Christchurch's Joanne Kiesanowski, riding for Italian professional team Nobili Rubinetterie, has the sprint ace's red jersey on the Tour de l'Aude in the South of France.
She is also second in the points classification on 80 - an aggregate accumulation from the sprints and bonuses for stage finishes.
In yesterday's fifth stage, a 28km time trial, Melissa Holt, riding for the Danish SATS professional team, was the top New Zealander in 37th place at 5m 26.72s.
The winner was Karin Thurig of Switzerland, who clocked 39m 40.99s.
Toni Bradshaw was 39th, Michelle Kiesanowski 53rd, Dale Tye 74th and Johanna Buick 78th.
New Zealand dropped one spot to 14th in the team standings.
Cycling: Top kiwi women in France
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