'I somehow touched her back wheel' - Anniina Ahtosalo skirts disaster after touch of wheels with Lorena Wiebes in Tour de France Femmes sprint

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Stage 1 runner-up Finnish champion leads best young rider classification

Uno-X Mobility team's Finnish rider Anniina Ahtosalo celebrates on the podium with the best young rider's white jersey after the first stage (out of 8) of the third edition of the Women's Tour de France cycling race a 123 km individual time trial between Rotterdam and The Hague, on August 12, 2024. (Photo by JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP)
Uno-X Mobility team's Finnish rider Anniina Ahtosalo celebrates on the podium with the best young rider's white jersey after finishing second on stage 1 (Image credit: Getty Images)

Anniina Ahtosalo (Uno-X Mobility) skirted disaster and sprinted to second place in the opening stage at the Tour de France Femmes after a touch of wheels left Lorena Wiebes' (SD Worx-Protime) bike without a derailleur and a hanging chain unable to sprint in The Hague.

The Finnish Champion sprinted to second behind stage winner Charlotte Kool (dsm-firmenich PostNL) and is now positioned second overall and, at just 20 years old, is also leading the young rider competition. 

While she was pleased with her results on the day, she spoke about the hectic nature of the final sprint and how her front wheel accidentally touched Wiebes' back wheel with 500 metres to go, just as Wiebes' drifted to the right side of the road, ending the Dutch rider's chance to sprint for a potential stage win.

"I think it was me who somehow touched her back wheel. I think I rode into her derailleur, so something went wrong with her gear and chain. For sure, she was one of and maybe even the fastest in the bunch, so things could have been different," Ahtosalo said at the finish line.

SD Worx-Protime executed their lead-out to perfection, and Wiebes was in a position to sprint just before the touch of wheels with Ahtosalo caused the mechanical. 

"I was right behind her, but it was alright," she said. "I could get passed. I was far enough in the front that it didn't cause any danger. I think it was me touching her derailleur. I was a bit surprised that I was so far up."

"Today, we thought it was a good chance for me and to get the young rider's jersey. Maria has good stages coming up for her; she's in really good shape, so we are looking to ride for her in the harder stages," Ahtosalo said. 

"It went better than I expected, so I'm happy with it. It got hectic but it's the type of final that I like. We nailed the lead-out. It was the best I could do with the win going away, but I'm happy with the lead-out."

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Kirsten Frattini
Kirsten Frattini
Deputy Editor

Kirsten Frattini is the Deputy Editor of Cyclingnews, overseeing the global racing content plan.

Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling's biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games.

She began her sports journalism career with Cyclingnews as a North American Correspondent in 2006. In 2018, Kirsten became Women's Editor – overseeing the content strategy, race coverage and growth of women's professional cycling – before becoming Deputy Editor in 2023.