Ashleigh Moolman Pasio wins queen stage of Virtual Tour de France on Mont Ventoux

The duo pulled away from the main group of favourites with around 5km remaining on the climb, with Moolman Pasio then riding clear in the final 2km to secure victory.

TIBCO-Silicon Valley Bank finished with four riders in the top 10 to keep the overall race lead heading into the final stage on the Champs-Elysees on Sunday.

The victory was a sweet moment for Moolman Pasio after technical issues foiled her chances in the previous stage.

"It was really great to win today for my team CCC-Liv," said Moolman Pasio. "Luckily, I had no technical problems today. Last week was a big disappointment with the drop out.

"I’m very happy to have had a smooth ride today, and it was great to win the stage."

Discussing the battle with Gigante in the final few kilometres, she added: "There’s no doubt that she’s a great talent and that was evident during the Tour For All, but I did feel confident. I did feel smooth and I was keeping the real surge and push for the last few kilometres."