Kopecky confirmed for Tour de France Femmes as supertalent Blasi downplays her own role

Lotte Kopecky's place in SD Worx's squad for the Tour de France Femmes had not been fully locked in earlier in the season, but the Dutch team confirmed on Monday that the former two-time World Champion will head to France following two stage race appearances in July.

Kopecky will first line up at the Baloise Ladies Tour (July 15-19) for the first time since 2018 before making her debut at the Tour de Pologne (July 24-26), both of which form her final preparations for the Tour de France Femmes.

The Belgian is also expected to compete in both the time trial and road race at the Belgian National Championships this week.

Kopecky finished second overall at the Tour de France Femmes in 2023 and remains one of SD Worx-Protime’s key options for stage wins and general classification ambitions.

At the same time, attention is already turning to other emerging contenders in the women’s peloton.

One of them is Paula Blasi, who has enjoyed a breakout 2026 season with UAE Team ADQ but is playing down expectations ahead of her first appearance at the Tour de France Femmes.

“I’ll just be there to help the team,” Blasi said to Spanish news agency EFE when asked about her debut. 

The Spaniard has been one of the revelations of the season after capturing major overall wins at La Vuelta Femenina and the Amstel Gold Race, but has indicated that her role at the Tour for UAE Team ADQ will be a support one rather than an explicit leadership bid.

The upcoming Tour de France Femmes has forced several rival teams to finalise their leadership structures early following the mid-June warm-up events. 

Demi Vollering leads the high-mountain favourites for FDJ United-SUEZ. The 2023 Tour winner has had a standout season, most recently winning the Giro d'Italia Women after a final-day comeback over Vollering's teammate Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime), who is also expected to be in the fold in August.

Defending champion Kasia Niewiadoma heads to France as the primary leader for Canyon//SRAM Racing. She confirmed her pre-tour climbing form by taking third overall at the Tour de Suisse Women, finishing just behind runner-up Cédrine Kerbaol (EF Education-Oatly)

Another major GC threat is Marlen Reusser (Movistar Team), who claimed the overall victory at the Tour de Suisse Women after winning the Stage 4 individual time trial and the mountainous final stage to Villars-sur-Ollon. Her return to peak fitness complicates the tactical layout, alongside a strong French contingent that includes multi-discipline veteran and defending champion Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Visma | Lease a Bike).