2026 Tour de France Femmes stage 2 preview | Green jersey ambitions put the key in Wiebes’ hands

Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx–Protime) won the opening stage of the Tour de France Femmes in dominant fashion on Saturday. Before the stage, there had still been some uncertainty over whether the route would suit her, but Wiebes emphatically turned that question mark into an exclamation mark. Another opportunity awaits on Sunday, and IDL Procycling takes a closer look at what to expect.

The second stage of the Tour de France Femmes starts in Aigle, home to the UCI, and covers approximately 149 kilometres. The opening 30 kilometres run mainly through the Swiss valleys, but the riders will then have to tackle some elevation around the vineyards of Vaud.

There are five categorised climbs in total, although none is longer than 3.2 kilometres. They are therefore unlikely to be difficult enough to trouble riders such as Lorena Wiebes, especially as more than 45 kilometres remain after the final climb.

After the final obstacle, the concluding section of the route takes the riders towards Geneva, where the finish is located beside Lake Geneva. It is on the opposite side of the lake from Thonon-les-Bains, where the men contested their Tour de France time trial two weeks earlier.

The closing kilometres run entirely alongside the picturesque lake, which the race follows in a wide arc for much of the day. However, the riders will not see the finish until approximately 250 metres from the line because of a bend on the Quai du Mont-Blanc.

Times
Start: 2:20 p.m. CEST
Finish: around 5:47 p.m. CEST

Sunday will be hot across Europe, and Switzerland will be no exception. Temperatures are expected to remain above 30 degrees Celsius throughout the afternoon, while the wind will provide little relief even beside Lake Geneva, with barely any breeze forecast.

On paper, this is the stage most suited to the sprinters, which immediately points towards one rider: Lorena Wiebes of SD Worx–Protime. She also happens to be wearing the yellow jersey, although her team may have other priorities to consider on Sunday.

With Anna van der Breggen also providing the team with a serious general classification contender, spending the entire day controlling the race may not be the approach SD Worx–Protime wants to take. Riders such as Lotte Kopecky and Mischa Bredewold could potentially benefit from that situation. Kristen Faulkner (EF Education–Oatly) and Pfeiffer Georgi (Picnic PostNL) may also hope to take advantage, although Wiebes’ ambitions in the green jersey competition give her team a strong reason to pursue another stage victory.

Should the stage end in a bunch sprint, Elisa Balsamo (Lidl–Trek) and Charlotte Kool (Alpecin–Premier Tech) are normally the riders most likely to challenge Wiebes. On uphill terrain, however, neither can usually match the Dutchwoman.

Elsewhere, Canyon//SRAM has two strong options in Zoe Bäckstedt and Chiara Consonni, while Marianne Vos will also hope for an opportunity on behalf of Visma | Lease a Bike. Shari Bossuyt (AG Insurance–Soudal), Noemi Rüegg (EF Education–Oatly), Sandrine Tas (Lotto), Arlenis Sierra (Movistar) and Letizia Paternoster (Liv AlUla Jayco) all possess a strong finishing speed as well.

Top Favorites: Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime)
Dark horses: Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek), Zoe Backstedt (Canyon//SRAM), and Charlotte Kool (Alpecin-Premier Tech)
Long shots: Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike), Chiara Consonni (Canyon//SRAM), Lotte Kopecky, Mischa Bredewold (SD Worx-Protime), Shari Bossuyt (AG Insurance), and Letizia Paternoster (Liv Jayco AlUla)