When Charlotte Kool burst onto the sprinting scene in 2023 for DSM, she was filling the void left by the most serial winner in the women’s peloton, Lorena Wiebes. But a season and a half since they ended their time as teammates, it’s Kool who has the upper hand, wielding more than enough power to come from behind and pass the rider she used to lead out and win stage 2 of the Tour de France Femmes.
On Monday’s opening stage in The Hague, Wiebes’ mechanical in the final 500 metres left something of a question mark. In Rotterdam on stage 2, however, there were no doubts. Kool was full value for her victory.
