Delight and despair as yellow jersey battle goes down to the wire on Alpe d’Huez – Tour de France Femmes gallery

It’s very rare that a stage surrounded by such hype not only lives up to expectations but actually exceeds them, yet the eighth and final stage of the Tour de France Femmes can undoubtedly rank itself among those elite few.

The storyline of the maillot jaune defending their lead against a bruised but bullish defending champion already had set the stage for a dramatic final stage, placing this plot within the mythical setting of Alpe d’Huez – for the first time since 1992 – meant we were set for a finale for the ages.