we can; we&#8217;ve trained hard for it, we have the potential, so now we just have to see what comes out of it.<\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet class=\"clear-both pt-2 pb-0 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"\n            flex\n            after:content-[&apos;&apos;] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]\n            before:content-[&apos;&apos;] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]\n            font-article-heading pb-0 text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,1em)] uppercase sm:text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,0.875em)] font-bold\n        \"><br \/>\n            What to read next<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"flex flex-col gap-0 m-0 max-w-full\">\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-1\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2-1\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-2-inline-1\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-2-inline-1\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mdqopQBsyVu8WSwCgaooQM.jpg\" alt=\"USA&amp;#039;s Veronica Ewers last raced 11 months ago for EF Education-Oatly and then paused her racing career for health reasons\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;Big shock to the system&#8217; &#8211; Former WorldTour rider Veronica Ewers resumes slow return to peloton with &#8216;experiment&#8217; at French ProTeam&#8217;s Tour de France Femmes training camp<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-2\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2-2\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-2-inline-2\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-2-inline-2\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RktS6xfeM3cRGVHJ8omGz6.jpg\" alt=\"Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon\/SRAM) in yellow at the Tour de France Femmes 2024 (Photo by Alex Broadway\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;New opportunity, a fresh page&#8217; \u2013 Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney chases another Tour de France Femmes victory with team that delivers debuts for B\u00e4ckstedt, Kl\u00f6ser, Niedermaier<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ccc] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-3\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2-3\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-2-inline-3\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-2-inline-3\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/FGpVkMj8UKBWMxNMGYhv5b.jpg\" alt=\"Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ) is congratulated by teammate Juliette Berthet after winning Omloop Het Nieuwsblad 2026 (Photo by Luc Claessen\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">Chasing Tour de France Femmes victory with Demi Vollering &#8216;realistic and incredibly motivating&#8217; says key lieutenant Juliette Berthet<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/aside>\n<p><a id=\"elk-9d76bf94-8a9c-11f1-82c0-7bc3851173c5\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"returning-from-injury-3\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Returning from injury<\/h2>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76c016-8a9c-11f1-9106-d745b52403eb\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">The one hiccup to Le Court-Pienaar&#8217;s build-up to a hopefully triumphant Tour return was the crash she suffered at the Tour of Flanders, which left her with a broken wrist, missing her favoured Ardennes Classics and several weeks of training and racing.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;It wasn&#8217;t really quick, unfortunately,&#8221; she said of her recovery. &#8220;It wasn&#8217;t really smooth sailing, but now we&#8217;ve put everything behind us, and it&#8217;s over now. Now it&#8217;s just dealing with still some rehab of the wrist and making sure everything&#8217;s fine. I&#8217;ve got a good team behind me, so they&#8217;re looking after me pretty well, making sure that my rehab and recovery goes well. So I&#8217;m putting that behind me; it hasn&#8217;t been a smooth road mentally or physically, but good things are to come now.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">There were already positive signs at her comeback race, the Tour de Suisse, where she finished fourth, before doing the double at the Mauritian National Championships ahead of her final altitude training camp.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;For me to go to Suisse was a bit of a challenge, mentally and physically, because I had no idea where I would be and what my level would be at the time,&#8221; she said. &#8220;But Suisse was more like &#8216;Let&#8217;s not stress about it, let&#8217;s see what my body can do,&#8217; and with a month and a half of training, where I am and what my pace is and what we need to improve before the Tour. So it was more a test and more training than anything else. Then in Tignes it was more of the little last adjustments of preparation for the Tour.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"elk-DbL6pejDUDq\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">\n<div class=\"instagram-embed\">\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-version=\"6\">\n<p>A post shared by Kim Le Court-Pienaar, MSK \ud83c\udf96\ufe0f (@kimlecourt)<\/p><figcaption><cite><\/p>\n<p>A photo posted by on <\/p>\n<p><\/cite><\/figcaption><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76c0f2-8a9c-11f1-951a-65eaa45091f2\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">We know well how Le Court-Pienaar and her Belgian squad can perform in the Classics, but a nine-day Grand Tour will offer up new challenges and demands. After missing out on many of the Classics, Le Court-Pienaar is only more motivated to make the most of the Tour.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I think I&#8217;m quite different in terms of physiology and also mentally,&#8221; she said of her shape coming into August compared to the spring.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;In a Grand Tour you&#8217;ve got more opportunities, but it&#8217;s also quite scary in a way, because you need to stay healthy for nine days, you need to make sure you&#8217;re on top of your game for nine days, you need to make sure mentally you&#8217;re still in for the fight and that the mental side doesn&#8217;t go down. So there&#8217;s a lot of different mental and physical aspects in terms of an athlete. I would say I&#8217;m still the same person, I just have more hunger now because I&#8217;ve missed a lot of races and I&#8217;ve missed out on a lot of opportunities in the beginning of the season.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">That hunger and ambition also comes from the experience and growth of the team, which came along quite rapidly after what, Le Court-Pienaar admits, was a Tour even above their expectations last summer.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;We gained a lot of experience all at once last year over the nine days, so I think we can take a lot out of that. Last year, we also went for stage wins and to see what we could do out of it, and it was a great year, but it was also kind of a &#8216;Wow, OK, we knew we could do something special, but we didn&#8217;t know it was going to be that amazing&#8217;. So it was a more of a bonus, shock to the system, and this year we come more with our heads on shoulders, we know what&#8217;s to come and we know what our potential is as a team.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Not only does the AG Insurance-Soudal team have potential and strength by the bucketload \u2013 Le Court-Pienaar will be joined by the likes of Ur\u0161ka \u017digart, Mireia Benito and Justine Ghekiere \u2013 but her teammates also have full faith in their leader.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;As Kim said, now we know what can be done, what we can realistically achieve, and this is super motivating for me, because as a domestique of course I would always give my 200 per cent for the team, but knowing that we can achieve amazing things here, it&#8217;s always an extra,&#8221; Benito added.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;When you&#8217;re suffering, then you can do a bit extra, that you don&#8217;t even know that you had in you, and I think this is going to be the case for this Tour de France. Everyone is super motivated and clearly here for one goal. If we ride like the way we usually ride, as a Wolfpack, I think we will get really nice results, and for sure we will give our best.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-ag-insurance-soudal-for-the-2026-tour-de-france-femmes\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"article-body__section kiosq-b\" id=\"section-ag-insurance-soudal-for-the-2026-tour-de-france-femmes\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><span>AG Insurance-Soudal for the 2026 Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul id=\"elk-9d76c278-8a9c-11f1-a28d-5fd551f7f0ba\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">\n<li>Kim Le Court-Pienaar<\/li>\n<li>Justine Ghekiere<\/li>\n<li>Shari Bossuyt<\/li>\n<li>Mireia Benito<\/li>\n<li>Letizia Borghesi<\/li>\n<li>Ur\u0161ka \u017digart<\/li>\n<li>Lore De Schepper<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76c2f0-8a9c-11f1-a2db-9571e2fe0d14\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><em><strong>Support our unrivalled coverage of the Tour de France Femmes and women&#8217;s cycling by subscribing to Cyclingnews. In return, you get unlimited access to high-quality journalism, with breaking news, race analysis, and expert insight from inside the women&#8217;s peloton. Plus, the Cyclingnews app lets you follow the action wherever you go! <\/strong><\/em><u><em><strong>Join today.<\/strong><\/em><\/u><em><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"kiosq-app-paywall-js\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"this-will-be-used-for-mpu-2\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"slice-container-authorBio-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W\" class=\"slice-container slice-author-bio authorBio-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W slice-container-authorBio\">\n<div class=\"author author__default-layout author--separator author--collapsible\" data-hydrate=\"true\">\n<div class=\"author__header\">\n<div class=\"author__heading\">\n<div class=\"author__name\">Matilda Price<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__social\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"author__role\">Assistant Features Editor<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"author__bio-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"author__biography\">\n<p>Matilda is an NCTJ-qualified journalist based in the UK who joined <em>Cyclingnews <\/em>in March 2025. Prior to that, she worked as the Racing News Editor at <em>GCN<\/em>, and extensively as a freelancer contributing to <em>Cyclingnews, Cycling Weekly, Velo, Rouleur, Escape Collective, Red Bull <\/em>and more. She has reported on the ground at all of the biggest events on the calendar, including the men&#8217;s and women&#8217;s Tours de France, the Giro d&#8217;Italia, the Vuelta a Espana, the Spring Classics and the World Championships. She has particular experience and expertise in women&#8217;s cycling, and women&#8217;s sport in general. She is a graduate of modern languages and sports journalism.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<div id=\"viafoura-comments\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative max-w-[1070px] viafoura-twig-component mt-6 mx-4 lg:mx-0\" data-component-name=\"Viafoura:Comments\" data-nosnippet data-community-guidelines-text=\"&lt;p class=&apos;vfcustom-community-guidelines&apos;&gt;Please follow our &lt;a href=&quot;https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/about\/#section-community-guidelines&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;community guidelines&lt;\/a&gt;.&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-join-the-conversation-text=\"Join the Conversation\">\n<div class=\"relative h-(--truncate-height) sm:h-(--truncate-desktop-height) overflow-hidden transition-[height] duration-150\" data-test-id=\"container\" data-component-name=\"Util:Truncate\" id=\"viafoura-comments-container\">\n<div class=\"relative z-10 viafoura rounded-[var(--comment-widget-border-radius,0)]\" id=\"viafoura-comment-wrapper\" data-test-id=\"content\">\n<div class=\"viafoura\">\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"absolute bg-gradient-to-t from-[var(--truncate-gradient-color,white)] from-50% h-28 z-20 w-full bottom-0 flex items-end justify-center px-0 rounded-none\">\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"absolute top-0 left-0 w-full h-full flex items-center justify-center z-50 bg-white\/90 border-1 rounded-b-[var(--comment-widget-border-radius,0)]\">\n<div class=\"p-2 text-center\">\n<p class=\"mb-3 text-lg!\">You must confirm your public display name before commenting<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-3 text-sm!\">Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"infinite-container\" data-analytics-id=\"infinite-container\" data-component-name=\"SponsoredScroll\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"infinite-container\">\n<div class=\"infinite-trigger\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<section class=\"mx-2 my-5 sm:mx-0\">\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-adviser:hybrid\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Read more<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/USWmXwaeCV4Nk3qpvg6w4K.jpg\" alt=\"Alice Towers and Mauritian champion Kim Le Court-Pienaar leading the breakaway during stage 3 of the 2026 Tour de Suisse Women\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;It wasn&#8217;t planned&#8217; \u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar back to full strength in Tour de Suisse breakaway after two-month injury layoff<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AKPYwTXys5nHGBTjMjRD6H.jpg\" alt=\"Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt (Canyon-SRAM) racing up Cheddar Gorge for Red Bull UK\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;My first big hit out against every single big rider&#8217; \u2013 Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt relishes star-studded time trial test at debut Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/x2erRPrkRHSd8wS8rNtXkN.jpg\" alt=\"Collage of Kasia Niewiadoma, Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Tour de France Femmes contenders \u2013 Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot poised for fantastic duel with Ventoux finale<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mdqopQBsyVu8WSwCgaooQM.jpg\" alt=\"USA&amp;#039;s Veronica Ewers last raced 11 months ago for EF Education-Oatly and then paused her racing career for health reasons\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;Big shock to the system&#8217; &#8211; Former WorldTour rider Veronica Ewers resumes slow return to peloton with &#8216;experiment&#8217; at French ProTeam&#8217;s Tour de France Femmes training camp<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RktS6xfeM3cRGVHJ8omGz6.jpg\" alt=\"Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon\/SRAM) in yellow at the Tour de France Femmes 2024 (Photo by Alex Broadway\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;New opportunity, a fresh page&#8217; \u2013 Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney chases another Tour de France Femmes victory with team that delivers debuts for B\u00e4ckstedt, Kl\u00f6ser, Niedermaier<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/FGpVkMj8UKBWMxNMGYhv5b.jpg\" alt=\"Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ) is congratulated by teammate Juliette Berthet after winning Omloop Het Nieuwsblad 2026 (Photo by Luc Claessen\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Chasing Tour de France Femmes victory with Demi Vollering &#8216;realistic and incredibly motivating&#8217; says key lieutenant Juliette Berthet<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-solr:latest-category\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Latest in Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/pMM4KNDeR3gXoihPHY2iL4.jpg\" alt=\"New Canyon-SRAM kit, featuring a light white background with colorful accents of pink, blue, orange and green, plus a pink and yellow &amp;#039;We Femmes&amp;#039; logo\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Canyon-SRAM reveal colourful kit for Tour de France Femmes backing ambitious new &#8216;We Femmes&#8217; campaign<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4med5CP39G7x8K3sFRjWu9.jpg\" alt=\"GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - JUNE 08: (L-R) Cat Ferguson of Great Britain and Team Movistar on second place, race winner Ally Wollaston of New Zealand and Team FDJ - SUEZ - Green Leader Jersey and Karlijn Swinkels of Netherlands and UAE Team ADQ on third place pose on the podium ceremony after the 10th Tour of Britain Women 2025, Stage 4 a 82.2km stage from Glasgow to Glasgow \/ #UCIWWT \/ on June 08, 2025 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Alex Broadway\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">The Tour of Britain Women past winners<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AKPYwTXys5nHGBTjMjRD6H.jpg\" alt=\"Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt (Canyon-SRAM) racing up Cheddar Gorge for Red Bull UK\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;My first big hit out against every single big rider&#8217; \u2013 Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt relishes star-studded time trial test at debut Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/T8FnfhuQeMdMCotfxPmKW9.jpg\" alt=\"Collage of Maeva Squiban and Mavi Garcia both celebrating winning stage at the 2026 Tour de France Femmes\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;I never imagined it would happen&#8217; \u2013 What does it mean to win your first Tour de France Femmes stage? Two 2025 winners relive their victories<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/4zKMy9RWdACwW2D5a6kSK9.jpg\" alt=\"Mackenzie Coupland smiles alongside her teammates\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Australian national champion Mackenzie Coupland debuts in varied Liv AlUla Jayco line-up for Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/XsitVR4NeLFF9LwfGXucxn.jpg\" alt=\"Dominika W\u0142odarczyk wearing new UAE Team L&amp;#039;IMAD jersey\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">UAE Team ADQ get new name for Tour de France Femmes and beyond<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<aside class=\"w-full\" data-nosnippet data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-stacked\">\n<div data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-solr:latest-articletype\">\n<div class=\"text-white py-4 px-3 mb-4 bg-[#333] uppercase font-bold custom-header-styles\">Latest in News<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-4 mt-4 mb-5\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PUEEi2WzDZNWhsdyiYZCF.jpg\" alt=\"Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia and UAE Team Emirates-XRG celebrates at finish line as final overall winner during the 113th Tour de France 2026\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Tadej Poga\u010dar and UAE Team Emirates meet to discuss and decide on targeting Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/XbKLrGYSPE2FCzMYbQtSVP.jpg\" alt=\"Remco Evenepoel of Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe and Belgian Rune Herregodts of UAE Team Emirates-XRG sprint to the finish of the &amp;#039;Natourcriterium Aalst&amp;#039; cycling event, Monday 27 July 2026 in Aalst. \" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;I&#8217;ll stay focused until Saturday&#8217; \u2013 Remco Evenepoel&#8217;s 24 hours of Tour de France celebrations end with a criterium win and a night at home<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        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data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/LZbxQRLVyt6Rt5ZWmPkNeH.jpg\" alt=\"Paul Seixas on a climb during the 2026 Tour de France\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Teams &amp; Riders<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">What next for Paul Seixas? Two weeks of rest, more training and racing, and the long-term picture post-Tour de France debut<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/pMM4KNDeR3gXoihPHY2iL4.jpg\" alt=\"New Canyon-SRAM kit, featuring a light white background with colorful accents of pink, blue, orange and green, plus a pink and yellow &amp;#039;We Femmes&amp;#039; logo\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Women&#8217;s Cycling<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">Canyon-SRAM reveal colourful kit for Tour de France Femmes backing ambitious new &#8216;We Femmes&#8217; campaign<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative mb-3.5\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/PqHT6tAEcmKoD5jmV4kymX.jpg\" alt=\"PARIS, FRANCE - JULY 26: Egan Bernal of Colombia, Thymen Arensman of Netherlands, Tobias Foss of Norway, Filippo Ganna of Italy, Dorian Godon of France, Michal Kwiatkowski of Poland, Joshua Tarling of Great Britain, Kevin Vauquelin of France and Netcompany INEOS Cycling Team react after the 113th Tour de France 2026, Stage 21 a 89km stage from Paris to Paris \/ #UCIWT \/ on July 26, 2026 in Paris, France. (Photo by Tim de Waele\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] object-cover w-full h-full\"><\/p><\/div>\n<p>                                                                                                <span class=\"custom-subheading-styles\">Racing<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block custom-text-styles\">&#8216;It was a tough race&#8217; &#8211; Netcompany Ineos kick-off Tour de France review after failing to win a stage<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"relative recirc-feed sponsored-card min-h-[250px]\" data-recirc-id=\"article-river-stacked-ads:native-cards\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"article-river-ads\" data-nosnippet data-ad-slot-path=\"feed-sponsored-post\" data-attribute-device=\"all\">\n<div class=\"sponsored-post max-w-full [&amp;.sponsored-post--loaded+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden [&amp;[data-bordeaux-hook-loaded]+.sponsored-post--placeholder]:hidden\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"max-w-full sponsored-post--placeholder animate-pulse\">\n<div class=\"relative!\">\n            <span class=\"font-ui-heading bg-(--ad-slot-badge-bg-color) absolute text-xs font-bold leading-[14px] tracking-normal text-left text-white px-2.5 py-[5px] left-0 top-0 empty:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aspect-[var(--img-listing-aspect-ratio,16\/9)] relative bg-gray-200\"><\/div>\n<p>            <span class=\"text-base text-black font-bold mx-0 my-2.5 p-0 block bg-gray-100\">\u00a0<br \/>\u00a0<\/span>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"related-articles-block\">\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"ads\" id=\"ads-middle-1\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-ads widget-ads-middle-1 widget-ads-ads-middle-1 widget-no-data widget-ads-flexi_ads_middle1\">\n<div id=\"bdx_flexi_ads_middle1\" data-type=\"ads\" data-ads-type=\"bordeaux\" class=\"flexi_ads_middle1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"widgetArea17\" class=\"widget-area md:basis-1\/3 widget-area-g-md-vp-1-3 widget-area-g-lg-vp-1-3 widget-area-g-xl-vp-1-3 page-widget-area-17\">\n<div data-widget-type=\"empty\" id=\"sidebar\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-empty widget-sidebar widget-empty-sidebar widget-no-data widget-empty\">\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"empty\" id=\"sidebar-top\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-empty widget-sidebar-top widget-empty-sidebar-top ad-unit widget-no-data widget-empty\">\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"contentparsed\" id=\"follow-us-on-google-news\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-contentparsed widget-follow-us-on-google-news widget-contentparsed-follow-us-on-google-news widget-content-parsed widget-content-parsed-curated \">\n<div class=\"wcp-item-content\">\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"empty\" id=\"sidebar-popular-top\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-empty widget-sidebar-popular-top widget-empty-sidebar-popular-top ad-unit widget-no-data widget-empty\">\n<\/div>\n<div data-widget-type=\"dynamic\" id=\"popular-data\" class=\"clear-both widget widget-dynamic widget-popular-data widget-dynamic-popular-data widget-dynamic-fter-popular-box\">\n<div class=\"clear-both widget-header\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wdn-fte-pb pos-relative space-t20\n\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"slice-container popular-box-slice\">\n<section class=\"popular-box\" data-component-name=\"Slice:PopularBox\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__label\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__label__tab popular-box__label__tab--active\" role=\"heading\">\nLATEST ARTICLES\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<ol class=\"popular-box__articles-list popular-box__articles-list--active\">\n<li class=\"popular-box__article-list\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__container\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__image-wrapper\">\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NsjeSbhYWNXiWVshUACcmB.jpg\" alt=\"Kim Le Court in the yellow jersey at the 2025 Tour de France Femmes\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] popular-box__article-list__image image__image\"><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__content\">\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__number-text\">1<\/div>\n<div class=\"popular-box__article-list__heading\">\n<p>&#8216;I&#8217;ve not reached my absolute potential yet&#8217; 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\u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar sets sights on Tour de France Femmes top five after &#8216;shock to the system&#8217; success in 2025<\/h1>\n<div class=\"byline-social\">\n<div class=\"vds-byline-block flex flex-row flex-nowrap my-1.5 gap-2 text-left items-start justify-start\" data-component-name=\"Article:BylineBlock\">\n<p>News<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-auto vds-simple-byline\">\n<span class=\"inline-block vds-author\"><br \/>\nBy<br \/>\nMatilda Price <\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"inline-block h-3 my-auto border-l border-solid vds-simple-byline__divider max-sm:hidden\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"flex gap-1 vds-byline-with-avatar__meta\">\n<span class=\"vds-date block font-normal tracking-normal normal-case text-xs\"><br \/>\nPublished<br \/>\n<time data-component-name=\"UI:DateTime\" datetime=\"2026-07-28T16:09:56Z\" class=\"relative-date\"><br \/>\n28 July 2026<br \/>\n<\/time><br \/>\n<\/span>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"strapline\">Mauritian rider back from injury-disrupted spring and ready to chase big results as AG Insurance-Soudal confirm team line-up<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"text-gray-700 flex items-center mx-0 my-5 p-0 justify-start text-left\" id=\"affiliate-disclaimer\" data-component-name=\"AffiliateDisclaimer\" data-hawk-message=\"Affiliate disclaimer removed because hawk deemed there are no affiliate links on this page\">\n<p class=\"text-[color:var(--affiliate-disclaimer--text-color,inherit)] mb-2 text-[length:var(--affiliate-disclaimer--font-size,0.75rem)] leading-[18px] md:text-[13px] [&amp;&gt;a]:text-inherit [&amp;&gt;a]:underline\">\nWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here\u2019s how it works.\n<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"article-body\" class=\"text-copy bodyCopy auto paywall-locker\">\n<div data-analytics-id=\"utility-bar\" id=\"utility-bar\" class=\"font-ui-heading flex justify-between items-center py-2 border-t border-b border-gray-300 border-solid mb-5 mx-auto\" data-component-name=\"UtilityBar\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"utility-bar\">\n<div class=\"flex gap-2 text-[#333] subcontainer\">\n<div class=\"relative tooltip-container\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<div data-component-name=\"Social:Dropdown\" role=\"menu\" id=\"utilitybar__dropdown--share\" aria-labelledby=\"utilitybar__button--share\" class=\"absolute left-0 top-full w-44 bg-white rounded-md shadow-md border border-neutral-200 z-[9996] list-none m-0 py-2 px-3 border-solid\">\n<ul class=\"m-0!\">\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 border-solid\">\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"!p-0 !m-0 list-none border-b border-gray-200 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aria-hidden=\"true\">\nSubscribe to our newsletter\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76bd50-8a9c-11f1-9b8c-a301dae7d1c4\">2025&#8217;s breakthrough rider Kim Le Court-Pienaar and her AG Insurance-Soudal team are hoping to build on the success of last year&#8217;s Tour de France Femmes to reach even higher heights this summer.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ad-unit-1\" class=\"ad-unit\"><\/div>\n<p>Last year, Le Court-Pienaar had already made history well before the Tour with her Monument win at Li\u00e8ge-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge, less than two years into her road racing career, and then took things even further with a stage win and four days in yellow at the Tour.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-seasonal\"><\/a><\/p>\n<aside data-article-category=\"pro-cycling\" data-block-type=\"embed\" data-render-type=\"fte\" data-skip=\"dealsy\" data-widget-type=\"seasonal\" class=\"hawk-root\"><\/aside>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76bd50-8a9c-11f1-9b8c-a301dae7d1c4-2\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Her general classification ambitions faded in the final weekend as she switched her focus to riding for Sarah Gigante, who finished sixth overall with Le Court-Pienaar in 16th, but with the Australian out of action this year, it will be down to the Mauritian rider to lead the team&#8217;s overall ambitions.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-6 w-full overflow-hidden rounded-[10px] lg:my-8\" data-component-name=\"JwPlayer:Carousel\" data-jwp-carousel data-jwp-carousel-payload=\"{&quot;ids&quot;:{&quot;playerID&quot;:&quot;jYDCcabO&quot;,&quot;searchPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;divID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;fallbackPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;fallbackDivID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;key&quot;:&quot;X9\/mXVGac0NphghLH9hZaqWA5d3dhAM\/Ih07grnEyMLjuO2E&quot;,&quot;tintLogo&quot;:true,&quot;useSearchPlaylist&quot;:false,&quot;enabled&quot;:true},&quot;signPostingEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;signPostingLinkEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;waitForAdLoad&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnDesktop&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnMobile&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnTablet&quot;:false}\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-nowrap items-center justify-between gap-3 bg-zinc-900 px-[14px] py-3\" data-jwp-carousel-header>\n<div class=\"flex min-w-0 shrink items-center\"><span class=\"inline-flex items-center gap-1.5 text-sm font-article-heading capitalize leading-5 text-white whitespace-nowrap\"><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-mobile\"><\/span><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-desktop\">Latest Videos From<\/span><span class=\"jwp-carousel-brand\">Cyclingnews<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"aspect-video w-full min-h-[200px] lg:min-h-[330px] relative overflow-hidden bg-black\" data-jwp-carousel-container>\n<div class=\"absolute inset-0 size-full\" data-jwp-carousel-player-host><\/div>\n<div class=\"absolute inset-0 size-full items-center justify-center bg-white\" data-jwp-carousel-fallback><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"min-h-[44px] bg-zinc-900 px-[14px] py-3\" data-jwp-carousel-signposting><a class=\"invisible block truncate text-sm font-bold leading-5 text-white underline decoration-solid underline-offset-2\" data-jwp-carousel-signposting-link href target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span data-jwp-carousel-signposting-title>Watch full video here: <\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Despite the heights we have seen Le Court-Pienaar reach over the last two years, the 30-year-old is confident that she still has more to give and performances to unlock.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ad-unit-2\" class=\"ad-unit\"><\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;To be honest, I think I&#8217;m still discovering myself as a rider and as a leader and in general as a road cyclist,&#8221; she told <em>Cyclingnews<\/em> and other media on Tuesday afternoon, from her base in Girona after a three-week training camp in Tignes.<\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet class=\"clear-both pt-2 pb-0 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"\n            flex\n            after:content-[&apos;&apos;] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]\n            before:content-[&apos;&apos;] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]\n            font-article-heading pb-0 text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,1em)] uppercase sm:text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,0.875em)] font-bold\n        \"><br \/>\n            You may like<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"flex flex-col gap-0 m-0 max-w-full\">\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-1\" id=\"recirculation-inline-1\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-inline-1\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-inline-1\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/USWmXwaeCV4Nk3qpvg6w4K.jpg\" alt=\"Alice Towers and Mauritian champion Kim Le Court-Pienaar leading the breakaway during stage 3 of the 2026 Tour de Suisse Women\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;It wasn&#8217;t planned&#8217; \u2013 Kim Le Court-Pienaar back to full strength in Tour de Suisse breakaway after two-month injury layoff<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-2\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-inline-2\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-inline-2\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/AKPYwTXys5nHGBTjMjRD6H.jpg\" alt=\"Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt (Canyon-SRAM) racing up Cheddar Gorge for Red Bull UK\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;My first big hit out against every single big rider&#8217; \u2013 Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt relishes star-studded time trial test at debut Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ccc] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-3\" id=\"recirculation-inline-3\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-inline-3\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-inline-3\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/x2erRPrkRHSd8wS8rNtXkN.jpg\" alt=\"Collage of Kasia Niewiadoma, Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">Tour de France Femmes contenders \u2013 Demi Vollering and Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot poised for fantastic duel with Ventoux finale<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/aside>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I&#8217;ve been in this sport two and a half years now, and I still don&#8217;t feel like I&#8217;ve found myself yet. Of course we have an idea of what my potential and capabilities on the road bike are, but I feel like we&#8217;ve not reached my absolute potential yet.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Where the limit of her potential may be, no one quite knows, but when it comes to the Tour, she believes that a top five is possible, and her team know they are able to deliver a rider to a solid GC finish, even if perhaps they aren&#8217;t looked at as favourites.<\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W\" class=\"slice-container newsletter-inbodyContent-slice newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-ixZuq8EYyjg5mBTaEESy2W slice-container-newsletterForm\">\n<div data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"newsletter-form__wrapper newsletter-form__wrapper--inbodyContent\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__container\">\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__top-bar\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__header\">Get The Leadout Newsletter<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__main-section\">\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<footer class=\"newsletter-form__footer \">By submitting your information you agree to the Terms &amp; Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.<\/footer>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I think we&#8217;re coming in, as I said, with a bit more experience and a bit more ambition. Now we know what we can do, and we know we&#8217;ve done it before and we want to do it again,&#8221; she explained.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"van-image-figure inline-layout kiosq-b\" data-bordeaux-image-check id=\"elk-9d76be9a-8a9c-11f1-a661-0df972bd51aa\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"image-full-width-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-widthsetter\">\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/qycCMQDCyfARDTvUysmLoB.jpg\" alt=\"Kim Le Court in the yellow jersey at the 2025 Tour de France Femmes\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] inline\">\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\" inline-layout\"><span class=\"credit\">(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76bf1c-8a9c-11f1-84b5-5f40091d0d04\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;Of course, stage wins will be the first objective, and then of course we want to aim for the highest [GC] result possible, which would be top five. Anything above that is obviously a bonus, but we have to take it as it comes.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;We&#8217;re not the team that everyone would look at, and I think everyone else has much more experience than we do of doing this and going for the GC and things like that. We&#8217;re going in a bit more as underdogs, and we just want to do the best we can. We know we can; we&#8217;ve trained hard for it, we have the potential, so now we just have to see what comes out of it.<\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet class=\"clear-both pt-2 pb-0 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"\n            flex\n            after:content-[&apos;&apos;] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]\n            before:content-[&apos;&apos;] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]\n            font-article-heading pb-0 text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,1em)] uppercase sm:text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,0.875em)] font-bold\n        \"><br \/>\n            What to read next<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"flex flex-col gap-0 m-0 max-w-full\">\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-1\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2-1\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-2-inline-1\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-2-inline-1\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/mdqopQBsyVu8WSwCgaooQM.jpg\" alt=\"USA&amp;#039;s Veronica Ewers last raced 11 months ago for EF Education-Oatly and then paused her racing career for health reasons\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;Big shock to the system&#8217; &#8211; Former WorldTour rider Veronica Ewers resumes slow return to peloton with &#8216;experiment&#8217; at French ProTeam&#8217;s Tour de France Femmes training camp<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ededed] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-2\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2-2\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-2-inline-2\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-2-inline-2\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/RktS6xfeM3cRGVHJ8omGz6.jpg\" alt=\"Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon\/SRAM) in yellow at the Tour de France Femmes 2024 (Photo by Alex Broadway\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">&#8216;New opportunity, a fresh page&#8217; \u2013 Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney chases another Tour de France Femmes victory with team that delivers debuts for B\u00e4ckstedt, Kl\u00f6ser, Niedermaier<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 list-none border-b border-solid border-[#ccc] py-2\" data-recirculation-id=\"recirculation-card-3\" id=\"recirculation-inline-2-3\" data-analytics-id=\"recirculation-2-inline-3\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"recirculation-2-inline-3\">\n<p>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/FGpVkMj8UKBWMxNMGYhv5b.jpg\" alt=\"Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ) is congratulated by teammate Juliette Berthet after winning Omloop Het Nieuwsblad 2026 (Photo by Luc Claessen\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] aspect-square size-[75px] object-cover shrink-0 rounded-lg\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <span class=\"w-full text-base font-[var(--article-river-item--font-weight,500)] font-article-heading line-clamp-3 md:line-clamp-2\">Chasing Tour de France Femmes victory with Demi Vollering &#8216;realistic and incredibly motivating&#8217; says key lieutenant Juliette Berthet<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/aside>\n<p><a id=\"elk-9d76bf94-8a9c-11f1-82c0-7bc3851173c5\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"returning-from-injury-3\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Returning from injury<\/h2>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76c016-8a9c-11f1-9106-d745b52403eb\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">The one hiccup to Le Court-Pienaar&#8217;s build-up to a hopefully triumphant Tour return was the crash she suffered at the Tour of Flanders, which left her with a broken wrist, missing her favoured Ardennes Classics and several weeks of training and racing.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;It wasn&#8217;t really quick, unfortunately,&#8221; she said of her recovery. &#8220;It wasn&#8217;t really smooth sailing, but now we&#8217;ve put everything behind us, and it&#8217;s over now. Now it&#8217;s just dealing with still some rehab of the wrist and making sure everything&#8217;s fine. I&#8217;ve got a good team behind me, so they&#8217;re looking after me pretty well, making sure that my rehab and recovery goes well. So I&#8217;m putting that behind me; it hasn&#8217;t been a smooth road mentally or physically, but good things are to come now.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">There were already positive signs at her comeback race, the Tour de Suisse, where she finished fourth, before doing the double at the Mauritian National Championships ahead of her final altitude training camp.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;For me to go to Suisse was a bit of a challenge, mentally and physically, because I had no idea where I would be and what my level would be at the time,&#8221; she said. &#8220;But Suisse was more like &#8216;Let&#8217;s not stress about it, let&#8217;s see what my body can do,&#8217; and with a month and a half of training, where I am and what my pace is and what we need to improve before the Tour. So it was more a test and more training than anything else. Then in Tignes it was more of the little last adjustments of preparation for the Tour.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"elk-DbL6pejDUDq\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">\n<div class=\"instagram-embed\">\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-version=\"6\">\n<p>A post shared by Kim Le Court-Pienaar, MSK \ud83c\udf96\ufe0f (@kimlecourt)<\/p><figcaption><cite><\/p>\n<p>A photo posted by on <\/p>\n<p><\/cite><\/figcaption><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76c0f2-8a9c-11f1-951a-65eaa45091f2\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">We know well how Le Court-Pienaar and her Belgian squad can perform in the Classics, but a nine-day Grand Tour will offer up new challenges and demands. After missing out on many of the Classics, Le Court-Pienaar is only more motivated to make the most of the Tour.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I think I&#8217;m quite different in terms of physiology and also mentally,&#8221; she said of her shape coming into August compared to the spring.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;In a Grand Tour you&#8217;ve got more opportunities, but it&#8217;s also quite scary in a way, because you need to stay healthy for nine days, you need to make sure you&#8217;re on top of your game for nine days, you need to make sure mentally you&#8217;re still in for the fight and that the mental side doesn&#8217;t go down. So there&#8217;s a lot of different mental and physical aspects in terms of an athlete. I would say I&#8217;m still the same person, I just have more hunger now because I&#8217;ve missed a lot of races and I&#8217;ve missed out on a lot of opportunities in the beginning of the season.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">That hunger and ambition also comes from the experience and growth of the team, which came along quite rapidly after what, Le Court-Pienaar admits, was a Tour even above their expectations last summer.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;We gained a lot of experience all at once last year over the nine days, so I think we can take a lot out of that. Last year, we also went for stage wins and to see what we could do out of it, and it was a great year, but it was also kind of a &#8216;Wow, OK, we knew we could do something special, but we didn&#8217;t know it was going to be that amazing&#8217;. So it was a more of a bonus, shock to the system, and this year we come more with our heads on shoulders, we know what&#8217;s to come and we know what our potential is as a team.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Not only does the AG Insurance-Soudal team have potential and strength by the bucketload \u2013 Le Court-Pienaar will be joined by the likes of Ur\u0161ka \u017digart, Mireia Benito and Justine Ghekiere \u2013 but her teammates also have full faith in their leader.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;As Kim said, now we know what can be done, what we can realistically achieve, and this is super motivating for me, because as a domestique of course I would always give my 200 per cent for the team, but knowing that we can achieve amazing things here, it&#8217;s always an extra,&#8221; Benito added.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;When you&#8217;re suffering, then you can do a bit extra, that you don&#8217;t even know that you had in you, and I think this is going to be the case for this Tour de France. Everyone is super motivated and clearly here for one goal. If we ride like the way we usually ride, as a Wolfpack, I think we will get really nice results, and for sure we will give our best.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-ag-insurance-soudal-for-the-2026-tour-de-france-femmes\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"article-body__section kiosq-b\" id=\"section-ag-insurance-soudal-for-the-2026-tour-de-france-femmes\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><span>AG Insurance-Soudal for the 2026 Tour de France Femmes<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul id=\"elk-9d76c278-8a9c-11f1-a28d-5fd551f7f0ba\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">\n<li>Kim Le Court-Pienaar<\/li>\n<li>Justine Ghekiere<\/li>\n<li>Shari Bossuyt<\/li>\n<li>Mireia Benito<\/li>\n<li>Letizia Borghesi<\/li>\n<li>Ur\u0161ka \u017digart<\/li>\n<li>Lore De Schepper<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p id=\"elk-9d76c2f0-8a9c-11f1-a2db-9571e2fe0d14\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><em><strong>Support our unrivalled coverage of the Tour de France Femmes and women&#8217;s cycling by subscribing to Cyclingnews. In return, you get unlimited access to high-quality journalism, with breaking news, race analysis, and expert insight from inside the women&#8217;s peloton. Plus, the Cyclingnews app lets you follow the action wherever you go! <\/strong><\/em><u><em><strong>Join today.<\/strong><\/em><\/u><em><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/ive-not-reached-my-absolute-potential-yet-kim-le-court-pienaar-sets-sights-on-tour-de-france-femmes-top-five-after-shock-to-the-system-success-in-2025\/&#8221;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/NsjeSbhYWNXiWVshUACcmB-2500-80.jpg&#8221;] 1 &#8216;I&#8217;ve shown I deserve to dream&#8217; &#8211; Remco Evenepoel says second place in Tour de France confirms belief as he pursues future Grand Tour victories 2 &#8216;New opportunity, a fresh page&#8217; \u2013 Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney chases another Tour de France Femmes victory with team that delivers debuts for B\u00e4ckstedt, Kl\u00f6ser, Niedermaier 3 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,68],"class_list":["post-2065719","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-cyclingnews-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2065719","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2065719"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2065719\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2065719"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2065719"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2065719"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}