Watch: The absolute hair raising final kilometre of La Course by Le Tour
The WorldTour women's peloton put on a terrific show in the one-day race in the Alps
For the women’s WorldTour peloton, La Course by Le Tour de France was their chance shine on a similar course as the men’s WorldTour peloton on this year’s Tour de France route. While the women don’t have a full Tour de France stage race, the 112-km La Course finished in Le Grand Bornand and featured the same tough climbs of Col de Romme and Col de la Colombière as Stage 10 of the Tour. Unlike in the men’s race where the breakaway won and action between the GC contenders was tempered, the racing was dynamic and the finish heart-stopping.
Annemiek van Vleuten won in an absolute heart-stopping battle with Anna van der Breggen to defend her title from last year’s race. The Olympic gold medalist was away solo going into the final kilometres after cresting the climb with a slim lead of three seconds but the Giro Rosa champion mounted a ferocious chase to take the win down the final climb. Van Vleuten only caught van der Breggen with 50 meters to go. Ashleigh Moolman rounded out the podium in third with the help of teammate Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig who finished fourth. Canadian Leah Kirchmann rode in the breakaway supporting her team leader Lucinda Brand.
