The Tour de Suisse Girls simply turned extra open since skilled biking’s most dominant rider, Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ), opted to forego the race after having to dig deep to win the Giro d’Italia Girls final week.
FDJ United-SUEZ confirmed to Cyclingnews that Vollering will skip the Tour de Suisse to relaxation earlier than she ramps up towards the Tour de France Femmes, which begins on August 1.
„We have collectively determined to introduce a restoration block, [is] as a way to put together her in addition to doable for her upcoming objectives,“ the staff acknowledged, in accordance with IDLProcycling. „We might wish to thank the organisers for his or her understanding.“
Vollering, who gained the Volta de la Comunitat Valenciana in February earlier than a profitable Spring Classics marketing campaign – that included victories in Omloop Nieuwsblad, the Tour of Flanders, Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège – solely had a brief break earlier than successful the Giro d’Italia.
Different riders opting out of the Tour de Suisse embrace Vollering’s teammate Elise Chabbey, Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Canyon-SRAM) and Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-ProTime) however a number of different favourites have emerged forward of the five-stage Girls’s WorldTour race.
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With a flat 23.7-kilometre particular person time trial and a closing day with over 3,000 metres of climbing culminating on the summit at Villars-sur-Ollon, the Tour de Suisse Girls contenders should exhibit top-notch energy throughout each flat terrain and hovering mountains.
Ultimate begin lists weren’t out but on the time of writing, however from amongst these anticipated to be on the road Cyclingnews has picked a number of apparent candidates and in addition some riders with the capability to shock.
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Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon-SRAM)
The Polish rider has had an agonising time since heading off Vollering on Alpe d’Huez to win the 2024 Tour de France Femmes, with no fewer than 5 second-place finishes, and extra podiums or near-podium finishes, however only a single victory on the highway – Poland’s 2025 Nationwide Championships highway race.
If it wasn’t Vollering (European Championships and Omloop), it was the Dutch rider’s teammate Elise Chabbey (Strade Bianche), or Movistar’s Marlen Reusser (Tour de Suisse), relegating Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney to second place.
Within the Tour de Suisse, Niewiadoma-Phinney might want to deal with no matter she will acquire on stronger time trialists early within the race and the ultimate stage, since there is just one pure climber’s day.
What to learn subsequent
There are two alternatives for the 31-year-old to eke out a number of seconds right here and there with a few her signature assaults. On stage 1, the Bordighi climb throughout the border in Italy pitches as much as nearly 12% and is 1.1km lengthy, coming simply six kilometres from the end.
Stage 2 has two climbs within the final 15km, the Fanghi ascent (3.5km at 7%) and Orselina (1.4km at 8.8%), however has an extended, flat run-in to Locarno after the ultimate descent.
Since flat-line energy is not Niewiadoma’s forté, she should restrict her losses within the stage 4 time trial that comes after a flat sprinter’s stage, after which go for broke on the ultimate day, a circuit beginning and ending in Villars-sur-Ollon – halfway up the Col de la Croix – that covers your complete ascent twice.
Niewiadoma-Phinney wasn’t at her greatest within the Vuelta Femenina, ending eighth total, greater than three minutes adrift of winner Paula Blasi (UAE Workforce ADQ), however has had a stable month to ramp up for the Tour de Suisse and stays a high contender.
Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Workforce ADQ)
The Italian champion had a tough spring, falling ailing after successful the UAE Tour and Trofeo Oro in Euro and lacking out on races similar to Milan-San Remo and the Spanish stage races in Could, however all through the Giro d’Italia she improved.
Setting her sights realistically on a top-five total, Longo Borghini met her objective with an aggressive closing stage during which she went on the assault to win forward of Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek), Antonia Niedermaier (Canyon-SRAM) and Vollering.
Longo Borgnini is equally aggressive as Niewiadoma-Phinney on shorter, punchy climbs and will likely be powerful to shake. She additionally may need a greater likelihood than Niewiadoma within the stage 4 time trial. Whereas she hasn’t competed in a time trial over 20km for the reason that 2023 Tour de Suisse, and completed effectively off the tempo within the 12.7km take a look at within the Giro, Longo Borghini is an completed time trialist who misplaced solely 16 seconds to Marlen Reusser throughout an analogous take a look at within the 2023 Tour de Suisse.
Seeming to be inching again to her greatest within the mountains through the Giro d’Italia, however not fairly there on the longer climb of the Finestre, the ultimate stage might go both manner for Longo Borghini, relying on her well being. However the 34-year-old at all times offers her greatest and cannot be counted out within the Tour de Suisse.
Marlen Reusser (Movistar Workforce)
The winner of the Tour de Suisse in 2023 and 2025, Marlen Reusser, is the house nation’s greatest likelihood on the total victory once more this 12 months, particularly contemplating the return of the person time trial.
However Reusser has had a tricky 12 months, too. She needed to pull out of the UAE Tour after a crash on stage 2 left her with stitches to her knee and hand. She then fractured a number of vertebrae in a crash through the Tour of Flanders, which saved her out of competitors till the Giro.
She confirmed a outstanding restoration, taking second to Van der Breggen within the time trial, however was unable to stay in competition for the ultimate Giro d’Italia podium within the mountains, and completed thirteenth total.
The stage 4 Tour de Suisse time trial is Reusser’s to lose, because the starter with essentially the most prolific report within the self-discipline. The one query is that if she will acquire sufficient time to behave as a buffer if she struggles on the Col de la Croix.
With a number of extra weeks to bounce again absolutely and a considerably much less demanding parcours, Reusser is unquestionably a contender for the ultimate podium.
Juliette Berthet (FDJ United-SUEZ)
Do not rule FDJ United-Suez out of the operating on the Tour de Suisse simply because Vollering is not going to be on the beginning line. Among the many riders which might be usually discovered supporting her within the climbs at key occasions are additionally quite a lot of robust contenders in their very own proper. Juliette Berthet (née Labous) is without doubt one of the prime examples.
The rider who got here second total on the Giro d’Italia in 2023 and fourth on the Tour de France Femmes in 2022 delivered a reminder of simply how ably she might handle on the testing climbing phases when she was working for her personal outcomes on the Vuelta Femenina this 12 months. Berthet completed third atop L’Angliru and took fifth total, regardless of having to work into the race given she had a chilly beforehand.
The stage that stands out as one the place the French rider can actually get the benefit is, after all, the ultimate climb-heavy day, but additionally working in her favour is that she is not too shabby in a time trial both.
The 27-year-old was seventh and sixth on the World and European Championships particular person time trials final 12 months and took fourth within the self-discipline on the Olympic Video games in Paris. It is not an space the place she is predicted to have the ability to compete with Reusser, however there’s loads of cause to suppose she will snare a bonus on a few of her different climbing specialist rivals. In truth, her fourth place within the time trial on the Tour de Suisse in 2024 was what helped her into the highest 5 total.
Femke de Vries (Visma-Lease a Bike)
Visma-Lease a Bike’s Femke de Vries could not precisely have a report on the Tour de Suisse Girls that will instantly make her an apparent addition to the highest contenders checklist, having come sixteenth final 12 months and thirteenth the 12 months earlier than. Nonetheless, it is laborious to go previous a rider who was third behind Longo Borghini within the UAE Tour this 12 months and completed sixth total within the Giro d’Italia. That is particularly the case when De Vries was the very best of the remaining behind Vollering on the Finestre within the Giro, ending fifth on the stage behind the pink jersey group, after which she matched Van der Breggen in her pursuit of Vollering’s group on the ultimate stage.
The 32-year-old has but to chalk up a professional victory, however has an extended checklist of top-five leads to stage races and actually seems to have stepped up a stage this season on the climbs. What’s extra, she has a stable time trial, so with a bit of luck thrown in as effectively, she might be up there within the Tour de Suisse.
Outsiders
Yara Kastelijn (Fenix-Premier Tech)
Winner of the Vuelta a Burgos and runner-up within the Itzulia Girls, Kastelijn has made strides within the Girls’s WorldTour in recent times.
The Dutch rider’s greatest win thus far was stage 4 of the Tour de France Femmes in 2023, when she soloed into Rodez after being the one rider left of a 151-kilometre breakaway to carry off the group of GC riders.
Final month, Kastelijn put in a surprising efficiency on the brutal climb of Lagunas de Neila within the Vuelta a Burgos, successful by 16 seconds over Évita Muzic (FDJ United-SUEZ).
The time trial will likely be a thorn within the 28-year-old’s aspect, nonetheless. Though as a cyclo-cross racer, she’s able to placing out robust flat-line energy, it is not a self-discipline the place she has put a lot focus. However, as a rider like Niewiadoma-Phinney and Longo Borghini who likes to assault on powerful climbing phases, she might use that terrain to make up for any time trial points and stay an total contender.
Urška Žigart (AG Insurance coverage-Soudal)
The Tour de Suisse is a race the place the Slovenian has a robust report, ending inside the highest ten in 2023 and 2024 earlier than ramping it up and transferring into the highest 5 final 12 months. Urška Žigart is an all-rounder who has confirmed that she may be up there within the punchy phases and never drop the ball within the time trial, delivering constant performances which have quietly shifted her up the ranks.
That has been a sample repeated this 12 months within the opening two Grand Excursions, although what appears to have been amped up in current seasons is her efficiency on the climbs. The Tour de Romandie final 12 months, the place she delivered second total, was clear proof of that, as was her seventh at L’Angliru on the Vuelta Femenina in 2026, the place she got here sixth total. If she will slot that further piece of the puzzle into place on the ultimate stage of the Tour de Suisse, Žigart might be trying past the highest 5 and towards the rostrum.
Jasmin Liechti (Switzerland)
Whereas the final two entries are names which may be circling the higher fringe of the outsider class, the following two are names which might be definitely not as outstanding, not but a minimum of. Firstly, there’s the 23-year-old racing for the Swiss Nationwide Workforce, Jasmin Liechti.
Usually racing for the small Continental staff Nexetis, Liechti hasn’t competed in lots of WorldTour races however has carried out the Tour de Suisse and Tour de Romandie up to now.
She landed on our radar after successful the general Bretagne Women Tour because of a powerful particular person time trial victory, averaging over 42kph. With wins within the Gracia stage race and three one-day race wins this 12 months, it is going to be fascinating to see how she fares in comparison with earlier years, when she was effectively outdoors of the highest 40.
Talia Appleton (Liv AlUla Jayco)
The Australian was truly meant to be racing with the Continental growth squad this 12 months, however the younger rider was fast to show that she was able to performing on the high stage and final month obtained bumped as much as the WorldTour Workforce.
Talia Appleton had confirmed her stripes at residence earlier than launching into Europe, leaping to prominence with a victory on high of Tawonga Hole on the Tour of Vibrant in 2024, then constantly being a high performer within the ProVelo Tremendous League in 2025 earlier than getting an opportunity in Europe and taking third total on the Tour de l’Avenir.
Now, in 2026, she is coming into the Tour de Suisse recent from her promotion to the WorldTour staff and in addition with a primary skilled win within the books, after earlier this month clinching the Alpes Gresivaudan Basic. The Tour de Suisse is just not Appleton’s first WorldTour-level race in Europe, that was Itzulia Girls, however it’s her first with a summit end. Will probably be intriguing to see how she fares towards the top-level discipline in terrain that performs to her climbing energy.
