EF Education-TIBCO-SVB will face the final two stages of the Tour de France Femmes without its leader and top climber. Veronica Ewers, who finished seventh on the Planche des Belles Filles finish of the 2022 Tour and ninth overall, won’t get a chance to win a stage on Saturday’s Tourmalet finish.
Ewers crashed heavily with 50 km to go on stage 6 and appeared to injure her left shoulder. Medical staff attended to her quickly and even wheeled out a stretcher at one point, but she eventually got back on her bike and pedaled to the finish in 135th overall, the last official finisher, at almost 10 minutes down, accompanied by teammate Magdeleine Vallieres.
According to the race medical report, she went to the hospital in Toulouse directly after the finish, where the team later announced she was diagnosed with a broken collarbone and would not start stage 7.
Ewers, a top climber, had a mostly quiet spring but showed encouraging signs of form at the recent Giro d’Italia Donne, finishing in the top five on two stages and fourth overall.
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