The Italian rider was on the podium in stage two while Riejanne Markus won the prize for most combative rider
Elisa Balsamo powered to a superb second-place finish on stage two of the Tour de France Femmes, with Lidl-Trek also animating the day’s racing through an attacking ride from Riejanne Markus, who was awarded the day’s Most Combative Rider prize after a courageous solo breakaway.
The 149-kilometre stage from Aigle to Geneva looked destined to end in a bunch sprint, but Markus had other ideas. The Dutch rider launched an ambitious solo attack with just under 40 kilometres remaining, quickly building a significant advantage as the peloton hesitated behind.
Markus rode with determination over the rolling roads into Geneva, forcing the sprint teams to organise a full-scale chase. Despite the relentless pursuit, she refused to give in, holding the peloton at bay until the final kilometres before finally being caught inside the closing kilometre. Her brave performance earned the admiration of fans lining the roads and the Most Combative Rider award.
Photo: Getty Images
With Markus’ efforts softening up the bunch, Lidl-Trek seamlessly switched focus to Balsamo for the sprint finish. Supported by a strong lead-out, the Italian launched her sprint in the closing metres but could not quite match the speed of Lorena Wiebes, crossing the line in an impressive second place to collect another valuable podium finish.
The combination of Markus’ fearless attacking display and Balsamo’s podium result underlined Lidl-Trek’s aggressive approach to the race, with the team proving capable of shaping the stage from long range while still delivering a top sprint result.
With confidence building after another strong day at the Tour de France Femmes, Lidl-Trek will head into the next stage excited for what is to come as the race evolves.
After the race Markus commented:
I came pretty close, I honestly didn't really expect that. We wanted to be part of the game but I knew that the sprinters really wanted to get a chance today, so I was surprised to be so close and it was actually disappointing in the end.
I was not thinking about the win, I was just trying to go all-out and be as quick as possible. One kilometer before the finish I thought: ‘they're still not here, when are they coming?!’ But in the end I was pretty proud of my effort.
It’s nice to be on the podium but I really hope that I come closer than I did today somewhere in the next stages.
