2009 Grande Boucle Féminine starts in Britain

The first details of the 2009 Grande Boucle Féminine have been released. Next year's race, scheduled to take place from June 14-21, will start and spend a full three days in southern Great Britain. Judging from the map released on velo-feminin.com, the race is set to take off somewhere in Cornwall or Devon.

After crossing the Channel, cyclists will head south through the French regions of Basse-Normandie, Bretagne, Pays-de-la-Loire, Centre, Poitou-Charentes, Limousin and Aquitaine. The final stage will see the riders arrive in the Spanish Basque Country in the Pyrenees.

Moreover, since the race made its come-back in 2005, struggling to extend over five or six stages, it will next year last a full eight days.