Marlen Reusser wins time trial in Dijon and takes yellow

Dijon – 04.08.2026: Marlen Reusser has won the fourth stage of the Tour de France Femmes in the individual time trial and taken over the yellow jersey. The Swiss rider from Movistar Team needed 27 minutes and 30 seconds for the 21 kilometres from Gevrey-Chambertin to Dijon. After four days of racing, she now leads the general classification with a total time of 11:47:36 hours.

On the fast route through the Cote-d’Or department, Reusser set the best time early on. Lieke Nooijen of Team Visma | Lease a Bike came within four seconds and finished second. Demi Vollering, one of the leading contenders for the overall victory, lost 18 seconds in third place. The narrow gaps at the top intensify the battle for the yellow jersey in the stages ahead.

With her controlled ride, Vollering moved up to second in the general classification and is 14 seconds behind Reusser. France’s Cedrine Kerbaol held on to third place, 54 seconds back. Elisa Longo Borghini, who finished 10th in the time trial, is fifth overall, 1:03 minutes behind the new leader. Reusser therefore has several riders with overall ambitions close behind her.

Pauline Ferrand-Prevot suffered the biggest setback. The defending champion from Team Visma | Lease a Bike lost 2:13 minutes to Reusser and managed only 34th place in the time trial. In the overall standings, the Olympic champion dropped to 14th, also 2:13 minutes behind the Swiss rider. After the flat test, the gap is considerable, even if the upcoming mountain stages should offer Ferrand-Prevot better opportunities.

Reusser won with a consistent, aerodynamically clean ride. The time trial world champion covered the full distance at an average speed of nearly 46 kilometres per hour. While only a few seconds separated her nearest pursuers, numerous general-classification contenders conceded more than a minute. With the yellow jersey, Movistar now faces the task of controlling the race and responding to attacks.

On Wednesday, 5 August 2026, the fifth stage covers 140 kilometres from Macon to Belleville-en-Beaujolais. The rolling route will once again require cohesive team work. Reusser starts with a 14-second lead over Vollering, while Kerbaol is 54 seconds behind.

The race ends in Nice on 9 August 2026. Before that, the mountain finish on Mont Ventoux follows on 7 August, before two stages in the Nice area conclude the race. Reusser enters this decisive phase of the race as the leader, while Ferrand-Prevot is 2:13 minutes behind.