Lidl-Trek was very active at the front(Image credit: Getty Images)
Ally Wollaston (FDJ-Suez) bridged up to solo breakaway (Image credit: Getty Images)
Peloton making their way towards Willunga Hill(Image credit: Getty Images)
Emily Watts (St Michel-Preference Home-Auber 93) and Alberte Greve (Uno-X Mobility) took part in a short-lived dangerous break(Image credit: Getty Images)
Marie Le Net (FDJ-Suez) jumped to bridge up to early solo break(Image credit: Getty Images)
Alli Anderson (ARA Australian Team) launched the first brief solo breakaway(Image credit: Getty Images)
Stage 1 winner Daniek Hengeveld (Ceratizit Wnt) in the leader’s ochre jersey and Ally Wollaston (FDJ-Suez) at the start of stage 2 in Unley(Image credit: Getty Images)
Dominika Wlodarczyk (UAE Team ADQ) wearing a cooling vest at the start(Image credit: Getty Images)
Swiss champion Noemi Rüegg (EF Education-Oatley) dropped Silke Smulders (Liv AlUla Jayco) after a one-kilometre drag race on the upper slopes of Willunga Hill to win stage 2, the Queen Stage of the 2025 Women's Tour Down Under.
Rüegg survived all attacks on the second ascent of the iconic climb to stay in the reduced peloton bidding her time until the group was down to four riders with Smulders, Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek) and Neve Bradbury (Canyon-Sram zondacrypto)
With one kilometre remaining, the Swiss rider launched her decisive move. Smulders managed to stay with her briefly but eventually had to let go, finishing 10 seconds behind to claim second place.
Mie Bjørndal Ottestad (Uno-X Mobility) led a small chase group to the line, taking third, 26 seconds behind the winner. Bradbury was fourth.
"Honestly, I cannot put in words how this feels. It was really a team effort; the team put me in perfect position all day, kept me safe, and did this super leadout into the first climb. We went with this goal into this stage, and I knew I had such a good winter back in Switzerland. I felt so good, but honestly, I didn't think that it would turn out so speechless. I just want to thank everyone who supported me towards this in the last few years," Rüegg said after claiming the victory.
"It means really a lot, because I know I am strong, but I always struggle a bit with my confidence. I always feel like, Oh no, I'm not so strong. So I really need a team that supports me, and I have to believe in myself and to win gives me so much confidence and gives me the proof that I did everything right the last few weeks and years. So yeah, really makes me proud, and super happy."
Rüegg takes over the ochre leader’s jersey with 15 seconds on Smulders, and 33 seconds on Ottestad. Fifth on the stage, Dominika Wlodarczyk (UAE Team ADQ) sits in fourth place, 36 seconds down and only one second ahead of trio Justine Ghekiere (AG Insurance-Soudal), Bradbury and Elise Chabbey (FDJ-Suez).
Overnight leader Daniek Hengeveld (Ceratizit-WNT) lost touch with the peloton the first time up Willunga Hill, and dropped to 33rd overall, over five minutes down.
The 2025 Women Tour Down Under concludes the 105.9km stage 3, featuring five-and-a-half loops around in Stirling, delivering constant undulation with barely a moment of flat terrain in the mix.
Rüegg "definitely" intends to defend her leader's jersey.
“Actually stage three was the one I was targeting most. And then when I did the recon of this climb, I thought, well, that's actually also pretty good for me. But actually, in the beginning, we said that's more for Megan, tomorrow would be more for me. So I think we just have to stay strong tomorrow and also just enjoy. This is my first win on the WorldTour level. I also just want to enjoy it. And, tomorrow we will see, but today was amazing."
How it unfolded
The heat was on for the queen stage of the women's Santos Tour Down Under, with clear blue skies and soaring temperatures making a tough day in the saddle even harder. Three riders dropped out before the start - Mara Roldan (Picnic-PostNl), who collapsed after the finish and ended her day in an ambulance, understandably did not start stage 2. Two others, Eglantine Rayer (FDJ-SUEZ) and Teuntje Beekhuis (Uno-X Mobility), also dropped out.
The remaining 79 riders departed Unley and the race stayed together for the first 10km as the route went straight uphill to Windy Point, where Polish champion Dominika Wlodarczyk (UAE Team ADQ) led at the summit ahead of mountains classification leader Alyssa Polites (ARA Australian National Team).
Not long after the climb, Polites' teammate Alli Andersen went on the attack, but she could only open up a lead of about 30 seconds. The pace heated up and Andersen was caught on an unclassified ascent after 23.5km of racing.
The team continued their aggressive tactics, launching Maeve Plouffe off the front immediately after. Plouffe managed a lead of nearly a minute, but a counter-attack from FDJ-SUEZ's Marie Le Net drew out an 11-rider chase with Amber Pate (Liv AlUla Jayco), Kristyna Burlova (Ceratizit-WNT), Rachele Barbieri (Picnic-PostNL), Greta Marturano (UAE Team ADQ), Maike van der Duin (Canyon-Sram), Babette van der Wolf (EF Education-Oatly) and Emily Watts (St Michel-Preference Home-Auber 93), among others. However, the peloton immediately closed the move down.
The race settled in for a short while before Anderson attacked again after the feed zone with 62.5km to go and pulled out a lead of 42 seconds before the intermediate sprint, where Karlijn Swinkels (UAE Team ADQ) continued her push for the points jersey, taking the points behind Anderson.
Ten riders attacked after the sprint and began chipping away at Anderson's advantage. They had her in sight with 56.2km to go but the peloton reeled the chase group in and then sat up.
With the first ascent of Willunga still more than 20km away, Anderson was allowed a gap of 1:10 before an attack from Ally Wollaston (FDJ-SUEZ) started to chip into the gap. She made it across to Anderson with 40km to go, with a gap of more than a minute on the bunch.
Canyon-SRAM took up the chase, stringing out the bunch much as they did on the opening stage, and then tried to launch Maike van der Duin. Two successive crashes took down Felicity Wilson-Haffenden (Lidl-Trek) first and then her teammate Niamh Fisher-Black along with Lauren Bates (ARA Australian National Team), but all were quickly back up and in the peloton.
The lead pair's gap was out to 1:30 with 5km til the second intermediate sprint but with the start of the first ascent of Willunga right after it, the chase picked up and carved 35 seconds out of their advantage at the sprint.
Wollaston left Anderson behind as the grade kicked in but the chase was on from the GC riders, and she too was back in the fold before the summit.
Amanda Spratt led teammate Fisher-Black past Wollaston with 25km to go and 2.1km until the crest of Willunga Hill and continued to push the pace until the final kilometre, shedding all but about 18 riders.
Fisher-Black led the small lead group over the summit, and then Elise Chabbey (FDJ-SUEZ) attacked. The Swiss rider was quickly reeled in by Chloé Dygert (Canyon-SRAM) before Chabbey's teammate Amber Kraak tried to launch a move.
The attacks continued with Alice Towers pushing the pace for Canyon-SRAM but Kim Cadzow (EF Education-Oatly) shut that move down.
On the descent, Chabbey drilled it, pulling away six riders with a couple more scrambling across aas the speed of the riders touched nearly 90kph. With 10km to go and only 11 riders still in the front, Dygert launched a searing attack to rejoin the lead group and teammate Towers.
With 7.4km to go, Ceratizit-WNT's Dilyxine Miermont attacked and was covered by Ella Simpson (St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93). Behind, a second group joined the lead dozen.
Spratt, Swinkels and Dygert went on the move with 6km to go but the larger group was able to shut them down rapidly and the wind briefly went out of the lead group as the final climb approached.
Dygert wasn't content to ride easy and powered clear, chased immediately by Julie van de Velde (AG Insurance-Soudal) and Kraak but the American reached Willunga solo.
Fisher-Black accelerated past the two chasers with 3km to go and then past Dygert. Bradbury leapt across to the Kiwi, and soon Silke Smulder (Liv-AlUla-Jayco) and Noemi Rüegg (EF Education-Oatly) joined in, too.
With Chabbey and Wlodarczyk approaching, Fisher-Black accelerated but the two came across with 2km to go and the pace in the lead group briefly dropped. A surge from Chabbey incited a counter from Fisher-Black, but still, the six riders came back together for the final kilometre.
Bradbury went as she saw the one kilometre-to-go sign but still Rüegg, Fisher-Black and Smulders were able to match it. A surge from the Swiss champion put all but Smulders behind, and secured the stage win and the ochre leader’s jersey.
Laura Weislo has been with Cyclingnews since 2006 after making a switch from a career in science. As Managing Editor, she coordinates coverage for North American events and global news. As former elite-level road racer who dabbled in cyclo-cross and track, Laura has a passion for all three disciplines. When not working she likes to go camping and explore lesser traveled roads, paths and gravel tracks. Laura specialises in covering doping, anti-doping, UCI governance and performing data analysis.
'The day I broke my leg, I was 100% sure I was going to fight for the GC in that Grand Tour and that's something that's super inspiring to me' says Lidl-Trek rider
