Demi Vollering Takes La Vuelta Femenina Title with Commanding Solo Attack in Final Stage
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The wait is over: we’re officially in Grand Tour season. La Vuelta Femenina kicked off on Sunday with a blistering team time trial. We’ll keep you up to date as the women battle for the red jersey on the challenging eight-stage tour across (mostly northern) Spain.
Movistar’s Annemiek van Vleuten won last year’s race and became the first woman to win all three of the major women’s stage races (La Vuelta, Tour de France Femmes, and Giro Donne). But she retired at the end of 2023, so there is no chance of a repeat winner.
How to Watch La Vuelta Femenina 2024
Stage 8: Distrito Telefónica to Valdesquí Comunidad de Madrid, 89.5km
Demi Vollering Wins Final Stage with Solo Attack and Takes the Overall
Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) won La Vuelta Femenina 2024 in style with a 6.5-kilometer solo attack at the Valdesquí resort winning the final stage in the red leader’s jersey.
As she crossed the finish line, the 27-year-old from the Netherlands raised her arm and then lifted her bike in celebration. Twenty-nine seconds later, Évita Muzic (FDJ-SUEZ) finished second, and Riejanne Markus (Visma-Lease a Bike) was third at 33 seconds. Markus snatched the overall second place from Italian Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek), who finished seventh on the day one minute behind the leader.
“I’m happy to win this stage because it’s nice to finish it off like this. We did a really good Vuelta, some podiums, and two stage wins, so I think we can be very proud of ourselves,” said Vollering in the post-race interview.
“I was a bit nervous because this last climb was difficult. There was a headwind, and it was not super-steep. There was one part where we turned a bit and had a tailwind. There, I thought, ‘I need to attack, and I need to make sure I have a gap,’ so that the rest would also have a headwind when chasing me back. I could extend my gap and stay out.”
Check out NBC’s Extended Highlights of Stage 8 on YouTube.
In Madrid, the final stage of the 2024 La Vuelta Femenina began, spanning 89.5km and featuring two challenging climbs: the first-category Puerto de La Morcuera and the ascent to the finish at Valdesquí, named Cima Estela Domínguez after a promising Spanish junior cyclist who tragically passed away in 2023.
25 km into the race, a breakaway of 13 riders formed, with Sarah Gigante making a decisive move on Puerto de La Morcuera, joined only by Brodie Chapman and Karlijn Swinkels. Chapman eventually dropped Gigante, but the peloton, led by Grace Brown, closed in.
Pauliena Rooijakkers bridged to Chapman, then went solo on the descent. Swinkels made another attempt but was caught by Brown. With 6.5 km left, Vollering attacked, establishing a solo lead.
Behind Vollering, a battle ensued for second place overall, with Markus leading a group ahead of Longo Borghini. Muzic sprinted to second, while Markus secured third, moving up to second overall.
Vollering claimed both stage and overall victory, with Markus in second. Vollering also won the polka-dot jersey, and Marianne Vos took the green points jersey. Niedermaier was the top U23 rider, finishing 11th overall.
Stage 7: San Esteban de Gormaz to Sigüenza, 138.6 km
Another Day, Another Top Performance from the GOAT
Marianne Vos of Visma-Lease a Bike claimed victory in Stage 7 of La Vuelta Femenina, marking her second stage win of the 2024 edition. Kristen Faulkner (EF Education-Cannondale) got an impressive second-place finish ahead of Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek), who finished third.
Demi Vollering (SD Worxs-Protime) placed fourth place and successfully defended her red leader’s jersey. Heading into the final stage, Vollering now holds a commanding 52-second lead over Longo Borghini.
The penultimate stage of the race covered 138.6 km from San Esteban de Gormaz to Sigüenza, with no categorized climbing and very little prospect of wind. At first glance, and bookmarked by mountain stages, it looked like a pretty straightforward sprint stage, until you got a closer look at the finish.
While most of the stage was flat, 1,183 meters of elevation gain were backloaded into the final. In true Vuelta fashion, there were a few non-categorized climbs to start the day then roughly 50 km of flat before another chunk of non-categorized climbing. The hardest climb on the course was at 49 km to go, reached 9 percent, and was about 2 km long.
Check out NBC’s Extended Highlights of Stage 7 on YouTube
As part of a front echelon made of 30 riders, Vos strategically trailed behind Faulkner and Longo Borghini during the punchy 500-meter climb to the finish line. With a turn of speed in the final 200 meters, Vos surged ahead and crossed the finish line with a two-second lead over Faulkner and Longo Borghini.
“We really wanted to go for the stage win today. That’s the reason why the team controlled [it]. And of course, when they do so much work, you want to make it in the final,” Vos said after the finish. This is Vos’ 253rd road victory.
Joined by teammate Riejanne Markus in the decisive breakaway, Vos navigated the challenging conditions with determination and focus. “That was a good situation, but of course also a little bit hard to control, so a little bit stressful. But when we entered the final kilometer, we just tried to stay in the best possible position and go for it,” Vos added.
Stage 6: Tarazona to Vinuesa, 132 km
Évita Muzic Out Pedals Demi Vollering on Stunning Summit Finish
Évita Muzic (FDJ–Suez) won stage 6 of the Vuelta Femenina, in the second of three summit finishes of the Vuelta Femenina. Muzic battled Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) and took over the lead in the final 25 meters in an extremely steep summit finish. Yara Kastelijn (Credishop–Fristads) took third on the day. Vollering maintains the red jersey.
Today’s stage took us from Tarazona to a La Laguna Negra summit finish in Vinuesa. Riders traveled 132 kilometers and climbed over 2,000 meters (6,562 feet). They also battled almost continuous crosswinds, common this time of year in northern Spain. Only one categorized climb was at the end of the race, but there was plenty of climbing leading up to the main event.
Team Canyon-SRAM announced that Katarzyna Niewiadoma would not start stage 6 due to illness. Gaia Realini (Lidl-Trek) was also a DNS after suffering a crash yesterday. Both women were among the favorites for the Vuelta podium.
Laura Molenaar (VolkerWessels), Claudia San Justo (Eneicat-CM Team), Aurelia Nerlo (Winspace), and Fauve Bastiaenssen (Lotto-Dstny) worked together as a breakaway group starting around 70 km. to go. All members of the continental teams worked well as a bunch. They didn’t get reeled back in by the peloton until 18 km to go, just before the sprint for bonus seconds.
Check out NBC’s Extended Highlights of Stage 6 on YouTube.
Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike) took first in the sprint for maximum points, adding to her lead for the green jersey. Elena Cecchini (SD Worx-Protime) took second, and Brodie Chapman (Lidl-Trek) took third.
The final climb was a category 1 grind, with 6.5 km of official climbing, but the road ramped up beginning around 10 km. to go. The average grade was 6.8 percent, though there are stretches that reached 13 and 14 percent. There were fewer switchbacks than yesterday’s final climb, but there were more sweeping turns on narrow roads.
Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) led for much of the climb. Pauliena Rooijakkers (Fenix-Deceuninck) attacked at 1.6 km. to go, but couldn’t make it stick. It was Vollering and Évita Muzic (FDJ–Suez) for the last 100 meters, and Muzic out-pedaled the red jersey, out of the saddle for the win in the last 25 meters. Yara Kastelijn (Credishop–Fristads) took third on the day.
Stage 5: Huesca to Jaca, 113.9 km
Demi Vollering Dominates Summit Finish and Takes Over the Leader’s Jersey
Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) won stage 5 of the Vuelta Femenina, in the first of three summit finishes of the stage race. Vollering battled with Yara Kastelijn (Credishop-Fristads) and Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek) in the final steep climb, but broke away with around 1,000 meters to go. Vollering was all alone at the line, 28 seconds ahead of Kastelijn and Longo Borghini. This was Vollering’s first win of 2024 and she has taken over the lead of the GC.
To the mountains! From Huesca to Jaca, our first real mountain stage saw nearly 114 kilometers with a pair of category 2 climbs, one of which provided the day’s summit finish. More than 1,800 meters of climbing (5,905 feet) overall. The first climb, San Juan de la Peña, wasn’t ever incredibly steep, but at 18 km in length, it required endurance and pacing. The second, Rapitán Fort, came at the end—a 3.4 km climb with an average grade of 7.9 percent.
At the 54 km marker, Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike) had a minor crash, but there were no real consequences. This stage was basically a long warmup to the climbs, and the peloton stayed together without any menacing breakaways.
Karlijns Swinkels (UAE Team ADQ) was first to the summit of San Juan de la Peña. She gained 10 bonus points. Once the group reached the monastery at the top of the climb, it was a steep technical descent. Gaia Realini (Lidl-Trek) went down hard, but managed to get back on the bike and to the group with the help of teammate Brodie Chapman.
Check out NBC’s Extended Highlights of Stage 5 on YouTube.
Swinkels made a move with about 12 km to go and stayed 15-20 seconds ahead of the chase group as they entered the final climb. Just before the climb in Jaca, there was a sprint for points where Swinkels took maximum bonus points, followed by Vos.
The final climb brought all the switchbacks, with sections above 10 percent; this climb finish was short but extremely tough. Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) set the pace for the bulk of the climb, followed by Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek) and Yara Kastelijn (Credishop–Fristads). Vollering opened a gap with less than 1,000 meters to go, and ran away with it, building 28 seconds on the chasers. Vollering reached the line first, followed by Kastelijn in second and Longo Borghini in third.
Vollering takes over the leader’s jersey and said in her post-race interview that she hopes she can keep it until the end. Swinkels maintains the polka-dot jersey, and Vos takes the green jersey.
Stage 4: Molina de Aragón to Zaragoza, 142 km
American Kristen Faulkner Blasts to Victory in Stage Four of La Vuelta Femenina
Kristen Faulkner (EF Education–Cannondale) won stage 4 of the Vuelta Femenina, sprinting alone after a breakaway starting at 7.3 km to go. The American finished 10 seconds ahead of Georgia Baker (Liv AlUla Jayco), who took second, and Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike), who took third. Vos now takes over the lead, five seconds ahead of Blanka Vas (SD Worx-Protime). Faulkner is now in third place in the overall GC.
Stage four covered 142 kilometers from Molina de Aragón to Zaragoza. The day included a net downhill, with a lot of flat, fast riding. Kind of the opposite of yesterday’s profile. But they were in a region known for extremely stiff winds, and today did not stray from that trend. Echelons all day.
It was a bank holiday in Spain, so the crowds were out in the wind and a bit of rain, but there were sunny skies for the race to the finish line in Zaragoza.
The lead group maintained a little over a minute on the peloton for a huge portion of the race. It was composed of 18 riders, including 5 from SD Worx. They were followed by a group of 40 riders chasing them.
Check out NBC’s Extended Highlights of Stage 4 on YouTube.
Vos was wearing green today, even though she was technically behind Blanka Vas, because Vas earned both the red and green jersey yesterday.
There was a sprint 12 km from the finish—in Santa Fe—which came with very important bonus points. Vos took maximum points and bonus seconds, which put her in the virtual lead, ahead of Blanka Vas.
Vas took second in the sprint, followed by Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl–Trek), Riejanne Ockeloen-Markus (Visma–Lease a Bike), and Alison Jackson (EF Education–Cannondale).
The first break in the lead group ahead of the finish came with 6 km to go. Faulkner took off, followed by Longo Borghini, Vos, and Jackson, but none could hang on. With 4.5 km to go, Faulkner opened up her gap to as much as 17 seconds. Faulkner crossed the line 10 seconds ahead of the sprint.
In her post-race interview, Faulkner said that the win was thanks to “a combination of planning and a bit of luck.”
Today’s stage was the fastest-ever women’s WorldTour stage, with an average of over 46 km per hour.
Stage 3: Lucena to Teruel, 130.2 km
On the Anniversary of Her First Ever Pro Win, Marianne Vos Takes the Stage Three Victory
Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike) won Stage 3 of the Vuelta Femenina, sprinting to a clear lead in the final meters after a crash fractured the peloton with 2.4 km to go. The 36-year-old Dutch rider beat Charlotte Kool (dsm-firmenich PostN), who finished second, and Olivia Baril (Movistar), who took third. After securing bonus points in an earlier sprint, Blanka Vas (SD Worx-Protime) maintains the leader’s jersey, and also takes over the green jersey.
Stage 3 was a 131-kilometer medium mountain stage. Riders traveled from Lucena to Teruel with another Category 3 ascent. There was also quite a bit of non-categorized climbing throughout—more than 2,000 meters overall—making the day pretty much relentless.
There were four riders who were unable to start the day because of injuries from yesterday’s crashes. Anna Henderson (Visma-Lease a Bike), Clara Emond (EF Education–Cannondale), Marta Cavalli (FDJ-Suez), and Sabrina Stultiens (VolkerWessels). Emma Norsgaard (Movistar) began the day but also had to abandon due to injury.
Once the climbing started around 30 km into the race, there were only a few breaks until the main event, the Alto Fuente de Robielos, which featured in the men’s 2023 race. Mireia Benito (AG Insurance-Soudal-Quick-Step) crossed the line on the climb first, while Karlijn Swinkels (UAE Team ADQ) was able to maintain the QOM jersey.
Benito took a breakaway move with 85 km to go, and as is her style, she just kept growing that lead. By 50 km to go she had 5 minutes and 20 seconds on the peloton. The Spanish national time trial champion is comfortable on these solo breaks and found her rhyme well ahead of the pack for most of the day.
Check out NBC’s Extended Highlights of Stage 3 on YouTube.
With 43 km to go, an intermediate sprint came, on which Benito took maximum bonus points, still more than four minutes ahead of the peloton. Then, Grace Brown (FDJ–Suez) made her own solo break, which earned her bonus points in the sprint. The race leader, Blanka Vas (SD Worx-Protime), took the final points. Brown was eventually reeled back into the peloton.
With about 25 km to go, Vos and team Visma-Lease a Bike started putting the hammer down, getting into formation for the final push. With 10 km to go, Benito’s lead was down to 17 seconds, but she battled on. She was finally caught with 7.3 km to go. For her effort on the day, she earned the white jersey.
Just like yesterday, there was a serious crash with just 2.4 km. to go. This fractured the peloton pretty significantly. The final stretch included several roundabouts and tight turns. There was no real organization as the final sprint came together, but with less than 100 meters to go, Vos took a clear lead for the win by 2-3 bike lengths.
On this day in 2006, Marianne Vos took her first-ever pro victory. She now has 252 pro victories. In her post-race interview, Vos said that she was very pleased. “Yesterday, we worked hard and tried hard, and today, we went all-in. All the girls were working really hard for this, and of course, it’s really nice to be able to finish it off, so I'm very happy with this win.”
Stage 2: Buñol to Moncofa, 118.3 km
Alison Jackson Takes a Stunning Sprint Win
Alison Jackson (EF Education-Cannondale) won stage 2 of the Vuelta Femenina in a reduced sprint after surviving a crash-marred final kilometers. The Canadian beat Blanka Vas (SD Worx-Protime), who finished second, and Karlijn Swinkels (UAE Team ADQ), who finished in third place. After taking the bonus seconds at the finish and in the intermediate sprint, Vas is our new GC leader.
The meat of the action came in the final third of the stage, with bonus points and seconds available at Porte L’Oronet (a Category 3 climb 40 km away from the finish), in the intermediate sprints following the climb, and at the finish line. With such a tight GC standing after Sunday’s team time trial, bonus seconds proved crucial for the green jersey.
Swinkels took the maximum points on the QOM climb. Amanda Spratt (Lidl–Trek) took second, and Gaia Realini (Lidl–Trek) third. Following the climb, Anneke Dijkstra (VolkerWessels) took the first sprint points toward the green jersey, Blanka Vas (SD Worx-Protime) took second, and Grace Brown (FDJ-SUEZ) took third. But it wasn’t a done deal until the sprint to the finish, which came with even more bonus points.
Check out NBC’s Extended Highlights of Stage 2 on YouTube.
The final kilometers were flat, with some technical turns and damp roads that required some serious bike handling. With three kilometers left, there was a major crash in the peloton, and then another at a roundabout with 2.4 km to go. Tons of riders went down.
Despite the crashes, Jackson delivered a beautiful sprint against a reduced group of riders. In her signature style, the victory was immediately followed by a dancing celebration.
“I was in the right position at the right time with teammates to take care of me from beginning to end. And then, we just made the right decisions. Crashes were happening, and I kept safe, playing it smart. At the finish, it was all due to my teammates,” said Jackson in her post-race interview.
Heading into Stage 3, Jackson will wear the green jersey, Vas of SD Worx-Protime will wear the leader’s jersey, and Swinkels of UAE Team ADQ will wear the polka-dot jersey. Lidl-Trek still leads the team classification, followed closely by Visma-Lease a Bike, and SD Worx-Protime.
Stage 1: Valencia to Valencia, 16 km
Sunday’s 16-kilometer team time trial in Valencia, Spain, was flat and fast. This, first and foremost, means we got another look at the Visma-Lease a Bike TT helmets, and we also saw a lot of excellent team action.
It was a tight race throughout, with everyone looking to claim an early general classification lead. But it was Lidl-Trek that took the victory late in the day. The women averaged just under 50 km/h to finish in a time of 19:20. Gaia Realini led across the line and thus will wear the leader’s jersey heading into stage two.
Check out NBC’s Extended Highlights of Stage 1 on YouTube.
The lead didn’t come without drama. Ellen van Dijk and Elynor Bäckstedt both crashed, slightly holding up their teammates on the approach to the finish. But the American team managed to regroup and push to the line just 0.02 seconds over Visma-Lease a Bike.
“After crashing in the TTT, Ellen [van Dijk] has a wound on her chin, which will require stitches, as well as blows to her right shoulder and left knee. She will be taken to hospital for checks to rule out any fractures. Fortunately, there is no sign of concussion,” shared Lidl-Trek in a statement via social media.
In her post-race interview, when asked if the team would work to hold onto the leader’s jersey, Realini said, “For sure, we will take this jersey and defend it for the next stage.”
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