It wasn't exactly expected to before the race, but the final stage of the Giro d'Italia Women brought all of the drama that anyone could want from a Grand Tour finale, with the maglia rosa changing hands after a day of all-out attacking from the favourites.
Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ) completed the set of GT victories by winning the pink jersey, snatching it from the shoulders of her former teammate and mentor Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) at the last gasp.
After Vollering's team lit up the stage very early on Sunday and reduced the lead group to only the top 10 on GC, it was an attack from Antonia Niedermaier (Canyon-SRAM) which changed things, with Van der Breggen allowing her, Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE ADQ) and Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek) to get up the road.
At times, Niedermaier went into the virtual lead, but this turned into virtual second when Vollering finally dropped Van der Breggen on the final climb and stormed across the gap with a powerful solo ride.
By the time they reached the finish, Vollering had confirmed GC victory by 30 seconds from Niedermaier, with Van der Breggen dropping to third and the final spot on the podium, 1:37 down on the winner.
Longo Borghini not only won the stage in emotional fashion, but she also jumped to fourth overall. Fisher-Black lost that sprint at the line, but also benefited from the race completely blowing up, jumping up three spots to fifth overall at the finish.
Femke de Vries (Visma-Lease a Bike) had another strong performance to maintain her sixth-place spot overall, ending 5:07 off the winner.
The other big faller in the top 10 was Isabella Holmgren (Lidl-Trek), who fell from fourth to seventh overall on the last day. Still a great week for the young Canadian, she also won the best young rider's white jersey.
Rounding out the top 10 is Urška Žigart (AG Insurance-Soudal) in eighth, Valentina Cavallar (SD Worx-Protime) in ninth, and Žigart's teammate Lore De Schepper.
Giro d'Italia Women 2026 GC standings
Giro d'Italia Women 2026 classifications and jerseys
There are four main classifications with distinct jerseys at Giro d'Italia Women.
Pink leader's jersey (maglia rosa) – worn by the rider leading the overall GC standings
Red points jersey (maglia rossa) – worn by the rider who has won the most points, which are available in intermediate sprints and at the finish line
Blue climber's jersey (maglia azzurra) – worn by the rider who has won the most points available at the top of every classified climb
White young rider's jersey (maglia bianca) – worn by the highest-ranked young rider under the age of 23
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