Why Demi Vollering is a little afraid for her legs in Tour de France Femmes, despite being on ultra-dominant streak

The victories she claimed a year ago might have been a bit bigger. In the major classics, others managed to take the lead just a bit earlier this spring. Still, Vollering had 13 victories before the 2023 Tour, and she has 12 victories heading into this year's Tour. After podium finishes in Strade Bianche, the Flèche Brabançonne, the Flèche Wallonne and Liège, she dominated the stage races from early May onwards. She secured two stage wins and the overall title in the Vuelta, a stage win and overall victory in the Basque Country, two stage wins and the leader's jersey in Burgos, and also three (!) stage wins and the general classification in the Tour of Switzerland.

An impressive record, she acknowledges. However, the Olympic Games in Paris have caused some doubts. "I spent three weeks at altitude for the Olympics, but with Paris in the mix, it was a bit different. Normally, I focus on the Tour and have a big training block beforehand. But this time, I also wanted to be fresh for the time trial and road race in Paris, so it was a question of how best to manage that. You want to train hard but also rest. I hope my legs are good this week."

Read more below the photo.

And she will need good legs. When asked if she's improved by a few percent since her overall victory last year, she pauses. "I don't know if I'm stronger than last year. I think maybe a little, but we'll see. For instance, it's been a while since I've done a long climb. You can feel that everyone is extra excited for the Tour and that they've all prepared well with altitude training. Everyone wants to be at their best, and many riders here haven't even done the Olympics. It will be interesting to see if that affects the form of certain riders."

The list of names she needs to watch out for is sharp in her mind. Elisa Longo Borghini of Lidl-Trek won't be there, and SD Worx-Protime teammate Lotte Kopecky is skipping the Tour, but there's still plenty of competition. "Juliette Labous, Kasia Niewiadoma, Evita Muzic, Gaia Realini... There are a lot of strong riders. Neve Bradbury showed in the Giro Donne that she's also very strong on the climbs. I'm curious to see how that will play out on the longer climbs in the Tour."

Read more below the photo.

So, there is some uncertainty, but it won't dampen the excitement. Vollering has two days to get into the rhythm, with a total of three stages in her home country of the Netherlands. Rotterdam, The Hague, Dordrecht... She’s really looking forward to it. "I already told the girls: I'm a bit too psyched, I need to relax a bit, haha! It's very special to start here in the Netherlands, with all my friends and family. We're riding through the region where I grew up, past flowers I used to pick. I'm motivated and can't wait for it to begin."

As the icing on the cake, the Tour will conclude on Sunday with the Alpe d'Huez, a climb that Vollering has thoroughly explored and that holds a special place in her heart. "I've done the Alpe d'Huez three times in training, and it was very special. The first time was a few days before the Alpe d'HuZes, a big event hosted by the Netherlands to raise money in the fight against cancer. That was a special feeling, watching people who head up there for those they've lost. That feeling was in the air, and I'll definitely carry that with me when we go up there."