The riders were presented with a whopping 1,800 metres of elevation gain in a relatively short (122.7 kilometres) but hilly fourth stage today. It was a case of climbing almost immediately after the start. With the Bemelerberg (1.3 kilometres at 4.9 percent), the Cauberg (0.7 kilometres at 8 percent) and the Geulhemmerberg (1.1 kilometres at 5.1 percent), the race quickly became a war of attrition, but the peloton remained compact. The expected war to be in the early breakaway did not materialise on the familiar climbs of the Amstel Gold Race.
After a little over 30 kilometers of racing we noted the first attack of the stage. The Spanish Sara Martin of Movistar was given a free pass by the peloton and created a gap of one minute. The pack, with yellow jersey wearer Vollering, let it go.
Martin also kept pushing hard on Belgian soil. And Laura Tomasi had seen enough. She went solo in search of the leader, but could not close the gap. The Italian dropped back into the peloton, which gradually increased the pace. The lead shrank on the wet Belgian roads, which claimed two victims. Chloe Dygert and teammate Neve Bradbury fell, while the rest continued to storm unhindered.
Closed level crossing
The pace was good, also for the leader, but suddenly a closed crossing caused a delay. Martin saw her lead shrink, but a UCI official – with stopwatch in hand – reassured the Spanish rider. Martin had a 35-second lead on the peloton when the barriers went down, and would keep that bonus. The peloton was stopped, Dugert and Bradbury, who went through the bends with an egg in their pants, were able to rejoin the peloton.
On the Mont-Theux, leader Martin was finally caught. She was no match for the peloton on her own, driven by the women in the classification. Vollering had marked the fourth stage in her agenda.
From Amstel Gold Race to Liège-Bastogne-Liège
The next obstacle was the famous Côte de La Redoute (1.6 km at 9.4%). Fenix-Deceuninck impressed on the second category climb. With Pieterse, Kastelijn and Rooijakkers they had three pawns with them. Vollering and competitor Niewiadoma were also well positioned.
At the top of the next climb, the Côte des Forges, it was our compatriot Justine Ghekiere who was the first to reach the top and thus took the three mountain points. The rider of AG Insurance – Soudal then pushed on and behind her there was some hesitation. Result: a lead of about twenty seconds with just over twenty kilometers to go.
Ghekiere understood that she had to keep going. Our compatriot took the bends with great risk and started with a bonus of seventeen seconds at the Valkenrots. Vollering accelerated and got Niewiadoma with her. The duo closed the gap to Ghekiere, while Pieterse and Rooijakker also tried to keep up. Marianne Vos had to pass.
Our compatriot was caught by the Vollering group, which saw Rooijakker fall away, and had to give in herself shortly afterwards. Her great work was done. In the meantime, Vollering, Niewiadoma and Pieterse had found each other at the head of the race. The message was to keep turning well, because the pace in the peloton did not drop. The leaders were therefore not allowed to come to a standstill in order to keep their chance of a stage win intact.
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Half wheel difference
The finish came into view and it became clear that the winner was in the leading group. We were going to sprint with three, until Niewiadoma – not so strong in the sprint herself – tried to surprise her competitors with an attack. However, the Polish was no match for Vollering and Pieterse. The latter jumped away from a chair, Vollering reacted just too late and saw her compatriot take the stage victory with half a wheel difference. It was so close that a photo finish was even needed, but that confirmed that Pieterse was faster than the yellow jersey wearer. What a victory for the Dutch, who wins her first stage in the Tour de France Femmes.
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Vollering may have finished second in Liège, but she remains the leader in the general classification. Vollering has a 22-second lead over Pieterse, Niewiadoma follows at 34”. Justine Ghekiere was the first Belgian and finished in nineteenth place. Our compatriot also received the prize for combativeness.
