The organisers of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift have listened to feedback from the riders, teams and stakeholders by adding two key changes to the second edition of the marquee event.
Race director Marion Rousse said it was a conscious decision to bring the women's race into the high mountains of the Pyrénées with a summit finish at the Col du Tourmalet and then conclude with an individual time trial in Pau.
"It won't have escaped you that we go to the high mountains, the Pyrénées, with the climb of Col d'Aspin and then the Col du Tourmalet. Really, with the idea of inscribing the Tour de France Femmes in history," Rousse said on Thursday at the route reveal held at the Palais des Congrès in Paris.
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"The final stage is another novelty with a time trial, which will be far from simple as well."
The rebirth of the Tour de France Femmes this year was a resounding success with a start on the Champs-Élysées and conclusion in the Vosges mountains atop La Planche des Belles Filles where Annemiek van Vleuten won the overall title.
However, teams and riders offered feedback and expressed areas of improvement, hoping organisers would include some of the more iconic aspects of the men's Tour de France in the Alps or the Pyrénées, and particularly noting a lack of a time trial.
Rousse believes that, together with ASO, they have created a route that now has something for everyone. The race moves away from the Paris start and will instead begin in Clermont-Ferrand before heading south into the Pyrénées.
"We really wanted to make a balanced route, that corresponds to different rider types. There's something for all tastes," Rousse said. "Starting from Clermont-Ferrand, we're in the Massif Central, so we have difficulties from the first day. Those are stages with some pitfalls, with a fair bit of elevation."
The opening six stages range from flat to hilly, with options for sprinters and puncheurs, with the longest route set at 177km on stage 4, where strong winds could also play a factor. Rousse believes that the fourth stage is deceiving and could play a major factor in the overall classification.
"The fourth stage, when we'll arrive at Rodez, doesn't seem so difficult on paper. But I went there and I can tell you it's very hard, above all in the last 40km, where it's always up or down, small roads, the positioning will be very important. Really, the fourth stage for me will be almost decisive for the GC," Rousse said.
The Tour de France brand
Rousse said that while the Tour de France Femmes will not start on the Champs-Élysées in conjunction with the finish of the men's race this year, it was still important to maintain the connection between the two events with the trademark branding, by having the women's race the week following the men's.
"We want to have that link between the men and women. When the Tour de France goes by, I can say, 'no, stay with us and come and see the women in the fourth week.' It also works the other way. Le Markstein [stage 7 finish of 2022 Tour de France Femmes] was a key stage in the Tour de France Femmes last year and next year it's the final climb in the men's Tour de France," Rousse said.
When designing the route, Rousse was also mindful of the challenges and limitations when considering how much of the countryside the Tour de France Femmes can traverse in just eight days. The aim, at least for the foreseeable future, will be to try and visit new areas of the country in each edition.
"We have the same philosophy as the men's Tour de France. We want to go everywhere we can - in France or abroad. At the moment, it's only eight days so we can't go everywhere," Rousse said.
Rousse said that the future editions of the Tour de France Femmes will need to be both longer and more challenging, in line with the progress of women's cycling, but she also noted the importance of the sport developing at the foundation as well.
"If we are to have changes, it'll be for better or for more. That's the will of everyone. It's eight days for now. We've spoken with riders and teams and the consensus is that that's the ideal format. Women's cycling, even if it's enormously progressed at the WorldTour level, needs to progress at the Continental level, too, so we have to go step by step, and constantly evaluate," she said.
'We want to solidify our race'
The first edition of the new version of the Tour de France Femmes was a success in terms of racing, branding and marketability. The media and fan presence and interest spoke volumes to the popularity of the race internationally.
In total, there were nearly 20 million viewers in France across the eight days of racing, with an average per stage of 2.25 million on France 2 and France 3 delivering an audience share of 26.4%, according to official Tour de France Femmes figures. The finale alone, where van Vleuten took victory atop La Super Blanche des Belles Filles, was watched by more than 5 million French viewers.
Rousse acknowledged that while women's cycling has seen unprecedented growth in recent years, the Tour de France brand allows the events - men's and women's - to transcend sport with the ability to bring in a mass audience. The aim is to continue that growth and momentum into future editions of the Tour de France Femmes.
"Women's cycling has been progressing over the previous years. The importance of the Tour de France is the brand, it transcends sport. So, it can bring something no other race can," Rousse said.
"The women's cycling calendar was already quite well stocked, they didn't need us, but we're doing this because it's in the continuity of this virtuous cycle, where the Tour creates that resonance - in that third week, we can tell people, 'wait there's a fourth week', and that helps people those who aren't that tuned into cycling during the year pay attention to the race, and to see that women racing bikes is nothing bizarre and that they have their place," she said.
"That's already a big victory. Then sponsors will start to bring in more money and that's how we go about growing. The first year was a success but we can't rest on our laurels, we want to solidify our race and progress at the same pace as women's cycling because it's in all our interests."
