Homer’s Kristen Faulkner placed 26th out of 115 riders who finished the nine-stage race.
The Women’s Tour de France wrapped up over the weekend and Homer’s Kristen Faulkner produced a career-best finish in a loaded field.
The 33-year-old cyclist placed 26th out of 115 riders who finished all nine stages, improving on her 28th-place finish in 2024 and 40th-place finish in 2022. She dropped out of last year’s race.
Faulkner was the top American finisher, beating Lily Williams of Tallahassee, Fla., by more than an hour.
In addition, Faulkner pocketed her third career top-10 stage finish and placing sixth in a 21K time trial, nipping Frenchwoman Cédrine Kerbaol in a sprint finish.
Faulkner also had a strong effort in a grueling Stage 8 that covered 172K (107 miles) and had a vertical gain of more than 3,800 feet.
This year’s field featured the top eight-ranked cyclists in the world, led by this season’s top-ranked cyclist Demi Vollering, of the Netherlands, who won the Tour de France, her second title since 2023.
Faulkner hasn’t had a great season and came into the Tour de France ranked 116th in the world.
But this is a two-time Olympic gold medalist we’re talking about, so she’s more than capable of turning it on, and her performance this month was more up to snuff.
