After missing out on a medal just 11 days ago, Blanka Vas (SD Worx-Protime) avoided any chance of a repeat of the Olympic Games road race, swiftly marking a late attack from the newly crowned Kristen Faulkner before sprinting to victory in Amnéville from the reduced group.
Vas was the first and last to respond to Faulkner's winning move in the Paris Olympics but didn't have the power to close the gap. Once she flicked her elbow for Marianne Vos and Lotte Kopecky to take over, the race was done and she ended up fourth. On stage 5 of the Tour de France Femmes, she didn't lack the power.
The young Hungarian saw the Stars and Stripes kit of the US national champion gearing up to launch, prompting her to snap straight onto the wheel before overpowering Kasia Niewiadoma at the line for the biggest win of her career. She adds this to triumphs from the Giro d'Italia Donne and Tour de Suisse,
"The first two days after the Olympics, I could not really sleep because at one point I was waiting for the victory with Marianne [Vos], and then I came home without a medal," recalled Vas in her post-race press conference.
"So it was hard but I tried to remember the good things because I was racing for victory and with the strongest rider. So on the other hand, it gave me a lot of confidence and I think it helped me for this Tour de France victory because also in the final, I knew that we could not let Faulkner go.
"Also in the sprint, I was very, very tired but I reminded myself that I can do it and the Olympics was in my head, which just gave me a lot of energy and trust."
While it was bittersweet as Vas's team leader Demi Vollering crashed and lost control of the yellow jersey, she did admit "I'm super happy with my victory, this is my biggest one", with the rest of her Tour likely going to be focused on helping regain the maillot jaune.
For Faulkner, while her attack was unsuccessful, she still had another great day at the Tour de France Femmes, netting her second top-five stage result at the 2024 race and moving up to second overall. But this hasn't changed her lack of ambition in the overall standings, with a stage victory still being all she's vying for.
"No, we're still going for a stage in tomorrow. Every day I'm asked if I'm going for GC and the answer is no, we're going for stages," Faulkner told reporters at the finish.
"I think for me walking away with a stage win is more important than walking away with a top 10 on GC. We don't know how the mountains will treat my legs, maybe they'll be great, maybe not. We're just going to take it one day at a time."
While Vas was quick to close down Faulkner's move with 700m to go, the Olympic champion believes it was her own lack of total commitment that perhaps cost her a maiden Tour win.
"I tried to just drill it to create a gap, but I noticed they were on my wheel and if I dragged them to the line, they were all going to beat me," said Faulkner of her late move. "I think I lost my shot when I attacked and just hesitated a bit."
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