Wiebes "saw something yellow on the ground," but continued the race: "Not stressing too much and enjoying a bit for Blanka"

The fifth stage in the Tour de France Femmes went in all directions for SD Worx-Protime. The team initially wanted to battle for the stage win with Lorena Wiebes but eventually saw Kata Blanka Vas take the stage while Demi Vollering crashed in the finale. Afterward, the team's riders were guessing the race's primary emotions—sadness, of course, for Vollering, relief, and joy for the Hungarian winner.

First of all, Mischa Bredewold spoke at the Eurosport microphone. Still in shock, she told her story. No, I didn't see it because I was riding in front. At first, I didn't hear it either because I had heard so much. Until I heard, "Demi fell, Mischa. Wait!". Then I stopped and waited. In the end, she managed to do something for her lead rider. 'I was able to do some work for her on the flat. She herself went full throttle on the climb, so luckily she could minimize the damage," said the European champion.

Wiebes knows Vollering and is confident she will be fine: "And be happy for Vas"

Subsequently, Lorena Wiebes told her story to NOS. With her also a vast mix of emotions. She was eager to win herself, saw Vollering fall, was happy for Vas, and had confidence in the upcoming days. 'Demi would be my last lead-out on the climb, so I said to Demi, "I'm staying with you," and Wiebes opened it while panting. "I have no clue what happened because they were all on the ground when we turned the corner."

After that, it was chaos all the way. Wiebes was spared. "I was fortunate that I stayed on the bike myself. When I looked back, I did see something yellow on the ground. So that's a huge bummer." The sprint star then concluded with a call for composure. "We shouldn't stress and panic too much. It's only a few scrapes, and Demi has the mountains to compensate for it. Besides, I'm also happy that Blanka won today. She showed herself to be a fine teammate for the Hungarian."

Team leader Stam does not know what feeling is controlling him: 

Sports director Danny Stam also searched for the dominant feeling quite a bit afterward at NOS. "We started the chase, we wanted to go for Lorena today. And then, at six kilometers, you hear about a big fall. We heard our team name, but not that Demi was there. We heard that from Niamh Fisher-Black. Then we had Mischa wait that out immediately," Stam indicated the changes within the team.

Then, he was in limbo about the rest of the proceedings. "Once you know who sits where, you can drop riders. We didn't let Lorena wait because four kilometers is not so easy," he also immediately explained the "Wiebes issue." "I haven't spoken to Demi yet, but when I saw her popping in the last kilometer, I thought she'd be fine; it was just a little skin. I didn't hear until later that Blanka was still in the front. What she is doing is great, a band-aid for the wounds. I think Demi's deficit is repairable under normal conditions," Stam said.

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