Demi Vollering (FDJ United-Suez) won stage 5 of the Giro d'Italia Women on Wednesday in Santo Stefano di Cadore, claiming her first-ever stage victory at the race after a 146km mountain test through the Dolomites with 3,400 metres of climbing.
Anna van der Breggen (Team SD Worx-Protime) finished second to hold the maglia rosa, while Antonia Niedermaier (Canyon SRAM) took third after looking among the most composed riders in the mountains all day.
FDJ United-Suez sent Lauren Dickson into the early breakaway, a move Vollering confirmed was planned from the start. "We wanted to have some riders of our team in the breakaway and we managed directly with Amber (Kraak) and Lauren, like the plan, and it was perfect," Vollering said after the stage in her TV interview.
It was clearly the plan from the off. Vollering and the other main GC favourites slowly made their way across to the leading group that was originally 30 riders strong but had shrunk to four when the catch was made. Dickson then played a key role for her leader and turned herself inside out to drop multiple big name rivals such as Marlen Reusser (Movistar) and Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ).
"She did amazing work after on the flat and on the first part of the first climb again," Vollering said. "I maybe went a little bit too early, so in the end I could not really make a difference anymore on the climb. But it was a really nice day, like we really raced with everything we had and it was a real battle out there."
Vollering tried to attack on multiple occasions and did whittle down the field but could not distance Van der Breggen, Niedermaier or the white jersey of Isabella Holmgren (Lidl-Trek). The four riders came to the line together and Vollering, by far the fastest in the reduced group, eased to the stage win and collected 10 bonus seconds. Van der Breggen took six bonus seconds of her own in second place.
Stage 5 Results
Longarone - Santo Stefano di Cadore • Jun 3
| Pos | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🥇 | Demi VOLLERING | FDSFDJ United-Suez | 4:23:47 |
| 🥈 | Anna VAN DER BREGGEN | SDWTeam SD Worx-Protime | +0:00 |
| 🥉 | Antonia NIEDERMAIER | CSRCanyon-SRAM | +0:00 |
| 4 | Isabella HOLMGREN | LTKLidl-Trek | +0:02 |
| 5 | Elisa LONGO BORGHINI | UADUAE Team ADQ | +0:15 |
| 6 | Niamh FISHER-BLACK | LTKLidl-Trek | +0:15 |
| 7 | Marlen REUSSER | MOVMovistar Team | +0:53 |
| 8 | Magdeleine VALLIERES | EFOEF Education-Oatly | +0:53 |
| 9 | Femke DE VRIES | TVLTeam Visma | Lease a Bike | +0:53 |
| 10 | Lore DE SCHEPPER | AGSAG Insurance-Soudal Team | +0:56 |
| 11 | Urška ŽIGART | AGSAG Insurance-Soudal Team | +1:26 |
| 12 | Valentina CAVALLAR | SDWTeam SD Worx-Protime | +1:26 |
| 13 | Monica TRINCA COLONEL | LAJLiv-AlUla-Jayco | +1:44 |
| 14 | Nadia GONTOVA | LAJLiv-AlUla-Jayco | +5:02 |
| 15 | Mireia BENITO | AGSAG Insurance-Soudal Team | +5:02 |
| 16 | Lauren DICKSON | FDSFDJ United-Suez | +5:36 |
| 17 | Emilie MORIER | STMSt Michel-Préférence Home-Auber93 | +6:55 |
| 18 | Mie Bjørndal OTTESTAD | UXMUno-X Mobility | +6:55 |
| 19 | Sigrid Ytterhus HAUGSET | UXMUno-X Mobility | +6:55 |
| 20 | Maya KINGMA | ARVAromitalia Vaiano | +6:55 |
| 21 | Marion BUNEL | TVLTeam Visma | Lease a Bike | +6:55 |
| 22 | Viktória CHLADONOVÁ | TVLTeam Visma | Lease a Bike | +8:45 |
| 23 | Nina BUIJSMAN | HPHHuman Powered Health | +8:45 |
| 24 | Thalita DE JONG | HPHHuman Powered Health | +8:52 |
| 25 | Erica MAGNALDI | UADUAE Team ADQ | +8:52 |
| 26 | Lucinda BRAND | LTKLidl-Trek | +8:52 |
| 27 | Eleonora GASPARRINI | UADUAE Team ADQ | +8:52 |
| 28 | Cecilie Uttrup LUDWIG | CSRCanyon-SRAM | +8:52 |
| 29 | Mavi GARCIA | UADUAE Team ADQ | +8:52 |
| 30 | Amanda SPRATT | LTKLidl-Trek | +8:52 |
Dickson's role underlined how much FDJ's mountain support has grown. It is less than two years since the Briton burst onto the scene finishing second at the Lancaster GP in 2024 while riding for Edinburgh Racing Club. She is now a rider Vollering can depend on deep into the hardest stages.
Niedermaier signals mountain form
Niedermaier moved up onto the podium with a controlled and calculated ride as the German stayed with the front group as Reusser was distanced. The German climber rode smoothly through the mountain passes, making the decisive selection without visible distress. She tried to attack in the finale alongside Holmgren, knowing a sprint against Vollering would not favour her, but both were heavily marked and neither could escape.
"I'm feeling really good and it's just a lot of fun to ride in the climbs," Niedermaier told Eurosport after the stage. "I knew that I couldn't win the sprint, so I'm quite happy that I'm finally not the last person in the sprint."
Asked about the days ahead, Niedermaier pointed to the bigger mountain stages still to come. "I'm looking forward to the hard stages and especially for Colle delle Finestre," she said.
Niedermaier started the day 1:26 behind Van der Breggen on GC after the stage 4 uphill time trial to Nevegal, where Van der Breggen had been dominant. Stage 5 did change a reasonable amount of the overall hierarchy, without troubling the top rider, but it confirmed that Niedermaier can follow the accelerations of both Vollering and Van der Breggen when the road kicks up.
Behind the front four, Reusser lost 53 seconds and Longo Borghini finished 15 seconds down. Both limited their losses on a day that could have been worse, though Reusser's deficit to Van der Breggen, already over a minute after the time trial, continues to grow. Longo Borghini said after the stage that she is getting better day-by-day but is still missing that top form.
The time trial split the race up into a more certain list based on form while stage five showed that wit and guile also count for a lot and can shape races. FDJ United-Suez used it well, as did SD Worx-Protime by having Valentina Cavallar in the front group to drop back for Van der Breggen, but she didn't last as long as Dickson did. The GC has had another shuffle with teammates playing a key role. The team's post-stage mood reflected the effort. Dickson said: "I don't think I've ever had a harder day on the bike."
Stage 6 on Thursday is expected to suit the sprinters over flatter terrain. The race's toughest mountain stages, including the Colle delle Finestre and a finish in Sestriere, are still ahead in the final days of a nine-stage race that runs through June 7.
Cover image: RCS/ Davide Spada/LaPresse
