The third edition of the Tour de France Femmes starts this Monday from Rotterdam with a 123 km race to the Hague in the first stage. A pile-up upset the peloton a third of the way into the race, but all riders managed to get back up in the saddle.
The first two editions of the Tour de France Femmes were dominated by Dutch competitors, with Annemiek van Vleuten winning in 2022 and Demi Vollering last year.
This year, four of the eight stages take place in the Netherlands. The tour will finish at the notorious Alpe d'Huez, in France on 18 August.
The tour will pass through Rotterdam, The Hague, Dordrecht and Valkenburg in the Netherlands, then cross Belgium via Liège and Bastogne, crossing into France and move on via Amnéville, Remiremont, Morteau, Champagnole, Le Grand-Bornand to the finish at Alpe d'Huez in the south, totaling 949.7 km.
One of the riders involved in the crash around the 69km mark was French cyclist Victoire Berteau (Cofidis). She is competing in her second Tour. Eighth in Paris-Roubaix this spring, she admitted yesterday that she wanted to "bounce back" after her "disappointment at the Olympics and a poor performance in the team pursuit".
Three of the eight stages are on flat terrain, four over hilly or mountainous roads, and there's a time trial.
In total, some €250,000 will be awarded across the different stages and team competitions. The overall winner will get €50,000.
(With newswires)
