Tour de France Femmes: Charlotte Kool hails 'best day of my life' after overcoming breathing problem to seize yellow
Updated 12/08/2024 at 23:10 GMT+1
Charlotte Kool said she was thrilled to get to the bottom of her breathing issues after claiming the yellow jersey at the Tour de France Femmes. The 25-year-old crossed the finish line first on Stage 1 to register the biggest victory of her career. It made it even sweeter that it came on home soil in the Netherlands, and she dedicated the win to her late grandfather, who died two years ago.
'Best day of my life' - Kool in dreamland after winning Tour de France Femmes Stage 1
Video credit: TNT Sports
Charlotte Kool (dsm-firmenich PostNL) has branded her win on Stage One of the Tour de France Femmes the "best day of my life."
The 25-year-old won out in a sprint finish after a 124km ride between Rotterdam and The Hague.
It marks the biggest victory of her career, and comes only a fortnight after suffering from breathing issues in training.
And the Dutch rider is delighted to be back on the podium after a difficult 2024 so far.
"It's unbelievable," she said. "It's a dream coming true. It was not an easy season, but this is what it was all about.
"I want to thank so many people, like my trainer, who always keeps believing in me, and all my people close around me.
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Highlights: Kool storms to the line for Stage 1 victory at Tour de France Femmes
Video credit: TNT Sports
"I'm really proud. It was really hectic but I like it. I kept on thinking, 'I like hectic, I like chaos'. Then I went so early and I thought, 'it's too long' and it hurt so bad, but it was enough in the end.
"No words. This is the best day of my life. Everything comes together and it's really special."
Kool has now taken a yellow jersey for the first time in her career.
She also won a stage at the Vuelta Femenina in 2023, a year in which Kool also claimed the points classification at the UAE Tour and overall success at Ride London Classique.
But things have been tougher this season, with high-intensity training earlier this summer causing respiratory issues.
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That, coupled with registering eight second-placed finishes in recent months, had led to much frustration.
"I didn’t feel well already the whole season," she admitted. "I thought maybe I was just missing a bit, but then, two weeks ago I still missed it when I did everything right in training and we really couldn’t put our finger on it.
"Then I had a bit of a fever so we tried to really find what’s the reason why I’m not feeling really well.
“Normal training was all fine but it was just when I was really on the limit and I did my sprint, I felt I didn't hit it or something.
“To be honest I didn't care about the second places, it was more about how I didn’t feel well. If I get beaten and I’m feeling the best version of myself, then I can live with it, but I didn't feel my best version.
"Then I found finally the reason. I think that [the breathing issues] for sure was the reason I finally felt like myself again and I’m really happy that it was just in time.”
Kool dedicated the victory to her grandfather, who passed away two years ago.
"He was my biggest fan," she added. "My grandad gave everything to me and even when I got last he would cry because he was so proud of me.
“He would always be there and support me so after every race I used to call him.
"So I said to my grandmother, ‘This one is for my grandad’ and she’s having a tough time because they were so in love and he was, of course, her buddy for life so I told her that this one was for him."
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Watch the Tour de France Femmes 2024 live on Eurosport 1 and discovery+
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