Vollering fully in control, even when Niewiadoma asks why she didn't take the lead: "It was up to Fenix"

Demi Vollering was happy to let Puck Pieterse have her stage win in the fourth stage of the Tour de France Femmes, but the Dutch rider from SD Worx-Protime also did excellent work herself. After her strong performance in the time trial on Tuesday, she once again gained time on all her rivals in Liège on Wednesday, except for Pieterse. It was a plan that was perfectly executed, as she said afterward.

"It was a good day for me and the whole team," Vollering began with a touch of understatement in the flash interview. She eventually stayed at the front with Pieterse and Kasia Niewiadoma, which was exactly according to plan. "We knew it was a tough stage, and we were never really in danger. On the last climb, she would attack, and then we’d see what was left. They ended up with three riders, so that was very good for us," said team manager Danny Stam to IDLProCycling.com.

The cooperation between the trio was good, which ultimately allowed them to finish 29 seconds ahead of the first chasers. However, that cooperation only started once Paulina Rooijakkers, Pieterse’s teammate, was dropped. When Niewiadoma asked for collaboration with four riders at the front, Vollering initially refused. "When Puck still had a teammate, I told Kasia that it was more up to Fenix-Deceuninck with their two riders. When it was just the three of us, we all gave it our all."

"Demi was always allowed to ride from our side," Stam also emphasized. So, she took responsibility when Niewiadoma tried to break away before the sprint. "I hoped Puck would close the gap to Kasia, but she didn’t do it right away, so I did it myself. I didn’t want to give Kasia too much space because if she gets away, she’s gone. I closed the gap at my own pace so I wouldn’t be completely exhausted and so Kasia would keep riding a bit longer as a sort of lead-out for us. Fortunately, she kept riding."

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The sprint between Pieterse and Vollering, with the beaten Niewiadoma behind....

Vollering has the Tour de France completely under control so far

"In the end, I’m happy with how the stage went," Vollering later told NOS. "Gained some more time in the overall standings, so I think I can be very satisfied. Ultimately, you always want to aim for the highest possible, that’s just in my nature, but I’m very pleased today. I’m full of confidence, but it’s still the Tour de France. You need to stay healthy, you need to stay upright. Today was very chaotic again with the wet weather, so with crashes. That can throw a lot of things off. Until ‘the very end,’ I’m not ready to bet on anything."

There’s still a lot to come, with two hilly stages on Thursday and Friday and big Alpine climbs over the weekend. Anna van der Breggen also called for staying focused in an interview with Sporza. "That’s what I like about the Tour de France Femmes. Today was like a classic, especially because of the weather. You see that there are already quite a few differences. The funny thing is that tomorrow will be totally different, and in the end, there will be a rider who has the most overall capabilities. So for us, Demi really needs to stay focused because things can go wrong anywhere."

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