Greig Leach

While I watched the two races in reverse order, it was the women who first raced around the streets of Nice and up the Cote de Rimiez. Unlike the men, the women's race started out by going straight for the climb to the Queen of the Mountain points. With such a blistering pace on the climb, it wasn't long before many of within the peloton found their day over before it even started. As the peloton neared the summit, Christine Majerus (Boels-Dolmans), the oft champion of Luxembourg, jumped free to collect the maximum points on the climb. If the same rules were applied as for the men, it means she claims the Maillot a Pois of Queen of the Mountains. Giving chase was Maria Guila Confalonieri (Ceratizit-WNT) and it was Dani Christmas (Lotto Soudal Ladies) taking second over the cote for the first time.