Anna van der Breggen leaves Tour de France Femmes before Mont Ventoux after difficult week

Anna van der Breggen will not start Stage 7 of the Tour de France Femmes. The Dutch SD Worx-Protime leader had struggled with poor legs throughout the week, bringing a frustrating Tour to an early end after arriving with genuine ambitions for the general classification. Those hopes never materialised, however, and Van der Breggen has now decided to bring her race to a premature conclusion ahead of the stage to Mont Ventoux.

Van der Breggen arrived at the Tour de France Femmes in good form. She finished fourth at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and fifth at La Flèche Wallonne before winning a stage at the Vuelta Femenina and finishing second overall. She lost the leader's jersey on the final day in Spain. The same thing happened later at the Giro d'Italia, where she eventually finished third overall. In France, however, she was unable to find the same level she had shown earlier in the season.

SD Worx-Protime described it in a team statement as "a difficult week of racing", with Van der Breggen taking an early period of rest. "From the very first stage, Anna was not feeling at her best. We kept hoping she would start to feel better as the race progressed, but unfortunately that improvement never came," Sports Manager Danny Stam explained.

"Therefore, we have decided not to take any unnecessary risks and to give her the rest she needs," Stam said. By leaving the Tour early, Van der Breggen will have additional time to recover and prepare for her upcoming goals later this season, according to the team. It is not yet known where the Dutch climber will return to racing.

Van der Breggen endured a difficult start to the Tour de France Femmes. She finished 13th on the opening stage but was unable to make an impact in the individual time trial to Dijon, placing 14th and losing considerable time to several of her key rivals. She then finished 18th on Stage 5 before losing no fewer than 13 minutes the following day. Given how the week had unfolded, the decision to leave the race before the Mont Ventoux stage comes as little surprise.