Sigrid Haugset takes Tour de France Femmes yellow after stunning long-range solo: ‘Second is good!’

Did anyone have Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset’s name written down ahead of stage three of the Tour de France Femmes? It seems unlikely. The Norwegian from Uno-X Mobility completed a monstrous solo ride by claiming not only a surprise stage victory, but also the yellow jersey. The exhaustion was enormous at the finish, but the happiness was even greater.

Cycling’s most dedicated followers already knew Haugset as a powerful all-rounder with strong climbing legs and an enormous engine, but nobody could have expected what the Norwegian champion produced during the third stage. She accelerated with almost 90 kilometres remaining during the hilly stage to Poligny. It became desperately close, but she protected her advantage and completed a sensational victory.

Lotte Kopecky of SD Worx-Protime attacked from the peloton with 50 kilometres remaining and tried to close the gap. The Belgian came to within ten seconds of Haugset but simply could not make the final connection. A dream therefore became reality for the Norwegian. “I have to say it is, but I haven’t been thinking about it because I never thought it was possible,” she said with a laugh during the flash interview. “It’s unreal.”

Holding off Kopecky came down to pure resilience. “The gap really wasn’t big. When I went, I thought, yeah, she’ll catch me. I thought, should I just drop down to her? Second is good!” Haugset laughed. “But I kept on. The car was amazing, pushing me. I was thinking about all my teammates and everyone cheering me on back home. I had to give it everything. I can’t believe she didn’t catch me. And in the Norwegian champion’s jersey — it’s amazing!”

Haugset’s biggest followers already knew just how tough she was. The 27-year-old competed in Paris-Roubaix last year but suffered a heavy crash. She climbed back onto her bike and completed the race in 71st place. Medical examinations at the hospital later revealed that she had done so with a fractured hip. The pain she felt during Monday’s finale was unlikely to have compared with what she endured on that occasion.

This is only Haugset’s second professional victory, following her Norwegian national title in June. The fact that this latest win also came with the yellow jersey is almost impossible for her to comprehend. “I was so dizzy at the end. My boyfriend will be angry with me for not celebrating, but I couldn’t lift my arms off the bike. It was impossible. I wasn’t even thinking about it anymore.”

Haugset now leads Kimberley Le Court by two minutes and two seconds in the general classification, with Demi Vollering at 2:06 and Marlen Reusser at 22:10. Tuesday brings the individual time trial. Whether the Norwegian can protect her advantage remains to be seen, particularly after such a punishing effort. For now, even the victory itself has not completely sunk in. “No, definitely not. Maybe it will in a few weeks.”