Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig has won the third stage of the women’s Tour de France. The Danish champion from Team FDJ won the steep final in the sprint on Tuesday after 133.6 km between Reims and Epernay ahead of overall leader Marianne Vos (Netherlands/Jumbo-Visma), who successfully defended her yellow jersey.
Time trial Olympic champion Annemiek van Vleuten (Netherlands/Movistar) fought back despite stomach problems and a bathroom break at the wrong moment shortly before the finish, but lost 20 seconds to the day’s winner and is already more than a minute behind Vos.
On Wednesday, the field continues on 126 hilly kilometers from Troyes to Bar-sur-Aube. The “Tour de France Femmes” ends on Sunday after eight stages on the legendary Planche des Belles Filles in the Vosges.
The German track world champion Laura üßmilch (Plantur-Pura) fell heavily on Monday. As a result of a chain reaction, the 25-year-old crashed onto the asphalt and was seriously injured, breaking two vertebrae and initially having to wear a neck brace. There were also a few falls on Tuesday, and German road champion Liane Lippert was also affected.