Stage 4: The ITT - when power matters the most

If yesterday was all about courage and attacking instinct, today was about pure speed.

The individual time trial (ITT) in this year's Tour de France Femmes was always going to shake up the general classification, and that's exactly what happened.

On paper, it looked like a straightforward course...and it pretty much was.

Apart from the final kilometre or two weaving into Dijon, there was very little technical riding. The course was dominated by long, straight roads, a gradual climb that crested around halfway and a fast, uncomplicated run back into the finish.

That meant one thing: this was a course for the specialists.

The climb simply wasn't steep enough for the pure climbers to gain any real advantage. Instead, the riders with the biggest engines, the best aerodynamics and the ability to produce sustained power were always going to come to the fore.

And that's exactly how it played out.

There were very few surprises at the very top of the results.

Marlen Reusser was the clear favourite coming into today, and she delivered another masterclass. She looked smooth, powerful and completely in control from start to finish. This is exactly the kind of course that suits her, and taking both the stage win and the yellow jersey never really looked in doubt.

One of the standout performances of the day came from Lieke Nooijen of Team Visma | Lease a Bike.

She spent much of the afternoon in the hot seat and eventually finished just four seconds behind Marlen Reusser. That's an exceptional ride against one of the world's very best time trialists and another sign of the incredible depth within the Visma | Lease a Bike squad.

For the general classification contenders, however, today was all about limiting losses.

This was always going to be a difficult day for Pauline Ferrand-Prévot.

The defending champion has clearly arrived at this Tour incredibly lean, putting all of her emphasis on climbing performance. But that's also the challenge with this year's route. Pauline conceded 2 minutes and 12 seconds to Marlen Reusser today and now sits 2 minutes and 14 seconds behind on the general classification. That's still a manageable gap, but because this year's Tour has only one true summit finish, there are fewer opportunities to take back large chunks of time in a traditional way.

If Team Visma | Lease a Bike want to bring Pauline back into contention, they'll likely need to race creatively and aggressively - looking for opportunities on the climbs before the finish, much like Uno-X Mobility did with Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset yesterday.

In many ways, today's stage highlighted the direction women's Grand Tours are taking.

As the races continue to evolve, time trials are becoming an increasingly important part of the overall route. But unlike the men's three-week Grand Tours, women's stage races are capped at ten days. That naturally limits the number of summit finishes where pure climbers can make the biggest differences.

This year's Tour de France Femmes is the perfect example. There is really only one major summit finish on Mont Ventoux. Yesterday's climb on the Col de la Faucille certainly shaped the race, but because it came so early in the stage, it wasn't a climb where the pure climbers could truly exploit their power-to-weight advantage.

That's why a time trial like today's carries so much weight. It shifts the balance towards the more complete Grand Tour riders - those who can climb with the very best but who also possess the raw power, aerodynamic efficiency and time trial ability to compete against the specialists.

That's exactly why someone like Demi Vollering was always expected to shine today.

She has developed into one of the most complete stage racers in the world: light enough to climb with the very best, yet powerful enough to excel against the clock. On a route like this, that combination becomes an enormous advantage. She leaves Dijon looking every bit like one of the strongest contenders for the overall victory.

Among the lighter climbers, Kasia Niewiadoma also deserves enormous credit.

Time trials have never been considered her greatest strength, yet she produced one of the rides of the day, conceding just over a minute. It's clear she's invested a huge amount of work into this discipline, and today that investment paid off.

Not every favourite had the day they were hoping for.

Anna van der Breggen was another rider who stood out, but unfortunately for the wrong reasons.

After seeing her struggle yesterday, I expected her to bounce back on a course that should have suited her much better. Instead, she once again lost more time than expected. Whether she's carrying fatigue after already racing two Grand Tours this season, dealing with a small illness, or simply hasn't quite found the form she was hoping for, something doesn't quite look right. Peaking for one Grand Tour is difficult enough. Attempting to do it across three Grand Tours in a single season is an enormous challenge...and perhaps we're beginning to see the effects of that.

And then there's Kim Le Court.

After sitting second overall just two days ago, today marked another setback. Kim has worked incredibly hard on her time trial over the past year, spending countless hours refining her position, improving her aerodynamics and investing in wind tunnel testing. I know she'll be disappointed with today's result because this is a discipline she's worked hard to improve.

She now drops to 15th overall. It certainly doesn't reflect her ability, but it does mean AG Insurance–Soudal will have to rethink their strategy for the rest of the Tour. Rather than defending a strong GC position, they may now need to race more aggressively and look for opportunities to regain time.

After four stages, the picture is becoming much clearer.

Today's time trial confirmed who has the complete package to challenge for yellow, but the race is still far from over.

With teams like Team Visma | Lease a Bike, AG Insurance–Soudal, Canyon//SRAM and SD Worx-Protime now needing to find time, I expect the racing over the next few days to become even more aggressive.

Today's time trial showed us who is strongest against the clock.

The next chapters of this Tour will show us who's prepared to take risks to change the outcome of the race.

— Ashleigh

Hydration Is More Than Water

Sweat doesn't just remove water - it also removes essential minerals like sodium. That's why professional riders often drink bottles containing electrolytes as well as plain water. Replacing both fluids and electrolytes helps maintain performance, especially during long, hot stages.

Takeaway: Hydrate smart, not just often.