‘I don’t know how I do it’ - Demi Vollering stunned after Tourmalet victory at Tour de France Femmes
Dutchwoman lays waste to GC rivals on stage seven and takes the yellow jersey


The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Thank you for signing up to The Pick. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Demi Vollering sits cross-legged on the floor. Cameras flash around her, lighting up her face, obscured by the mist at the summit of the Col du Tourmalet. Her look is one of bewilderment. She breathes deeply, in, out, in, out, and blows a sigh of relief into the clouds.
“Yes!” she then shouts, and her eyes start to well up. The 2023 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift is hers… almost.
Vollering’s victory on Saturday’s seventh stage was resounding. “I was a bit nervous this morning,” she said afterwards. Going into the day, the Dutchwoman trailed her GC rival Annemiek van Vleuten by 12 seconds, after a 20-second time penalty knocked her down the overall standings. The onus was on her to attack.
“My team kept on saying to me, ‘It doesn’t matter, you will set it all right on the Tourmalet.’ Sometimes, I said back to them, ‘I also need to do it. It’s nice that you say it, but in the end I need to do it.’ That made me a little bit nervous, but I know they were saying this because they truly believed in me.”
The belief was not misplaced. Over the Col d’Aspin, Vollering broke away from the peloton with Van Vleuten and Canyon-Sram’s Kasia Niewiadoma. The latter led alone onto the Tourmalet, engulfed by the clouds that lay on the mountain’s slopes, but with five kilometres to go, Vollering took the baton.
“At one point, Anna [van der Breggen, SD Worx sports director] said, ‘Ok Demi, keep drinking and make yourself ready to go.’ And then I thought, ‘Ok, I go now, because it’s a feed zone and some girls have bidons in their hands.’”
“It was so foggy there that I knew that, if I made it there fast, they could not see me anymore.”
And off into the mist she went. The SD Worx rider passed her family on her way to the summit, waving her home to victory. "It made me emotional," she said, but it also gave her strength. The seconds she gained soon became minutes.
Van Vleuten wouldn’t see her compatriot again until after the finish line. Breathless in the Pyrenean air, the reigning champion came in 2-34 behind, beaten by a more dominant force. “It’s obvious that Demi Vollering was on another level today,” she conceded at the summit, gracious in defeat.
As Vollering sat in her winner’s press conference, dressed in her first yellow jersey, it was clear the same realisation was yet to dawn on her. “I don’t know how I do it,” she told the TV crews. “It’s incredible.”
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!

Tom joined Cycling Weekly as a news and features writer in the summer of 2022, having previously contributed as a freelancer. He is the host of The TT Podcast, which covers both the men's and women's pelotons and has featured a number of prominent British riders.
An enthusiastic cyclist himself, Tom likes it most when the road goes uphill and actively seeks out double-figure gradients on his rides.
He's also fluent in French and Spanish and holds a master's degree in International Journalism.
-
-
‘A gateway of just how far their dreams and a bike can take them’ - Los Angeles’ first-ever pump track is now open
Los Angeles’ first-ever pump track opened to the public on Friday, September 22, after two years of construction.
By Kristin Jenny Published
-
UK cycle tech falls by a third, with bikes sales also struggling, says industry report
The cycle industry continues to face challenges, with tech in freefall and even ebikes lagging behind the rest of Europe
By James Shrubsall Published
-
Opinion: There will never be another bike rider like Annemiek van Vleuten
The flying Dutchwoman could almost win it all, but now her era has almost ended, she should be remembered as the greatest
By Adam Becket Published
-
'I still can't believe it' - Demi Vollering wins Tour de France Femmes 2023
SD Worx rider seals yellow jersey with three-minute gap, as team-mate Marlen Reusser triumphs on stage eight
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'She was better' - Annemiek van Vleuten tips hat to Demi Vollering on Tour de France Femmes raid
Reigning champion concedes defeat to compatriot on Col du Tourmalet
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Demi Vollering wins stage seven of the Tour de France Femmes and takes overall lead
After the riders spent a lot of time looking at each other and riding quite conservatively, Demi Vollering showed she's the strongest at the 2023 Tour de France Femmes
By Jack Elton-Walters Published
-
'I did not expect this' - Emma Norsgaard woke up in a bad mood and won a Tour de France Femmes stage
Dane overcomes career set-backs to triumph on day six in Blagnac
By Tom Davidson Published
-
How to watch Clásica San Sebastián: Live stream the 2023 edition
A Clásica San Sebastián live stream is the best way to keep up with this year's race. Here's how to watch in 2023.
By Cycling Weekly Last updated
-
SD Worx blast ‘unjustified’ time penalty given to Demi Vollering at Tour de France Femmes
Dutchwoman docked 20 seconds in the overall standings after slipstreaming team car
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'Try it and see': How a call from the car led Ricarda Bauernfeind to victory at the Tour de France Femmes
With Magnus Bäckstedt in her ear, the German rode away to win stage five
By Tom Davidson Published