Bauernfeind superb in women’s Tour stage five win

German Ricarda Bauernfeind took a superb solo win on stage five of the Tour de France after attacking with 36km to go and staying out in front.

The biggest win of the 23-year-old’s career came after a bad day for Dutch super team SD Worx squad who already have two stage wins in this Tour with Lotte Kopecky still in the yellow jersey.

But things went wrong on Thursday as tactical mistakes cost Kopecky a shot at her second stage win of the race, their main general classification contender Demi Vollering was penalised 20 seconds for drafting behind the team car and stage three winner Lorena Wiebes went home with stomach problems.

Bauernfeind was the one who capitalised as she attacked from a reduced peloton with 36km to go and, with SD Worx hesitating behind and looking for others to do the work, built a lead of more than a minute, on her way to victory for Canyon//SRAM in her first year as a WorldTour professional.

SD Worx’s Marlen Reusser did her best to chase down the attack and set up Kopecky, but came home 22 seconds later in second place, with Kopecky looking frustrated as she led home the main contenders to take fourth.

“Of course it’s a missed opportunity,” Reusser said. “Lotte is the fastest in the group…to be honest we miscalculated and we went a bit slower to discourage counter attacks. Maybe we overdid this.”

The 126.5km stage from Onet-le-Chateau was pegged as one for the quick women but it proved a harder day than expected in searing temperatures, with former British champion Alice Barnes among nine riders who missed the time cut.

An ill-timed puncture for Vollering left her off the back when the pace was on and the commissaires spotted her team car trying to pace her back to the peloton, delivering a stern telling off and then, once the results were issued, a 20-second penalty.

That drops Vollering from second place to seventh overall, now needing to make up time on defending champion Annemiek Van Vleuten over the weekend.

Kopecky leads by 49 seconds from Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio, with Van Vleuten one of three riders a further two seconds back. Vollering is a further 12 seconds back. Australian Amanda Sprat came in 19th, and is 14th in the general classification.