Tour de France Femmes 2023 stage 5 preview - First of back-to-back sprint days

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Stage 5: Onet-Le-Château to Albi

Date: July 27, 2023

Distance: 126.1km

Stage timing: 14:00 - 17:20 CET

Stage type: Flat

As the race heads further south into the Pyrénées, stage 5 on July 27, will bring a flatter 126km route for the sprint teams, who will be on a serious hunt for 75 points on offer for the green jersey.

From the start in Onet-Le-Château, Team SD Worx have a control in the sprint classification, race leader Lotte Kopecky claiming 128 points so far to Lorena Wiebes' 100 points. However, Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step Team) is just eight point behind Wiebes in third place. And top sprinters like Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma), with 64 points, and Charlotte Kook (Team dsm-firmenich), 35 points, look to make big leaps.

It's not straightforward flat on Thursday, as four ascents disrupt proceedings for eight mountains classification points - the Côte de Najac (2.1km at 7.4%) with 51km to go, followed by Côte de Laguépie (1.5km at 9%) and Côte de Monestiés (1.6km at 6.4%).

Points for bonus sprints have been doubled this year, so look for a skirmish when the race gets close to kilometre marker 91, as 300 metres beyond is the bonus line in Castelfadèze. From there, there is one final climbing hurdle of Côte de Monestiés, and from the top just 23.9km remain for a downhill and then flat run-in to Albi.