The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift remains wide open. The gaps between the top contenders are minimal, and everything will be decided in the final stages. In such a tightly contested race, every detail can make the difference, and in a stage race, uncertainties are never in short supply. One of the most insidious? Gastrointestinal issues, which I consider a true “invisible enemy.”
Just look at the recent cases of Elisa Longo Borghini and Marlen Reusser, both forced to abandon the race due to intestinal problems that severely compromised their performance. In my view, it's not just bad luck: these are champions arriving at the Tour after an intense season, often with their immune systems worn down to the limit. It takes very little — a sudden chill, a wrong meal, a virus — to derail everything.
I believe Longo Borghini came into this race carrying an enormous physical and mental load. Winning a demanding event like the Giro d’Italia puts you into a spiral of stress, and after such a major victory, the natural psychological release often coincides with the moment your body presents the bill. The riders who gave everything at the Giro arrive at the Tour already at their limit. These are things the general public may not see, but they’re part of the daily reality at the highest level of cycling.
Another important issue to reflect on is the number of crashes, which have been numerous in this edition. In recent years, the French stage race often gets decided in the final days: the lack of selective stages early on keeps the peloton tightly packed, inevitably increasing the risk. Everyone wants to be at the front; everyone still has the energy to go for it, especially since they haven’t yet faced any truly demanding climbs.
If the tough stages come earlier, only the strongest remain at the front, which means fewer riders, less stress, and fewer crashes. In any case, the pressure is huge, especially for those racing for the general classification.
In this kind of environment, having a solid, cohesive team makes all the difference. Knowing you can count on three or four teammates to protect you in critical moments is essential: it eases the pressure, helps you manage the unexpected, and gives you confidence.
For me, preparation was everything. When I lined up at the start, knowing I had done my best in training, in nutrition, in rest, I felt calmer. The tension was there, but it became manageable. Even in my day, nothing was left to chance, especially at the table: nutrition was followed down to the smallest detail, before, during, and after the race.
Looking to the future — and thinking back to certain moments in my career — I would love to see at least one time trial included in the next editions of the Tour, even a short one. In a stage race that lasts seven, 10, or 15 days, a race against the clock is fundamental to bring balance to the course and highlight different rider profiles.
And of course, it would be wonderful to see iconic climbs like Alpe d’Huez, Mont Ventoux, and the Tourmalet included. I still remember winning on the Tourmalet wearing the yellow jersey in 1995, in the middle of a true storm. Rain, fog, cold. I only saw the finish banner in the final meters. I was alone, in the leader’s jersey; an unforgettable feeling.
The following year, again on the Tourmalet, I won once more — this time wearing the Italian tricolore — but it was a brutally hard day. I had crashed on a descent, with abrasions all over my body, even on my face. I was ready to quit, but my teammates Alessandra Cappellotto (who would go on to become world champion in 1997) and Roberta Bonanomi (gold medalist in the team time trial at the 1988 Worlds) stopped with me and pushed me to keep going. We dug deep, and I made it back to the front right at the base of the final climb.
Mont Ventoux, on the other hand, brings back the memory of my battle with Edita Pucinskaite. The finish line was at the bottom of the descent — she crossed it first.
In the upcoming mountain stages, we’ll see just how much of a toll the crash has taken on Demi Vollering. The physical pain, the sleepless nights, the wounds that keep reopening — anything can happen. But it’s precisely in those toughest moments that the true character of a champion comes through.
