'Why did I do this? How stupid!' — De Vries on the attack behind her first pro win

Femke de Vries has her first win as a professional. The 32-year-old Dutchwoman from Visma | Lease a Bike attacked in the opening stage of the Tour de Suisse Women and ultimately held off Lauren Dickson (FDJ United-SUEZ) in a two-up sprint. The emotions from De Vries afterwards were a joy to watch, not least in conversation with IDL Pro Cycling.

De Vries only joined Visma | Lease a Bike midway through 2024, after a long spell when cycling was almost a sideline. She studied medicine in Nijmegen and had even found work in elderly care as a junior doctor — until a big opportunity arrived in 2024. She was first offered a contract until the end of 2026, which was extended by two years earlier this year.

That was no accident, because since arriving in 2024 De Vries has surprised friend and foe alike with her results. After stepping up from the Continental team GT Krush, she rode the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France for Visma | Lease a Bike straight away, followed by the Monuments Sanremo Women and Liège-Bastogne-Liège in 2025.

In the races where the big-name leaders were absent, De Vries regularly seized her own chance. She was fifth in Catalonia last year and second at the Tour de l'Ardèche. This year she took the next step, riding to a WorldTour podium at the UAE Tour and, in May, to sixth at the Giro — her third Grand Tour.

At the Tour de Suisse came her first win as a professional, which understandably left De Vries "really very happy". In the flash interview she spoke of cramp threatening to set in during the northern Italian heat of Sondrio, but she had recovered enough after the final climb to beat Dickson in the sprint. "I'm so proud of myself for how I did that, so patiently. It's just incredible."

In the mixed zone she spoke with delight about her attack inside the final 23 kilometres. "At first I thought: why did I do this? How stupid! Now I'd had to put all my energy into the breakaway — but for it to turn out like this... There was only a small group behind us, and who's going to chase there?"

Before the 1.1-kilometre final climb at more than 12 percent, De Vries and Dickson had a minute; at the top it was still half a minute. From there the Dutchwoman knew she would be fighting for the win. "I was surprised how calm I stayed in the finale, because I'd only told myself to do what I always see on TV, haha."

De Vries' off-the-cuff words show exactly who she is: cheerful, relaxed, eager — and a killer on the bike. "I've won!" she shouted. Being handed the yellow leader's jersey was "special", but as she had also worn it briefly in the Ardèche last year, it was the victory that dominated the conversation.

Where will it end for late bloomer De Vries, who has made enormous strides over the past two years? "I don't think those steps are necessarily huge — it's just a little bit of everything adding up. I have slightly more power, I can cope slightly better with fatigue, and small steps like that make a big difference at this level."

"I started fairly late, so I'm lucky that I can still grow, and that counts for a lot in this peloton. You never know, but so far I'm still improving. We'll see where the ceiling is," she smiled, aware that she now has to shift her goals a little. Her main aim since 2024 had, after all, been to win just once. "And that's much harder than following and finishing high in a classification."

After the Tour de Suisse, De Vries has a good month before lining up at the start of the Tour de France in Switzerland in early August. However strong her 2026 has been, she certainly did not want to think about a role of her own at the Tour. "I'm going to ride the national championship, and then at the Tour it's all for Pauline Ferrand-Prévot."

The Frenchwoman won the Tour de France Femmes in 2025, and De Vries was already of crucial value to that success. Don't be surprised if the climber catches the eye as a helper again in August. "But I'm not going to think about tomorrow yet, or the day after. I only want to think about this moment and this win. I'm going to call my boyfriend in a minute and tell him it was worth all the effort."

Or, as she put it later in the mixed zone: "When you gain more confidence, it can turn you into a rider who waits for the favourites. But I didn't do that. I saw an attack and went on instinct."

Bram van der Ploeg ( LinkedIn | email: [email protected])