'I couldn't have done it without her' - Rüegg credits World Champion Vallieres' support in Down Under success

Noemi Rüegg described the immense pride in both her team’s and her own spirited performance after battling to victory on the final stage of the Santos Women’s Tour Down Under,sealing the general classification for the second year running. 

Following overall victory in 2025, Rüegg noted the challenge of defending the ochre jersey and the satisfaction of being successful in the quest for back-to-back triumphs alongside her EF Education-Oatly teammates. “Amazing. Every win is special, and this one feels crazy,” Rüegg told Domestique shortly after crossing the finish line.

“We went into this race with the ambition to defend it, but I think it’s always harder to defend than to win for the first time. I’m super proud, the girls did super amazing, I can’t put it into words, I couldn’t do it without them, and it’s crazy, so I’m going to enjoy this one,” said Rüegg.

It wasn’t a straightforward victory, as Rüegg looked to be in some difficulty on the stern Corkscrew Road climb, which the riders tackled twice. A gap formed between the Swiss rider and the front of the race on the first ascent, before Rüegg returned with the help of her teammate, and world champion, Magdeleine Vallieres

“It is, absolutely,” said Rüegg when asked about the winning performance being a team effort. “I could not have done it without [Vallieres], I couldn’t have done it without the team, but it’s so special to have her wait for me. She is the world champion, and I did hesitate, because I felt a bit bad because she was so strong and maybe she could have gone for the stage win herself.”

“But we committed to the team plan, and it gave me a lot of confidence that she worked so hard for me. I honestly didn’t believe it at the bottom of the second time of the Corkscrew because of how I suffered the first time, but the second time went quite better, and yeah, it worked out perfectly,” said Rüegg.

In the end, Rüegg outsprinted the UAE Team ADQ trio of Mavi García, Paula Blasi and Dominika Włodarczyk to take the stage win, a finish that echoed Neilson Powless’s Dwars door Vlaanderen siege in 2025 over a trio of Visma | Lease a Bike riders.

Vallieres explained the faith in her Swiss teammate and the moment when it became clear that Rüegg was initially starting to be distanced, and the judgment call that the world champion made.

“I knew she could do it, and I never stopped believing in her, so I knew she would do it, so I needed to put her in the best position so she could finish it off, and she did,” said Vallieres to Domestique. “I knew she would be fine, so I waited. I knew she would do it, I didn’t have any doubt.”

After her selfless performance in support, the world champion explained her feelings when crossing the finish line in Campbelltown, ending her opening race of the 2026 season as world champion with resounding success.

"I wasn’t sure until I crossed the finish line, but I had a good feeling. I couldn’t do anymore, so I just tried to get to the end,” said Vallieres.

In the process of winning, Rüegg became only the second rider in the race’s history to win multiple editions, following Amanda Spratt’s three successive victories from 2017 until 2019, marking an ideal start to the season for EF Education-Oatly.