Tour de France Femmes
Cycling stage race / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Tour de France Femmes (French pronunciation: [tuʁ də fʁɑ̃s fam]) is an annual women's cycle stage race around France. It is organised by Amaury Sport Organization (ASO), which also runs the Tour de France. It is part of the UCI Women's World Tour.
Race details | |
---|---|
Date | July |
Region | France |
Local name(s) | Tour de France Femmes (in French) |
Nickname(s) | La Grande Boucle, Le Tour Femmes |
Discipline | Road |
Competition | UCI Women's World Tour |
Type | Stage race |
Organiser | Amaury Sport Organization |
Race director | Marion Rousse |
Web site | www |
History | |
First edition | 2022[lower-alpha 1] |
Editions | 2 (as of 2023) |
First winner | Annemiek van Vleuten (NED) |
Most wins | No Repeat winner |
Most recent | Demi Vollering (NED) |
Some teams and media have referred to the race as a 'Grand Tour', as it is one of the biggest events on the women's calendar.[1][2] However, the race does not meet the UCI definition of such an event.[3][4]
After a one off event in 1955, an equivalent race to the Tour de France for women was held under different names between 1984 and 2009. Over the years, these races struggled with financial difficulties, limited media coverage, sexism and trademark issues with the organisers of the Tour de France. Following criticism by campaigners and the professional women's peloton, a one/two day race (La Course by Le Tour de France) was held between 2014 and 2021, and Tour de France Femmes staged its first edition in 2022.[5]
The race takes place in July in the week after the men's tour, with the 2022 and 2023 editions of the race featuring eight stages.
All stages are timed to the finish; the riders' times are compounded with their previous stage times.[6] The rider with the lowest cumulative finishing times is the leader of the race and wears the yellow jersey (maillot jaune).[6][7] While the general classification garners the most attention, there are other contests held within the Tour: the points classification for the sprinters, the mountains classification for the climbers, young rider classification for riders under the age of 23, and the team classification, based on the first three finishers from each team on each stage.[6] Achieving a stage win also provides prestige, often accomplished by a team's sprint specialist or a rider taking part in a breakaway.