When DSM's Charlotte Cool burst onto the sprint scene in 2023, she was filling the void left by Lorena Wiebes, the most consecutive winner in the women's peloton. But now, a season and a half after the two spent time as teammates, it is Kool who has the upper hand, having done more than enough to overtake her lead and win stage 2 of the Tour de France femme from behind.

In Monday's opening stage in The Hague, Wiebes suffered mechanical problems in the last 500 meters. But there was no question in the second stage in Rotterdam. Coole's victory was well worth it.

For Kuhl and DSM-Filmenig-Post NL, the sprint was something they knew she had the legs for and hoped her dream would come true. She won back-to-back races in her home country of the Netherlands and took the yellow jersey.

“Dreams come true so fast these days. It's really special to already be wearing the yellow jersey yesterday and today,” Kool said after the finish.

“I think yesterday was the most special. Everything went well, but of course to win two stages in a row in the Netherlands and in the Tour de France is insane.”

For Kool, it was a complicated and long-unknown respiratory problem that plagued her performance. However, Kuhl had high hopes that all would go well on this big stage.

“This big goal [of the Tour] has always kept me going, kept me fighting, and kept me believing that the race is the only thing I need my best legs for,” Kool told Cycling News before the race. But perhaps she had an inkling of what was to come.

“For me personally, last year I won everywhere but the Tour, so this year it could be the opposite.

Kool credited the specialist with turning things around at the last minute, two weeks before the start of the Tour. In a press conference after the first stage, she said, “I'm finally feeling like myself again.” Tuesday's stage was further confirmation that she is back to peak form.

“Yesterday's sprint was very good,” she said. She said, “In the first stage I got hit from behind, lost my rear derailleur, and had a tear in my eye. But Kool kept her cool and pulled off the win from her slipstream, swapping places with her former teammate. Perhaps the women's sprinting world has a new top dog.

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