{"id":190980,"date":"2022-10-27T17:15:41","date_gmt":"2022-10-27T17:15:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?p=190980"},"modified":"2022-11-02T12:34:57","modified_gmt":"2022-11-02T12:34:57","slug":"the-tour-de-france-femmes-route-has-been-revealed-5-things-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/10\/27\/the-tour-de-france-femmes-route-has-been-revealed-5-things-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift Route Has Been Revealed: 5 Things to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2023 Tour de France Femmes route was revealed on Thursday in Paris, and there is plenty to get excited about while we wait in anticipation for next July. Like last year, the 2nd edition of the TdF Femmes will take place right after the men\u2019s Tour de France\u2014kicking into gear in Clermont-Ferrand on Sunday, 23 July and concluding on Sunday, the 30th, with an ITT in Pau.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

On the back of this year\u2019s hugely successful Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, race director Marion Rousse delivered more good news as she unveiled an even tougher 956km route for the race’s second edition. The stand-out stages come on the final weekend, with the penultimate day seeing a summit finish on the legendary Col du Tourmalet, followed by a time trial in and around Pau for the closing stage. As we said\u2014there\u2019s plenty to be excited about! Let\u2019s dig into some more of the details.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A bold new beginning\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n

As was the case this year, the event will be eight days long\u2014but otherwise, we are dealing with a whole new beast. Notably, the Grand D\u00e9part will say goodbye to the French capital and the hustle and bustle of its circuits (and the fanfare of the concluding men’s race) and begin in an all-new location in 2023.<\/span><\/p>\n

This time, the racing will get started in the Massif Central, in the city of Clermont-Ferrand, the capital of the Auvergne region. The race will begin with a flat lap of the town, where the first yellow jersey of the race will be awarded. Clermont-Ferrand will then host the d\u00e9part for the second stage, with riders taking to a rolling course en route to Mauriac. Day two will feature over 2,500m of climbing.<\/span><\/p>\n

The starting place of the race is worth dwelling on, though. Last year\u2019s race began in Paris, the peloton racing before the men who were riding their final stage 21 along the Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es circuits. This decision was undoubtedly strategic, ensuring the women\u2019s peloton would naturally receive more exposure at the roadside and in the media. The decision to let the women strike out on their own shows that the organisers believe their race has the legs to stand independently.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“This route is different. We want to explore new regions and tackle other mountain ranges. There are some similarities, too, as we built this on a robust framework using the same key ingredients that made it a success last summer,” said Tour de France race director Christian Prudhomme.<\/span><\/p>\n

Teams add a rider\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n

In 2023, the race will be contested by 22 teams of seven riders, rather than the six-strong line-ups we saw vying for the yellow jersey back in July.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Commenting on rumours that the teams would be increased to seven prior to the big reveal, Rousse has this to say\u2014\u201cMaybe it\u2019s better to have seven riders so teams can control the race better. We will work closely with the teams; we want their opinion. In women\u2019s cycling, we have come far; it\u2019s important to take good decisions at the right moment.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Annemiek Van Vleuten wins the stage and the yellow jersey. (2022 Tour De France Femmes Avec Zwift – Stage 8 – Lure to La Super Planche De Belle Filles) \u00a9 Profimedia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At the time, DSM team manager Albert Timmer noted that he was in support of the idea and \u201cwould encourage it.\u201d He went on to say, \u201cFor this year\u2019s Tour, we have six girls with one GC leader and one leader for the sprints, a lot of the girls are really versatile, they can do a lot of things, but one extra can really make a difference in the way you plan your tactics and in case somebody has to leave the race.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Indeed, it will be interesting to see how the change in numbers impacts the decisions teams make come race time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It features the longest stage in women\u2019s WorldTour history<\/b><\/h2>\n

Day three will feature the peloton riding through the Dordogne. It will have its finale in Montignac-Lascaux and should be a bunch sprint. Day four, meanwhile, brings a 177km stage \u2014 the longest in women\u2019s WorldTour history \u2014 and will take place between Cahors and Rodez. This one will also offer up an explosive finale after what will already have been a very hilly stage. The hilltop finish will see 570 meters at 10%.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The women will tackle the Pyrenees<\/b><\/h2>\n

When last year\u2019s inaugural Tour de France Femmes route was revealed, there was some swift and animated criticism lamenting the fact that it didn\u2019t feature any of the country\u2019s legendary climbs. Although the race was nevertheless a success, it seems like Rousse and her team were aware that fans wanted to see those ascents happen. Whatever the reasoning, they\u2019ve confirmed that the 2023 race will be heading straight into the heart of the Pyrenees.<\/span><\/p>\n

From the start of stage 6 in Lannemezan, the peloton will head south to cross the Col d\u2019Aspin before taking on the eastern flank of the Col du Tourmalet from Sainte-Marie-de-Campan. The 90-kilometre stage will begin with the ascent of the Col d’Aspin to warm things, before kicking things into overdrive for a challenging summit finish at the Col du Tourmalet. Standing at 2,115m altitude, the Tourmalet will mark the race\u2019s highest ascent to date, reaching well above last year\u2019s 1,193m Col du Platzerwasel.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tour de France Femmes will conclude with its first individual time trial<\/b><\/h2>\n

And, in another concession that the riders have been asking for, the 2023 Tour de France Femmes will conclude with its first individual time trial\u2014a 22km lap of Pau. Known as the race of truth, the addition of a time trial is another sign that the organisers have faith in the women\u2019s ability to pull an audience. Although usually less popular with fans, this unique form of racing tends to reveal the strengths and weaknesses of all cyclists and should make for a powerful finish to the event.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

All in all, this is a wildly challenging course with a little bit of something for everyone. Annemiek van Vleuten won the 1st edition of the Tour de France Femmes ahead of Demi Vollering and Katarzyna Niewiadoma. And, although it is too early to start placing bets for who will win next year, you can guarantee that a course like this will yield some surprises along with a few standout performances.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The eight-stage race will run from 23 July to 30 July 2023.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 2023 Tour de France Femmes route was revealed on Thursday in Paris, and there is plenty to get excited […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":190981,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[329],"tags":[578,5781,433,5780],"global-categories":[3366],"class_list":["post-190980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-road-cycling","tag-christian-prudhomme","tag-marion-rousse","tag-tour-de-france","tag-tour-de-france-femmes","global-categories-cycling"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift Route Has Been Revealed: 5 Things to Know - \u0160koda We Love Cycling<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The 2023 Tour de France Femmes route was revealed on Thursday in Paris, and there is plenty to get excited about while we wait in anticipation for next\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/10\/27\/the-tour-de-france-femmes-route-has-been-revealed-5-things-to-know\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift Route Has Been Revealed: 5 Things to Know\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The 2023 Tour de France Femmes route was revealed on Thursday in Paris, and there is plenty to get excited about while we wait in anticipation for next\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/10\/27\/the-tour-de-france-femmes-route-has-been-revealed-5-things-to-know\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u0160koda We Love Cycling\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-10-27T17:15:41+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-11-02T12:34:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/2\/2022\/10\/Marion-Rousse-CVR-profimedia-0733549086.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"990\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"660\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Megan Flottorp\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/10\/27\/the-tour-de-france-femmes-route-has-been-revealed-5-things-to-know\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/10\/27\/the-tour-de-france-femmes-route-has-been-revealed-5-things-to-know\/\",\"name\":\"The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift Route Has Been Revealed: 5 Things to Know - 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