Tour de France Femmes 2025 Stage 1 RECAP – Marianne Vos takes yellow jersey with opening victory

Marianne Vos overhauled her team-mate Pauline Ferrand-Prevot to win Stage 1 at the Tour de France Femmes.

The Dutchwoman, 38, proved the strongest in a punchy uphill finish as Ferrand-Prevot, who had made an early dash for victory, faded in the closing metres.

Earlier, Marlen Reusser (Movistar) withdrew from the race after struggling with illness and also being involved in a crash.

Vos's move proved crucial to Visma-Lease a Bike's efforts, as Kim Le Court (AG Insurance - Soudal), who was closing in on 2025 Paris-Roubaix champion Ferrand-Prevot in the final metres, finished second.

Ferrand-Prevot's third-place finish in itself was impressive, with the 15-time world champion across multiple disciplines having not raced for over 10 weeks due to injury.

The short but sharp opening stage featured multiple attacks in search of the first points up for grabs, but it wasn't without its challenges, particularly with the crash in the final 30kms.

As the riders veered right onto a bridge, multiple riders were struck down, notably including Reusser and her Movistar team-mate Liane Lippert.

The Swiss rider carried on riding, but looked to be struggling significantly, and her abandon was confirmed with just over 10km remaining.

Reusser was a key contender for the general classification, having finished second at the Giro d'Italia Women just two weeks prior.

Elise Chabbey (FDJ - SUEZ) cinched the Queen of the Mountains jersey after the first stage, but Vos's stage win earned her both the general classification and points jerseys.

1. Vos

2. Le Court + 4"

3. Ferrand-Prevot +6"

4. Niewiadoma-Phinney +10"

5. Vollering +13"

6. Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) +15"

7. Van der Breggen +15"

8. Jansen +19"

9. Pauliena Rooijakkers (Fenix-Deceuninck) +19"

10. Pfeiffer Georgi (Picnic PostNL) +19"

WHAT. A. FINISH. Marianne Vos wins the first stage, her 258th career victory! It looked like it was going to be Ferrand-Prevot's moment, but she ties up in the final few metres. Kim Le Court (AG Insurance - Soudal) was creeping up, and Vos did what she does best to take the win for Visma-Lease a Bike, who were fully in control in that final kilometre. Le Court finishes second, so that's a vital move from Vos. What a return to racing from Ferrand-Prevot too!

Van der Breggen tries to go with her but she can't stick!

Ferrand-Prevot leads the race, but no one has made their move just yet... so many teams involved.

Lidl-Trek take over at the front... how will this end?!

For Marianne Vos, of course! They've got Ferrand-Prevot and Imogen Wolff ready to go...

Ah... short lived! But the intensity is hotting up now. Visma-Lease a Bike leading the race on the left hand side of the peloton, but UAE ADQ seem up for it alongside them!

6.4KM TO GO - KOCH JOINED BY THREE RIDERS
Chabbey is one, as well as Nooijen and Brodie Chapman (UAE ADQ).

Wlodarczyk staged one first, but Koch is the next to go, and this one looks like it might be more significant...

The news no one wanted to hear... wishing Marlen all the best. Such a shame to see such a strong contender out of the race, and someone who has been through a lot in recent years.

Six riders have a small group - including Femke de Vries (Visma-Lease a Bike), Uttrup Ludwig, Chabbey, Jansen, and Dominika Wlodarczyk (UAE Team ADQ).

The Swiss rider makes it to the line first, and they have one lap to go! Jansen and Silke Smulders (Liv AlUla Jayco) close behind her.

1.3km to go until the QoM points Cote de Cadoudal and the peloton are back together, albeit after a brief attack from Eline Jansen (VolkerWessels).

Francesca Barale (Picnic PostNL) has staged an attack and is our lone leader!

Well, this is really, really sad to see. Reusser was a key name for GC contention, but looks to be really struggling now and she's quite far back.

They're brought back under control, we've had another small attack but they too don't get far. Vas and Wiebes take over at the front of the peloton.

27.3KM TO GO - WIEBES TAKES SPRINT, KOCH ATTACKS
The peloton begin to split slightly on the climb. Wiebes leads them over the line for the intermediate sprint with a slight gap, but with Koch just behind her, the German rider subsequently launches an attack over the top. Wiebes goes with her, which I imagine was not what Koch was hoping for.

The intermediate sprint results are as follows:

Approaching a technical section and there's been a crash as they turn onto the bridge - with Liane Lippert (Movistar) and team-mate Reusser, and Mavi Garcia (Liv AlUla Jayco) among those going down and requiring a bike change - Garcia's taking quite some time, which is hardly ideal with the current pace of the peloton.

The pace is upping and the now strung out bunch is reflecting that, notably with Marlen Reusser (Movistar) - who's struggled with illness recently - dropping back. Niewiadoma-Phinney also narrowly avoids being hit in the face when a team-mate receives a bottle, it's all happening! Around 5km to the intermediate sprint and there's a slightly hectic feeling as teams look to set themselves up best to grab those points.