'I never thought it was possible' – Haugset stuns Tour Femmes with 88km solo win

Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset produced a sparkling 88km solo effort to win stage 3 of the Tour de France Femmes in Pontigny, moving into the yellow jersey in the process.

The Uno-X Mobility rider admitted afterwards that she wasn’t quite sure if she could describe the feat as a dream come true given that she had pulled off something she simply hadn’t believed possible.

“I feel like I have to say yes, but I haven’t been thinking about it, because I never thought it was possible,” Haugset said. “Sitting here, it’s like... It’s unreal.”

The Norwegian champion jumped across to the day’s break after the Côte de Lajoux and she then struck out alone on the Col de la Savine. Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx Protime) was in lone pursuit of Haugset, who considered waiting for the former world champion when the gap closed to a handful of seconds in the finale.

Haugset ultimately opted to press on, however, and the instinct served her well, as she soloed to victory by 1:24 up on Kopecky and 2:48 clear of the GC group, which was led home by Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike).

“I thought, yeah, she will catch me, and I thought, should I just drop down to her? Because OK, second is good…” Haugset said of Kopecky’s pursuit. 

“But I kept on. The car was amazing, pushing me. I was thinking about all my teammates and everyone cheering from home, and I had to give it all. I can’t believe that she didn’t catch me.”

It was only the second win of Haugset’s career after she claimed the Norwegian title in June, and the triumph also puts her into the yellow jersey of the Tour Femmes with a lead of 2:02 over Kim Le Court (AG Insurance Soudal).

“I was so dizzy at the end,” Haugset said. “I know my boyfriend will be so angry at me for not celebrating, but I couldn’t lift my arms off the bike. It was impossible. But I didn’t think about that.”