The career changer Kimberley Le Court-Pienaar surprisingly wins Liège-Bastogne-Liège and thus astonishes itself. The path of the former mountain biker to the World Tour was very tedious.
When Kimberley Le Court-Pienaar entered the podium on Sunday evening, she came over a moment of doubt. What would you like to put on music here? In fact, shortly afterwards there was a happy ending on stage, the organizers of Liège-Bastogne-Liège played the right national anthem in honor. “I was really wondering if they have my hymn ready”said Le Court-Pienaar later, because it comes from Mauritius, the small island with one million inhabitants in the Indian Ocean, which previously did not appear at major sporting events.
Favorite Pieterse and Volling beaten in the sprint
Le Court-Pienaar had previously shown a brilliant performance and was in a small group with big favorites after a careful journey and closing a gap. In addition to her, the Dutch stars Puck Pieterse and Demi full ring and the Frenchwoman Cédrine Kerbaol drove in it. Le Court-Pienaar finally won the Quai des Ardennes At the center of Liège very clearly the sprint before Pietense, which last Wednesday Flèche Wallonne had won, and full ring. Then she was amazed at herself and seemed to be unable to grasp her triumph.
Kimberley Le Court-Pienaar after her victory in Liège
There was even a reference to Tadej Pogacar, the winner of the men’s race in Liège. Le Court-Pienaar drives for Team AG Insurance-Soudal, in which Urska Zigart is also under contract, the Slovenian master and fiancee of Pogacar. Zigart finished five minutes after the winner, where the two hugged intensively and were still amazed at the result.
Victory as Mountain biker, Mails on World Tour teams
Just a year ago, Le Court-Pienaar, 29 years old, daughter of a Scottish and a Mauritier, found the way to the World Tour of Street professionals. She was the first driver in her country to make it into the elite of cycling. She developed the way there with outstanding results as a mountain biker. Among other things, she won that in 2023 with Vera Looser Cape Epic And the Swiss Epic, two important stages.
However, she owes her persistence and a number of emails for a team in the first category. Because her husband Ian Pienaar wrote all World Tour teams between August and December 2023 and asked for a chance for his wife. Only the Dutch team for which she is now successfully drives.
Top results in spring and at the Tour de France
Le Court-Pienaar convinced in her first year and won a stage of the Giro d’Italia. In the spring of 2025, however, the big international breakthrough made her: fifth place in Milan-Sanremo and the Flanders tour, sixth place in the Flèche Wallonne and now the victory in Liège: “I absolutely wanted to win this race, I worked towards that throughout the spring.”
At the Tour de France last year, the fourth stage also ended in Liège, led over the heavy Ardennes terrain, which was also part of the course on Sunday. At that time, Le Court-Pienaar was fourth behind the day winner Pieterse, Volling and the later tour winner Katarzyna Niewiadoma. “Then I felt that I can make a difference” “said Le Court-Pienaar on Sunday evening. In the races before she was always very close to the podium, so she had this victory “Definitely wanted”. Mission fulfilled.
Kimberley Le Court-Pienaar on the winner podium in Liège
The jersey of the master of Mauritius contains the colors red, blue, yellow and green, they are arranged from top to bottom. This dress is therefore very similar to the rainbow shirt that the world champion can wear. Le Court-Pienaar already had to “Listen to bad comments on social media, but I really can’t help that we have these national colors”. You therefore do not think about letting her master jersle vary.
Mauritius flags on the edge of the route
She now hopes to have done something for it with her victory, “To have made these colors and my country better known in the world of sport. It is a small island, it is Africa, and I am very proud that I could give my country this success.” Where: “During the race I already felt that something happened. I saw many flags of my country on the edge of the route, which motivated me to give everything until the end.” She is “Incredibly proud that I was able to collect this success for an unknown country. Maybe thanks to my victory, our island is easier to find on the map.”
So far there has always been great confusion when Le Court-Pienaar was at the start. In a race in Australia, the British flag next to its name appeared in the start list, “I was also a French woman and in Belgium I was led as a Dutchman”says Le Court-Pienaar. In addition, she was asked whether she did not want to become the Dutchman – “No I said because I am Mauritierin”.
Now she will first put your street machine aside. She plans her next starts at mountain bike races. Which one is still open.