- Stage 1 : Lausanne - Lausanne
- Date : August 1, 2026
- Distance : 138km
- Elevation gain : 1700 metres
- Start time : 14:14 CET
- Finish time : 17:44 CET
For the second time in its five-year history, the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift heads abroad for its Grand Départ, this time to Switzerland. Stage 1, held on the Swiss National Day on 1 August, is a 138km loop starting and finishing in Lausanne atop a 2.6km climb averaging 4.6%, likely to end in the sprint of a reduced group.
Starting on the shores of Lake Geneva, a neutral zone gets the peloton out of Lausanne before the flag is waved. Heading north towards Yverdon, the riders reach Lake Neuchâtel after 30km and follow its shoreline before tackling the fourth-category Côte de Châbles, then turning east to Payerne and then south, back towards Lausanne.
The intermediate sprint comes in Villeneuve near Surpierre after 73.1km, and two cat. 3 climbs in quick succession, the Côte de Villars-le-Comte and Côte de Vulliens, the latter cresting with 40.9km to go, should thin out the peloton.
Returning to Lake Geneva 18.8km from the finish, the race then runs along the shore to Lausanne, skirting the UNESCO-listed Lavaux vineyards and reaching the start area just after the 3km mark and turning right onto the finishing climb.
The Côte Saint- François is similar to the first, less steep half of the climb the men’s peloton faced in their 2022 Tour stage to Lausanne, climbing through the district of Ouchy at a steady gradient before flattening off on the last 400 metres.
The stage has been classified as a flat stage by ASO, but a true mass sprint is unlikely as many riders will not be able to follow the strongest on the final climb. A reduced peloton with a few sprinters hanging on could make it, and in that case, Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) has to be the favourite. She has won sprints on shorter uphill finishes before, and if she is in the first group when the finish line comes into sight, she is virtually unbeatable.
Should Wiebes not stay in touch, her teammate Lotte Kopecky will fight for the first stage victory and the yellow jersey against riders like Célia Gery (FDJ United-Suez), Kim Le Court-Pienaar (AG Insurance-Soudal), Noemi Rüegg (EF Education-Oatly), and Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike).
Climbs
- Côte de Châbles (cat. 3, 1.6 km at 7.7%), km. 49.1
- Côte de Villars-le-Comte (cat. 3, 4km at 5.8%), km. 83.5
- Côte de Vulliens (cat. 3, 3km at 5.3%), km. 97.1
- Côte Saint-François (cat. 4, 2.6 km à 4.6%), km. 138 - finish
Sprint
- Villeneuve (Surpierre), km. 73.1 - points only to first 15 riders
