It was only a matter of time before Demi Vollering won a stage at the Giro d’Italia Women. The European champion has 63 professional victories, including six stage wins at the Vuelta Femenina and three at the Tour de France Femmes avec  Zwift, but those wins only made the Giro-shaped hole more noticeable. It’s a feat accomplished by both her veteran compatriots, Annemiek van Vleuten and current competitor Anna van der Breggen – to whom she is often compared – and just about every one of her rivals: Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime), Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Visma-Lease a Bike), and Marlen Reusser (Movistar), to name a few. 

So when Vollering finally filled in the gap by outsprinting her GC rivals after a long day out in the Dolomites on stage five of the Giro d’Italia Women, it felt like a long time coming. It is of course a small piece of the puzzle in her bid to take home the maglia rosa, and with that the Grand Tour trilogy. The latter is a relatively nascent phenomena in women’s racing, but still to do so would put her on par only with one other, van Vleuten. Claiming stage wins at all three Grand Tours is a coveted achievement nonetheless. 

Part of the reason behind the Giro-shaped hole in Vollering’s glittering palmarès is because the Italian Grand Tour simply hasn’t been her focus. Her two appearances in 2019 and 2021 came before the advent of the Tour de France Femmes in 2022, which naturally stole priority. With only 10 days or so between the two races over late July and August, it was near impossible to target both races at maximum capacity. Only recently has the race calendar been reshuffled, meaning that Vollering has now been able to give both the Giro and the Tour her full attention.

Much has changed for Vollering during that five-year Giro hiatus. A Tour de France Femmes win, yes, but also a change of team in that time too. On the eve of the Giro, the 29-year-old extended her contract with French outlet FDJ United-Suez until 2028. The performance of her teammates on stage five shows why. 

Domestique Lauren Dickson hammered away on the front of the break of stage 5 (Image credit: Thomas Maheux/SWpix.com)

“Over the last year and a half I have been part of an environment where everybody can truly grow – not just as an athlete, but also as a person – and I am very proud of that,” Vollering said in a statement released by her team after the news of her contract renewal emerged. “This environment has become home.”

Vollering's status as the undisputed leader at FDJ, in contrast to the divided hierarchy of her final years at SD Worx, has become one of the defining storylines in women's cycling, and her comments about growth aren’t just empty words. So far this year, FDJ has looked like the environment where Vollering can shape an entire team around her ambitions, while they develop into influential riders in their own right. 

Lauren Dickson, the stand-out domestique on Vollering’s Giro stage win, is a prime example. The Scottish rider joined FDJ from the UCI Continental squad Handsling Alba Development Road Team, after starting out as a runner and triathlete. Her doggedness on one of the toughest stages of this year's race makes it hard to believe she only began racing in 2024. Dickson made sure she was in the 30-rider attack that formed on the early climbs and was even virtual race leader at one point forcing SD Worx-Protime to work to protect Van der Breggen’s maglia rosa, before returning to the group to help on the decisive Costa climb.  

Read more: Lauren Dickson’s journey from running and triathlon to the best cycling team in the world

“They did such an amazing job. At one point before we came here on the last climb, I still had Lauren in front of me, so I managed to bridge and she did amazing work after on the last part and first part of the climb again.,” said Vollering, lauding the work of her teammate who returned the compliment: 

“Demi’s legs, they don’t fail. I think we’re in really good form, the coaching team have made sure that I peak for this race, and to be honest I don’t think I’ve ever had a harder day on the bike.” 

It was an impressive performance forecast first by her podium place at Itzulia women in May, and compounded by her uphill time trial effort of the previous which landed her in sixth place, two spots ahead two-time Giro winner Elisa Longo-Borghini (UAE Team Emirates-ADQ). 

The rise of Célia Gery, too, who attacked at the 60 kilometre mark on stage five, is another up-and-coming narrative which harks to the kind of growth being fostered by team manager Stephen Delcourt. The former junior world champion joined FDJ in the same season as Vollering in 2025, but made a name for herself at Brabantse Pijl Women in April of this year when she surged past Mischa Bredeworld and Silvia Perisco with a late sprint to secure her first professional win. Another victory followed, unbelievably, just 48 hours later at GP Feminin de Chambéry. 

 Célia Gery wore the white jersey of the youth classification on stage 2 (Image credit: Thomas Maheux/SWpix.com)

It’s a sign of much bigger things to come for these riders, who will no doubt be looking to the achievements of the team’s domestique-turned-champion Franzischa Koch for inspiration. The German had only a shock stage win at Boels Ladies Tour to her name in the way of professional wins until she moved to FDJ this year. The results came thick and fast: fifth at Omloop, third at Strade Bianche, and then her magnum opus Paris-Roubaix victory. That’s growth if I ever saw it. 

After Vollering’s stage win, Van der Breggen and her SD Worx squad will be checking their shoulder as they try to retain the maglia rosa. The former world champion took command of the GC on the time trial stage to Nevegal, but the task of  defending the leader's pink jersey has been made exceedingly difficult by the disqualification of  Lorena Wiebes, and the crash which forced key lieutenant Mikayla Harvey to abandon. 

As FDJ turned the screws on the demanding 7.5-kilometre Passo di Sant'Antonio climb, Van der Breggen was left isolated.

Dickson made it clear that Saturday's attacks were only the beginning. 

“We really wanted to test everybody and see where they were at, because ultimately we need to take some time back. We’ve got plenty more days to do it, but no time like the present to start.”

 And while Van der Breggen may still wear pink, FDJ have the momentum – and, perhaps more importantly, the numbers.