Fastest in the bunch sprint, Mischa Bredewold (Team SD Worx–Protime) won the third stage at the Tour Cycliste Féminin International de l’Ardèche.
The victory was bittersweet after her teammate and overnight leader, Lotte Kopecky, was forced to abandon due to an early-race crash.
Bredewold took the day’s victory ahead of Amber Kraak (FDJ–Suez) and with her Team SD Worx–Protime teammate Marta Lach taking third place in Pernes-les-Fontaines.
Lotte Kopecky (Team SD Worx–Protime) lined up as the overall race leader after winning stage 1; however, the World Champion crashed in the first 35km of the race, just before the sprint at Sorgues, and was forced to abandon.
Team SD Worx–Protime has not yet released a medical update.
While she made the difficult decision not to defend her title at the upcoming UCI Road World Championships in Kigali, she had returned to track racing in Prague, where she won the omnium, elimination, and points race during the two-day UCI event before lining up at the Tour de l’Ardèche.
On the main climb of the day, the Col de Murs, Nina Buijsman (FDJ–Suez) and Lauren Dickson (Handsling–Alba Development Road Team) attacked, but the pair were caught over the top.
Evita Muzic (FDJ–Suez) and Monica Trinca Colonel (Liv–AlUla–Jayco) counterattacked and gained roughly 20 seconds on the peloton led by UAE Team ADQ.
With only 10 seconds in hand, the pair were eventually caught inside the…
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