CYCLING: Wiebes wins Tour de France Femmes stage 2, extends lead

GENEVA — Dutch cyclist Lorena Wiebes claimed her second straight stage victory at the Tour de France Femmes, winning Stage 2 in a bunch sprint on Sunday to strengthen her hold on the overall race lead.

The Team SD Worx-Protime rider surged to the front in the closing meters of the 147.9-kilometer route from Aigle to Geneva, pulling away from the field to secure her seventh career Tour de France Femmes stage victory and her first while wearing the yellow jersey.

Wiebes said she had to find the right position on her own before launching her sprint with about 200 meters remaining.

Italy's Elisa Balsamo of Lidl-Trek finished second, while Dutch veteran Marianne Vos placed third.

The stage victory earned Wiebes a 10-second time bonus, extending her overall lead to 14 seconds over Mauritius' Kimberley Le Court. Former Tour champion Demi Vollering sits third, another two seconds behind.

The race ended in the expected sprint finish after Dutch rider Riejanne Markus made a late solo attack. Markus built a lead of about one minute after breaking away with 40 kilometers remaining but was caught by the peloton less than 500 meters from the finish.

Wiebes credited her teammates for chasing down Markus and setting up another successful sprint finish, saying the victory was even more meaningful while wearing the race leader's yellow jersey.

The Tour de France Femmes continues on Monday with the 156.5-kilometer third stage from Geneva, Switzerland, to Poligny, France. -Reporting by Trevor Stynes; editing by Clare Fallon/Reuters