Pieterse had to take a back seat, but learned a lot for an ambitious project

Anyone who looked at the route could see four or five opportunities for the 2024 version of Pieterse in the first seven days of the Tour, but the 23-year-old world mountain bike champion lay low. That was largely deliberate, but a crash on day three also caused her knee problems. “Puck is tough,” said team leader Michel Cornelisse after six days of the Tour, one day after Pieterse lost half a minute.

At Fenix-Deceuninck, they didn't want to make a direct link between the crash, which also involved Demi Vollering, and the time lost on day 5 of the Tour. Cornelisse preferred to look ahead to what was still to come, with some punchy finishes and then the Alpine stages on the Madeleine (Saturday) and over the Joux-Plaines (Sunday). There was still confidence in both Pauline Rooijakkers and Pieterse for a place in the GC, but it didn't happen.

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While Rooijakkers went on the attack on days 7 and 8 and, in her own words, rode full throttle for the Tour victory, we saw Pieterse fall behind. In stage 7, there was also a crash in the descent, which didn't make things any easier. In the Madeleine stage, she again dropped back quickly, and Cornelisse said afterwards: “When Puck dropped back, we immediately told her to take it easy so she could try again on Sunday.”

But Pieterse smiled at that comment when it was mentioned to her on Sunday before the start of stage 9. “I think everyone will be happy when it’s over. I’m looking forward to the stage, and the faster we cycle, the sooner we’ll be done, haha.” Pieterse didn’t feature in the final stage, partly due to the relentless pace among the women in the GC. Rooijakkers also missed out on a place in the top five.

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“I think I can be satisfied in the end. I learned a lot, both in the preparation and everything involved, ” Pieterse concluded positively. “We learned a lot and discovered many things in this Tour. It would have been strange if I had already ridden in yellow this year. This year was a very good learning experience. I feel that I managed my energy better than last year.”

“But also looking forward to such a race, after it had never really been a goal last year, with everything that comes with it. Last year, I went into it with very different expectations and less stress,” continued Pieterse, who didn't want to use the crashes as an excuse. “In the end, it just costs you energy, which is unfortunate. Wound care also takes extra time during the day and affects your sleep and daily activities. Ultimately, you never know how much it really affects you.”

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Although she has gained a lot from the Tour, Pieterse believes it is still too early to draw any firm conclusions about her role as a potential GC contender for Fenix-Deceuninck. “After two Tour de France races, you can't really say whether I can be a GC rider. As I said, I approached it very differently last year, so this was only my first Tour with a different mindset. After one attempt, you can't draw many conclusions due to the combination of circumstances.”

The most important thing is that Pieterse genuinely enjoys it and that she has no intention of giving up the new project as a GC rider. “I really enjoy riding a big race like this, even though it's different and takes some getting used to,” she said honestly. The attacker in Pieterse often had to tone it down during the nine days. “Sometimes there were moments when I knew it was the right time to do something, but because I wanted to learn lessons from this Tour, it's good that I didn't.”

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg | email: [email protected])