Following the 'block-gate' controversy of stage 8 at the Tour de France Femmes, Demi Vollering removed all doubt about the result in the finale on the Col d'Eze on Sunday.
Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney had accused FDJ United-SUEZ of blocking her before the final climb on Saturday, and with just eight seconds in it at the top of the standings afterwards, there was room to question whether the apparent move influenced the Tour's overall outcome.
Not so on Sunday evening, after Vollering dropped the Pole at the top of the Eze, soloing 16.2km to the line to seal the yellow jersey by 1:18. Her overall victory was decisive, beyond question, and, following a mid-stage conversation, the air had been cleared.
"I explained again that we really didn't want to block her on purpose, and then she accepted it, and she was like, 'OK, I understand.' It was all good in the end. I think it was good that we had a talk together," Vollering explained in the post-race press conference, before telling of how her teammate, Célia Gery, the 20-year-old at the centre of the storm, had been affected by the row.
"She got a lot of nasty messages, which makes me always very angry, especially because she's such a young girl still. We should always protect young people from these kinds of stupid actions from people who don't think and just send a message," she said.
"I mean, it's very sad to think that you go to somebody's profile and send them death-threatening messages. I really cannot understand this, but it makes me very angry. She had a really rough time, so of course today was also motivation for us to show that we can do it without all the commotion about what happened yesterday.
"I think I just wanted to have a chat with Kasia about this, also because I was just a bit disappointed that she let all the emotions out like that about a rider and saying their name. You should always try to avoid these kinds of things. First of all, we are riders, and then next to it, we are human beings – we are real people. If you say somebody's name or you really attack somebody like this, it really hurts somebody and can really do bad things to people.
"We all know racing is crazy, and we try our best to make it as safe as possible, but we are under so much pressure, and sometimes things just happen and go how they go in a race. So I think we should realise that."
'I believe you always need to see life in the bigger picture'
With the controversy consigned to history and racing taking centre stage on Sunday, Vollering made a statement with her winning attack over the final ascent of the Eze, run up a steeper road than the previous three on the stage.
The win, plus the final GC, were her 13th and 14th of the season and stand alongside titles at the Tour of Flanders, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and the Giro d'Italia in a glittering 2026 campaign that looks like the high point of her career to date.
There are still title defences at the World Championships in Montréal and the European Championships in Ljubljana to consider, too. Does she feel like this is the best Demi Vollering we've seen to date? And, at the age of 29, is she still improving as a rider?
"I feel like I'm growing as a person as well. Over the years, you learn so much, and you keep on learning. You take that all with you in your backpack, and sometimes you're struggling because you think you figured it out, but then at the same time, the moment you start to feel like that, you lose all of it," she said.
"That's life. You need to keep evolving, you need to keep working hard, you need to keep working on every detail. I think you never should think you're 'there', because you will never get there. Life is a whole process, and it goes with ups and downs. You need to try to do everything as good as possible, but at the same time, there is no end goal until we're not on this world anymore.
"You need to enjoy every step of the way and try to just become every day a little bit better version of yourself."
After the finish, a magnanimous Niewiadoma-Phinney admitted that having an opponent like Vollering – the pair have been on the podium of every Tour de France Femmes to date – is one of her main motivations to improve and get stronger.
Vollering said that the feeling was mutual – that it's true for Niewiadoma-Phinney and her other rivals, too. But she noted that improvement as a rider and chasing these big racing goals isn't worth it if it negatively affects life away from the bike.
"I think it's really nice that your rivals think things like this about you. I think it also shows their strength. I also believe that all your rivals bring you to a bigger level. Like this, we keep each other motivated and focussed as well. We have to force ourselves to become every day a better version, just because the others are also growing," Vollering said.
"You try to be the best version of yourself – see it in the long-term version to not do too crazy stuff, because it's only your cycling career. After, it's still a life. You want to stay healthy, and I don't want to sacrifice everything for this dream. Everything I have I will give, but I don't want to force myself into corners I don't belong.
"This is me, and I have to deal with my size and everything. I know that some girls think getting skinnier is the way to get to a higher level, but I'm not a believer of that. I believe that first of all, you need to be a healthy version of yourself, a motivated version of yourself.
"You train every day very hard, you focus on your recovery, and that's how you get better – not taking shortcuts that are for the short term. I believe you always need to see life in the bigger picture."
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