CYCLING: 2026 Sportland NÖ Women Tour Austria (AUT)

Linz, Austria 22. Mai 2026 – 25. Mai 2026

The 2026 Women’s Tour has officially kicked off. Austria’s only multi-day stage race for women marked the start with a first: for the first time in history, the race spans two federal states. Burgenland hosted the grand departure in Illmitz.

Tour Overview Sportland NÖ Women Tour Austria

Stage / Event	Route / Location	Distance	Elevation Gain	Start Time	Estimated Finish
Stage 1	Illmitz – Illmitz	101.4 km	30 m	12:15 PM	approx. 2:45 PM
Stage 2	Gutenbrunn – Heiligenkreuz	106 km	960 m	1:00 PM	approx. 3:45 PM
Stage 3	Amstetten – Amstetten	109.1 km	936 m	1:00 PM	approx. 3:45 PM
Side Event	Youth Criterium (Hauptplatz)	—	—	from 1:00 PM	—
Side Event	KidsBikeTrophy (Hauptplatz)	—	—	from 2:45 PM	—
Stage 4	Ybbsitz – Hochkar	56.2 km	1,140 m	11:00 AM	approx. 1:05 PM
Side Event	Hochkar Hill Climb (from Hochkar toll station)	—	—	from 11:25 AM	—
—	—	—	—	—	—
Tour Total	Overall	374.5 km	3,066 m	—	—

Note on Abbreviations: > * NÖ-LM stands for Niederösterreichische Landesmeisterschaft (Lower Austrian State Championship).

Höhenmeter translates to elevation gain (meters of climbing).

Results

The opening stage of the Sportland Niederösterreich Women Tour 2026 took place in Illmitz (Burgenland). The flat, 101.4-kilometer route was heavily shaped by fierce crosswinds that tore the peloton apart early in the race.

Stage 1 Results: Illmitz – Illmitz (101.4 km)

Rank	Rider	Team	Time / Gap	Notes
1st	🇩🇰 Caroline Schad	Team Friis	2:45:–	Winner via group sprint
2nd	🇱🇺 Liv Wenzel	Luxembourg National Team	s.t.
3rd	🇦🇹 Leila Gschwentner	Smurfit Westrock	s.t.	Best Austrian rider of the day

Race Highlights

The Decisive Breakaway: The heavy winds forced tactical echelons, resulting in a 13-rider breakaway stretching their lead significantly over the rest of the field.
The Gaps: The leading group crossed the finish line a dominant 3 minutes and 55 seconds ahead of the nearest chasing pair (from Mat Atom Deweloper) and 6 minutes and 6 seconds ahead of the main chasing peloton.
Active Racing: Austria’s Leila Gschwentner rode highly aggressively, taking maximum points in two intermediate sprints before clinching her podium finish.

With this result, Caroline Schad wears the leader’s jersey heading into Stage 2 from Gutenbrunn to Heiligenkreuz.

The second stage of the 2026 Sportland NÖ Women Tour took place on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The stage featured a demanding 106-kilometer road race starting and finishing at Stift Heiligenkreuz, testing the riders with 960 meters of vertical climbing.

The Polish developmental powerhouse squad, MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław, completely dominated the finale, securing a stellar 1-2 finish at the line.

Stage 2 Top 10 Results

Rank	Rider	Team	Time / Gap
1	🥇 Olga Wankiewicz (POL)	MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław	2:53:47
2	🥈 Maja Tracka (POL)	MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław	s.t.
3	🥉 Tsige Kiros Kahsay (ETH)	CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto Generation	s.t.
4	Tjaša Sušnik (SLO)	RC ARBÖ-ASKÖ Rapso Knittelfeld	s.t.
5	Amalie Cooper (GBR)	Tirol Women Cycling	s.t.
6	Lea Fuchs (AUT)	SPAR CTO Women	s.t.
7	Liv Wenzel (LUX)	Sebmotobikes CX Team	s.t.
8	Elena Lopes (LUX)	Club / Independent	+ 0:07
9	Valentina Basilico (ITA)	Born to Win BTC City Ljubljana	+ 0:07
10	Weronika Wąsaty (POL)	CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto Generation	+ 0:07

(Note: “s.t.” indicates the same time as the stage winner).

Race Notes

Local Spotlight: Lea Fuchs finishing in 6th place made her the highest-placed Austrian rider for the day, keeping up with a highly competitive field that featured several major European development programs and elite amateur configurations.
The Route: The repetitive, punchy profile around the Heiligenkreuz loops split the peloton significantly, leaving only a select group of top riders to contest the final sprint victory.

The Jersey Winners:

SPORTLAND Lower Austria General Individual Classification: Liv Wenzel (Luxembourg National Team)

GATORADE Points Classification: Olga Wankiewicz (MAT Atom Deweloper Wroclaw)

PÖLTEN Best Austrian Woman: Leila Gschwentner (Smurfit Westrock Cycling)

RAIFFEISEN Best Junior Woman: Leni Burger (German National Team)

Stage 3 (Amstetten to Amstetten, 109.1 km) Sportland NÖ Women Tour Austria

Results for Stage 3 (Amstetten to Amstetten, 109.1 km) of the 2026 Sportland NÖ Women Tour Austria, which took place on Sunday, May 24, 2026.

Poland’s Maja Tracka took a dominant solo victory, finishing 44 seconds ahead of the chasing peloton.

Stage 3 Top 10 Results

Rnk	Rider	Team	Time / Gap
1	🇵🇱 Maja Tracka	MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław	2:54:36
2	🇩🇪 Erja Giulia Bianchi	CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto Generation	+ 0:44
3	🇵🇱 Olga Wankiewicz	MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław	“
4	🇧🇪 Febe Poppe	Foca – Dynaplus Pro Cycling Team	“
5	🇵🇱 Gabriela Kaczmarczyk	MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław	“
6	🇬🇧 Amalie Cooper	Tirol Women Cycling	“
7	🇵🇱 Urszula Sipko	MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław	“
8	🇧🇪 Hanne De Zutter	Foca – Dynaplus Pro Cycling Team	“
9	🇱🇺 Liv Wenzel	Sebmotobikes CX Team	“
10	🇮🇹 Valentina Basilico	Born to Win BTC City Ljubljana	“

(Note: ” indicates the rider finished in the same group time as the runner-up).

Following Stage 3 of the 2026 Sportland NÖ Women Tour Austria, the leaders of the individual classification jerseys are:

🟡 Leader Jersey (General Classification): Erja Giulia Bianchi (Germany / CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto Generation)
🟢 Points Jersey (Sprint Classification): Maja Tracka (Poland / MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław)
🔴 Mountain Jersey (Climbers Classification): Aneta Szablowska (Poland / MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław)
⚪ White Jersey (Best Young Rider): Erja Giulia Bianchi (Germany / CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto Generation) (Note: As Bianchi wears the yellow leader’s jersey, the white jersey is worn in the next stage by the second-placed U23 rider, Febe Poppe).

Stage 4 of the 2026 SPORTLAND Niederösterreich Women Tour took place on Monday, May 25, 2026.

Serving as the spectacular grand finale of Austria’s premier multi-day stage race for women, this stage featured a grueling mountain finish designed to decide the final general classification.

Stage Overview: Ybbsitz to Hochkar

Date: May 25, 2026
Route: Ybbsitz to Hochkar
Distance: $55.9 \text{ km}$ (alternatively cited as $56.2 \text{ km}$ in initial routing tables)
Elevation Gain: $1,140 \text{ meters}$
Key Feature: The legendary Hochkar toll road—an $8.8 \text{ km}$ final climb holding the reputation as the steepest and highest cycling mountain in Lower Austria.

The final mountain showdown of the 2026 Sportland NÖ Women Tour (Stage 4) from Ybbsitz to the grueling summit of the Hochkar concluded with a dominant performance that decided both the day’s honors and the final general classification.

Stage 4 Results (Top 10)

Austria’s Lea Fuchs delivered a masterclass on the steep $8.8\text{ km}$ final climb, crossing the line solo with a significant gap over the rest of the field to secure both the stage win and the overall tour victory.

Rank	Rider	Team	Time / Gap
1	Lea Fuchs	🇦🇹 SPAR CTO Women	1:44:22
2	Nika Fajfar	🇸🇮 Born to Win BTC City Ljubljana	+ 0:20
3	Tjaša Sušnik	🇸🇮 RC ARBÖ-ASKÖ Rapso Knittelfeld	+ 0:43
4	Carmen Moser	🇦🇹 Bikeleasing VERGE VICC	+ 0:47
5	Rahel Aschwanden	🇨🇭 SPAR CTO Women	+ 1:09
6	Tsige Kahsay Kiros	🇪🇹 CANYON//SRAM generation	+ 1:35
7	Amalie Cooper	🇬🇧 Tirol Women Cycling	+ 1:42
8	Belinda Holzer	🇦🇹 Tirol Women Cycling	+ 1:49
9	Weronika Wąsaty	🇵🇱 CANYON//SRAM generation	+ 2:07
10	Elena Lopes	🇱🇺 Independent / National Field	+ 2:25

Key Takeaways

SPAR CTO Women Domination: With Lea Fuchs winning the stage and teammate Rahel Aschwanden placing 5th, the squad put an emphatic stamp on the high-altitude finale.
The Climb Decided It All: The grueling $1,140\text{ meters}$ of total elevation gain completely fractured the peloton. Only the top five riders managed to stay within a minute of Fuchs’ blistering pace up the Hochkar toll road.

The 2026 SPORTLAND Niederösterreich Women Tour concluded with an emphatic shakeup on the general classification (GC) following the grueling Stage 4 mountain finish up the Hochkar.

Austria’s Lea Fuchs (SPAR CTO Women) put on a climbing masterclass to take the final stage victory and secure the Yellow Jersey as the overall winner of the tour. Her teammate, Rahel Aschwanden, secured second place overall, cementing a dominant 1-2 finish for the SPAR CTO Women squad. Eritrean National Champion Monaliza Araya Chneslasie (CANYON//SRAM Generation) put in a resilient performance on the final climb to jump up the rankings and round out the final podium in third.

Final General Classification (Top 10)

Rank	Rider	Team	Time / Gap
🥇 1	Lea Fuchs 🇦🇹	SPAR CTO Women	Total Time
🥈 2	Rahel Aschwanden 🇨🇭	SPAR CTO Women	+ 1:34
🥉 3	Monaliza Araya Chneslasie 🇪🇷	CANYON//SRAM Generation	+ 3:02
4	Gwen Nothum 🇱🇺	Minimax Cycling Team	+ 3:53
5	Liv Wenzel 🇱🇺	Sebmotobikes CX Team	+ 4:38
6	Maja Tracka 🇵🇱	MAT Atom Deweloper Wrocław	+ 5:30
7	Leila Gschwentner 🇦🇹	Smurfit Westrock Cycling Team	+ 6:05
8	Leni Burger 🇦🇹	Independent Field	+ 6:27
9	Tjaša Sušnik 🇸🇮	RC ARBÖ-ASKÖ Rapso Knittelfeld	+ 6:56
10	Carmen Moser 🇦🇹	Bikeleasing VERGE VICC	+ 7:11

The “Grand Départ” Milestone

Historically known as the Sportland Niederösterreich Women Tour (traditionally held exclusively in the state of Lower Austria), the multi-stage race made history by expanding across state borders for the very first time.

Illmitz, located in the flat, scenic Seewinkel region of Burgenland, was chosen to host the Grand Départ (the official start) of this expanded edition. This cross-state expansion was designed to elevate the profile of elite women’s racing in Austria, attracting a record-breaking international field of 23 teams and over 120 riders from 15 different nations.

The Route and Tactical History

While Illmitz is picturesque—winding through the heart of the Nationalpark Neusiedler See-Seewinkel—it is notorious among cyclists for its flat terrain paired with brutal, unrelenting crosswinds.

The Setup: The 101.4-kilometer stage consists of a 33.8-kilometer circuit repeated three times.
The 2025 Precursor: The quality and tactical difficulty of this specific loop were first tested and proven when Illmitz successfully hosted the Austrian National Road Championships.
The Historic First Winner: The flat profile heavily favors tactical positioning and echelon racing (using the wind to break up the peloton). Caroline Schad (Team Friis) etched her name into the event’s history books by winning the inaugural Illmitz stage in a dramatic group sprint, while Olympic-caliber home-crowd favorites like Leila Gschwentner also used the windy local conditions to tear the field apart early on.

By serving as the launchpad for the tour before the riders head into the punishing mountain climbs of Lower Austria (such as the Hochkar), Illmitz has cemented its place as the definitive “speed and tactics” capital of Austria’s premier women’s stage race.