Mauritian rider Kim Le Court overcame an early crash and mechanical problems to win the sprint finish of stage six in the 2026 Tour de France Femmes on Thursday, August 6th. The 30-year-old was part of an eight-rider breakaway that completed the hilly 153km route from Montbrison to Tournon-sur-Rhône in south-eastern France. Le Court edged out France's Cedrine Kerbaol and the Netherlands' Puck Pieterse to secure the win.

This victory marks Le Court's second stage win in the Grande Boucle, following her triumph last year in Guéret. Despite having to change bikes just 15 km from the finish after mechanical issues, she, alongside Dutch rider Riejanne Markus, caught the other breakaway riders before the final climb 10 km from the finish and proved strongest in the sprint.

Swiss rider Marlen Reusser retained the leader's yellow jersey and remains in overall control heading into the queen stage on Friday, which finishes atop Mont Ventoux in the French Alps. Reusser holds a 12-second lead over Dutch rider Demi Vollering and a 1 minute 17 second gap over Poland's Kasia Niewiadoma. The overall race favorites finished 28 seconds behind the breakaway group.

Reflecting on the stage, Le Court said, "It was a truly crazy stage. The team did such a great job positioning me at the front of the race that I couldn't give up the fight."

Friday's stage seven will conclude with a challenging 15.7 km climb up Mont Ventoux via the Bedoin route, featuring an average gradient of 8.8 percent.

Sources