Stage 5 of the 2025 Vuelta España Femenina was the first hard test of the season. FDJ–SUEZ lit up the race early, setting a brutal pace on the climbs and forcing major splits before the final ascent to Lagunas de Neila
It was the first major climbing day of the 2025 season in the women’s calendar. Demi Vollering, now riding for a new team, aimed to defend her title with an Avengers climbing support cast, including Evita Muzic and Juliette Labous. FDJ–SUEZ set a hard pace from the first climb, with Labous shredding the group early on. Vollering waited for her teammates while still keeping the pace high in the final kilometre of the Alto de Rozavientos. The tempo was relentless: 4.9 ᵉW/kg for 24 minutes, with the last 14 minutes averaging around 5.3 ᵉW/kg. And that wasn’t even the final climb, meaning much of the energy was spent on Rozavientos.
On the descent and in the valley, several riders managed to return to the front. By women’s cycling standards, the stage was already brutal, with Labous expending 1,777 kJ over 2 hours and 56 minutes at an average of 11 kJ/kg/h before reaching Lagunas de Neila.
Muzic set the pace at the base of Lagunas de Neila, and Labous launched an attack with 4 km to go, baiting Anna van der Breggen into the chase, with Vollering calmly following on the steep gradients. One kilometre later, Vollering attacked with a sharp acceleration. Marlen Reusser looked impressive, flying up the steep ramps and proving to be the only rider able to even partially respond. Unsurprisingly, Vollering continued her dominance on hard mountain stages with a strong solo win. Reusser, on a climb that doesn’t suit her, lost only 24 seconds and clearly produced the best climbing performance of her career, now racing with the Movistar team.
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
On the final climb, Vollering averaged 5.19 ᵉW/kg for 23:52 minutes. As the climb was at relatively high altitude, her sea-level equivalent power was 5.51 ᵉW/kg, an extremely impressive effort given the stage’s difficulty. Despite the steep gradients, Reusser managed 5.10 ᵉW/kg. With more high mountains to come, this Vuelta promises more outstanding climbing performances.