There was confusion and speculation on stage 1 of the Tour de France Femmes after Paula Blasi (UAE Team L'IMAD) was awarded the first white jersey of the race, the youth classification previously contested by under-23 riders: which Blasi is not.
In the first four editions of the Tour de France Femmes, the white jersey, sponsored by Liv, has been awarded to the highest-ranked under-23 rider, slightly younger than the under-25 classification that dictates the white jersey in the men's Tour.
As a result, the assumption was that it would continue to be an under-23 category this year, with no announcements otherwise, and the Tour de France Femmes website and roadbook still listing the jersey as for "riders under 23 years of age".
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Now, under-23 and under-25 may sound like terms that are open to interpretation, but when it comes to cycling age categories, they are not – they are clearly defined by the UCI. To be counted as an under-23 rider, a rider must be under the age of 23 on December 31 of that year. In other words, in the year in which you turn 23, you are no longer an under-23 rider.
That means that riders like Paula Blasi, who turned 23 in February, and, for example, Millie Couzens who is 22 but will turn 23 in October are no longer under-23 riders.
Therefore, it was surprising when riders like Blasi, Couzens, Antonia Niedermaier and more 23-year-olds were marked as U23s on the Tour's start list, and even more surprising when Blasi was awarded the jersey. Considering many of these riders just rode the Giro d'Italia, where they were not eligible, it was confusing to see them listed in the youth classification in the Tour.
So why? Well, it seems that the Tour de France has quietly changed the parameters of the classification, with the rulebook stating that the classification is open to riders born after January 1, 2003. This is the exact same wording as last year, meaning that riders who are already 23 are now eligible.
At the start of stage two in Aigle on Sunday, Cyclingnews spoke both to UAE Team L'IMAD and Lidl-Trek, the team of Isabella Holmgren who would have expected to have been in the white jersey per normal under-23 regulations after finishing 14th on the opening stage.
Lidl-Trek were unaware of any confusion or a claim on white, with most people on the race not being aware of any rule change, but Cyclingnews now understands that the change was communicated at the directors' meeting on Friday, though not made public.
On Saturday, there was some initial confusion with Blasi nearly missing the podium presentation for white, but that was down to a miscommunication, rather than the team not believing she was eligible, UAE Team L'IMAD director Cherie Pridham explained to Cyclingnews on Sunday.
Blasi herself said that she only found out just before the race that she would be eligible, and you can understand why she was confused, as she was not eligible for the white jersey in the Vuelta Femenina that she won in May. There was also confusion around that classification, with only under-22 riders marked as eligible initially, but that was later rectified.
Pridham was aware that the category has been moved up a year, and had no questions about that.
"The star [asterisk on the start list] indicates who is eligible, so we just follow what they prescribe," she said. "We were never informed any different, so she's in the young rider's jersey and that's it."
UAE Team L'IMAD already have several goals and leaders, so whilst Blasi is in white for now, it's not a defined ambition to try to keep it, though she does look like the strongest under-24 rider in the race.
"It'll come organically," Pridham said. "Our focus is for the yellow jersey of course, for the GC. It's a bit like the Queen of the Mountains – if you're in the GC with the way the course is this year, it's going to come organically – but our focus always remains on the GC. If the white jersey comes as a consequence of the team's strength, then of course we will take it."
Why the change?
Since the Tour de France Femmes has not publicised the change, with their own website not even reflecting the change in the rulebook, they haven't publicly given any reasons for the change.
The youth category in women's cycling has long been younger than in men's racing, as there is no separate U23 racing scene in women's racing, so riders go straight from juniors into the elite peloton.
Last year, only 12 riders were eligible for the white jersey in the Tour de France Femmes, so expanding the eligibility by one year certainly makes it more competitive and open to more riders, with 26 under-24 riders eligible for white this year.
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