It hadn’t been the easiest of seasons for New Zealand’s Niamh Fisher-Black, with a series of crashes as well as an ill-timed team car barrage at the Vuelta a Feminina dousing her chances, but the 22 year old’s return to racing at the Tour de Suisse Women has turned that around.
In stage 4 on Tuesday the SD Worx rider sprinted to her first ever Women’s WorldTour victory, overhauling fellow break rider Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM) as the pair crossed the line more than 30 seconds ahead of Fisher-Black’s teammate and overall Tour de Suisse Women victor Marlen Reusser.
"Winning is the very best feeling,” said an elated Fisher-Black. “Finally I could throw my hands in the air myself. This is what you live for as a cyclist.
“My season was difficult with lots of bad luck and crashes, but I am a stubborn person. It had to work out one day. The team also kept believing in me. This victory is all the more gratifying."
The U23 women’s road world champion, who has been away from racing since crashing out of Itzulia Women in stage 3 while in the lead of the mountains classification, followed Niewiadoma into the break with more than 50km to go, playing a defensive roll for race leading teammate Reusser.
“She [Niewiadoma] went full on. The team instructions were that I did not help her as I still had Demi Vollering and Marlen Reusser behind me,” said Fisher-Black. “In the tactical discussion we had decided to focus on the overall win and thus not immediately on the stage win.
“Especially in the beginning of Kasia's attack it went really fast, but I knew I just had to keep following her wheel. To hear in my earpiece that Marlen was closing the gap and thus securing her yellow jersey gave super motivation."
That team decision that meant the rider from New Zealand did not work on the front of the break and aid Niewiadoma, in the interests of the overall, also worked in Fisher-Black’s favour.
"A great opportunity unfolded for me,” said Fisher-Black. "Over the radio, team manager Danny Stam encouraged me. He told me to believe I could beat Kasia. This was such a strong team performance, I had to finish it.
“Of course, I hadn't been in this situation many times before, so then you always doubt yourself for a moment. But I psyched myself up. After all, I could have saved much more energy than Kasia. So I had to be able to beat her."
Niewiadoma tried to pick up the pace in the last 200 metres, getting out of the saddle to try and wind up the sprint, but the fresher Fisher-Black quickly responded and stretched out the gap to take victory at Ebnat-Kappel, claiming her first Women’s WorldTour win in her third season with SD Worx.
"This was the perfect day," said Fisher-Black as the team claimed the stage and overall victory.
A perfect day that could also mark a turning point in a season for Fisher-Black as next on the agenda is a race where she has repeatedly delivered noteworthy performances.
She is expected to head to the Giro d’Italia Donne on June 30 with a free hand to chase results at the ten-stage Italian tour, where she came second on the final stage in 2020 and won the youth classification in 2021 and 2022 while also coming ninth and fifth overall.
