Here’s Jeremy Whittle’s report.

Reuters – Cedrine Kerbaol became the first-ever home stage winner of the Tour de France Femmes after a late attack on the hilly sixth stage from Remiremont to Mortgeau on Friday.

Kerbaol (Ceratizit-WNT) broke clear on the descent of the day’s final climb with 15km to go, opening up a gap that proved decisive, winning by 21 seconds from the pursuing group.

Her daring ride lifted her to second in the general classification, 16 seconds behind yellow jersey wearer Katarzyna Niewiadoma who took the lead on the previous stage following a crash involving then leader Demi Vollering.

Dutch great Marianne Vos sprinted to second on the stage to take over the green jersey. Saturday’s 164-km stage features five categorised climbs.

1km to go: Kerbaol is hurting but holding them off to above 30 seconds. She will enter the town and then that final, fateful hill. Surely she’s got this one in the bag.

3km to go: Kerbaol is still flying, and is virtually second on GC with a lead of 37 seconds. She’s a solo specialist, but needs to save her energy for a final, 700m climb.

5km to go: Demi Vollering is in the main peloton, and will be ready for the mountain stages that await this weekend. Grace Brown is pulling the chasers along.

7km to go: Kerbaol is a devil-may-care descender, flying down. And opening up a lead to huge roars. The French rider has the town of Morteau on her side. Niewiadoma is safe in the pack but here, with all the road furniture, is where the danger begins.

10km to go: This descent is rapid, and there’s a break on. Cédrine Kerbaol has surged into the lead, with plenty of chasers, including Marianne Vos. The gap is around 20 seconds.

15km to go: Marianne Vos, after being up the front, is struggling to stay on the back of this lead group up this final, climd, the Cote de Fins. Puck, back up the front, is there or thereabouts as the mountain points are handed out. Now, here come the attacks on the descent.

16km to go: Suddenly, some attacks from the peloton. Juliette Labous is amongst it, and one of the riders caught out is Demi Vollering, who like on Thursday, seems short on help. The breakaway is no more. Now, can there be another to replace it? The gradient is 9%, riders being spat out the back, the yellow jersey in mix.

21km to go: The bonus seconds race – like yesterday – is barely contested. The gap to the peloton is dwindling. Kristen Faulkner has dropped back for bottles, so is either full of energy or taking a day off. She’s more likely to have a plan in mind.

• 1. Brown 00’ 06”

• 2.Ghekiere 00’ 04”

• 3 Fisher 00’02

23km to go: Fisher-Black takes the mountain points, and Ghekiere reaches the second and falls back, having collected the polka points she desires. Grace Brown is up there too, and Ghekiere comes back on. Vos has been swallowed up by the peloton, her virtual yellow a distant memory.

28km to go: Vos can’t keep pace, and it’s Fisher-Black, Brown, Paladin, Ghekiere and Gutierrez who are the leading group now. Vos is 25 seconds down. Huge crowds as they climb up and up.

30km to go: As expected, the climb splits the field, riders dropping off the lead group, which contains Vos. At the back, a grupetto is being formed. Niamh Fisher-Black, the Kiwi, has staged a break from the lead group but is pulled back. Lizzie Deignan, these days a domestique, is digging for her Lidl team in the peloton.

35km to go: A category 2 climb beckons - La Roche du Prêtre – 5.5km long and finishing with 26.1km to go. That’s not the last of the action – there’s a sprint for bonus points followed by a cat. 3 climb. No rest for the wicked.

40km to go: Through bending, weaving Woodland road they go, with the peloton catching up with the breakaway group. Movistar are leading the way for the chasers. They did the same on Thursday, only for that crash to break the rhythm of an expected sprint.

46km to go: The descent gets very fast and dangerous over this point, though the speed of the race allows little room for caution. The previous climb wasn’t too strictly contested but may mean a change of polka wearer come the end of the day. Justine Ghekiere won the Queen of the Mountains at the Giro and has become a strong contender.

55km to go: The gap is 1’ 36” dead as they near the summit of this climb. That means Niewiadoma is back in yellow. But it’s touch and go. Kool is again dropping back on a climb. She said earlier that yesterday was one of her worst ever days in the saddle.

65km to go: Vos, Ghekiere and Koch attacked out of the breakaway close to the summit of Col de Ferrere but have been pulled back into that 18. Charlotte Kool is deep in the peloton and may well be on the wrong side of Vos’ ventures at the head of the field. The intermediate sprint comes next.

70km to go: Let there be light. The TV pictures are with us, and that gap has dropped to two minutes, meaning Marianne Vos’s virtual yellow is fading. She’s also got a decent hit at the points classification.

A gap has opened up such that Marianne Vos is in virtual yellow, the breakaway has a lead of 2’35”.

Why do race broadcasts start so late? The answer is partially provided by the article quoted here. Thanks to Geo for sending it on. The next question is that Le Tour is the world’s richest race, surely they – of all races – should be able to show the women’s version in full. It’s still not a good look. Eurosport shows most of the major Spring Classics in full.

High technical cost
The explanation lies in the high complexity associated with live broadcasts of cycling. “That has everything to do with the location,” points out Jurgen Switsers, chief live broadcasts at Sporza.

“Which, unlike a lot of other sports, is not at a fixed location, but along a course open to the public. That makes our capture team a travelling company.”

One that is particularly extensive.

In addition to a few motorbikes, a helicopter and a relay plane are needed to capture the course in the best possible way. “With a plane like that, for example, you have to take into account a certain autonomy, so they can only fly for a limited number of hours,” Switsers said. “In addition, they can’t really be deployed flexibly either. If a race breaks open early - something that is happening more and more often, unlike in the past - then the plane cannot take to the air any faster, because you are stuck with strict rules around the take-off slots.”

Most importantly, putting all those resources in place costs a lot of money.

Switsers: “Putting racing on screen is an expensive production - that is the reality now. Broadcasting a 5-hour race in full, that creates a high technical and personnel cost. We have to use our resources as efficiently as possible and logically focus on the final.”

Marianne Vos has joined the lead group alongside Niam Fisher-Balack, Soraya Paladin and Grace Brown. That’s a big enough group to stay away.

When two become 14: Cordon-Ragot and Blanco have been joined by Van Empel, Koch, Majerus, Van Dijk, Colje, Berteau, Pate, Louw, Ahtosalo, Berton, De Wilde & Gutierrez. They lead by 30” with 62km to go.

Two riders have staged an early breakaway. Audrey Cordon-Ragot is the French time trial champion.

Eurosport – and others – deciding not to show this event until it has 100km left, it seems. They’re currently showing a documentary on the Tour of Norway Arctic Race of Norway, with Carlton Kirby trying to be voiceover man, and at one point dropping into a Yorkshire accent for no particular reason. This race took place last week. So much for equality, chaps. Poor form.

Les Femmes have meanwhile been through the town of Mélisey, home town of Thibaut Pinot. It featured in Les Hommes race, too.

Justine Ghekiere was the first rider to the top of that first climb and took 10 points in the mountains classification. The Visma team soon brought her back.

Via the official site, the climbs of the day. They’re already on the first of these.

• Km 11.7 - Col du Mont-de-Fourche (Cat. 3, 3.2km at 5.9%)

• Km 90 - Col de Ferrère (Cat. 4, 2.6km at 4.7%)

• Km 106 - Côte de Laviron (Cat. 3, 5.7km at 4.1%)

• Km 133.1 - La Roche-du-Prêtre (Cat. 2, 5.5km at 5.6%)

• Km 144.3 - Côte des Fins (Cat. 3, 1.8km at 6.9%)

Jeremy Whittle on what caused the withdrawals today.

More news of an abandonment: Marta Lach

Here’s the jersey wearers ahead of Stage 6.

Injury news:

Demi Vollering news, from her team: “Demi Vollering was examined at the hotel by the Team SD Worx-Protime team doctor after her fall in the fifth stage of the Tour de France Femmes. She suffered minor bruising and superficial abrasions to her lower back and buttock.”

Pfeiffer Georgi has abandoned. More new of non-starters when we get it.

“Stage 5 from Bastogne to Amnéville at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift was marred by a massive crash with many riders hitting the deck. Despite the setback, Puck Pieterse stayed strong and kept both the white jersey and the polka dot jersey,” Fenix-Deceuninck said following the stage.