Five riders from the team attended todayโs official launch of the 2022 Le Tour de France avec Zwift. The eight-day stage race will start in Paris on July 24 and finish in Vosges mountains on Sunday 31 July.
The variety of stagesโfour flat, two hilly and two mountain stagesโhas been largely well-received with riders stating it provides a range of opportunities.
Kasia Niewiadoma says, โI honestly like the stages. They give an opportunity to several different types of riders to try to win a stage. The last two stages appear the hardest and will likely make the GC, but I also like the mix, and that there is a gravel section in one of the stages.โ
The tour starts with a circuit in Paris around the Champs Elysee, before moving east and keeping the sprinters content with flat opening stages. A 175-kilometre parcours on stage five in Saint Diรฉ-Des-Vosges adds to the fatigue before the climbers have their chance with close to 3000 metres elevation on stage 7, and a GC showdown on the final stage with a 7-kilometre summit finish at La Super Planche des Belles Filles.
โAfter being to the presentation, Iโm really excited about the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift,โ says Ella.
โInitially, before going to the presentation, I thought it would be nice to do, but there are other some other womenโs races on the calendar that I considered could be substitutes to target, such as Tour de Suisse, Tour de Romandie, Giro dโItalia, Challenge Vuelta and so on.โ
โWhat makes the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift stand out, is that it seems no stone has been left unturned. The race organisers and sponsors like Zwift, are going to all lengths to make it a polished event and theyโre not taking any shortcuts. Sometimes in the past, there have been some womenโs cycling events that have been more of a token gesture to make an organisation look good. The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift looks like it talks the talk and itโs going to walk the walk,โ suggests Ella.
โTheyโve tried to be creative with the stages and you can tell thereโs a lot of thought gone into it with a mixture of everything. They havenโt gone for an easy option of a tour of 2 or 3 days, fortunately weโve passed that point with La Course. Instead, theyโve presented a solid 8 days and they look like quite hard days. It will make for some incredibly exciting racing. With the different stages, it will be wide open until the last day, with that final mixed gravel and tarmac steep climb.โ
Ella states, โIโm excited about it, and itโs definitely high on my list to make the squad for. It will be history-making and I want to be a part of it.โ
Kasia adds, โI wasnโt sure that I would have this opportunity in my career, to be able to race the Tour de France. So, itโs special to have been at the announcement today. to see the excitement around the race, to know that I have that chance to race it, and hopefully for many other female cyclists will have the same chance for years to come.โ
Alena Amialiusik echoed the comments of her teammates. โBeing here at the announcement in Paris, to hear the applause for the 2022 Tour de France Femmes ave Zwift, to feel the excitement around the race, it makes me absolutely sure that I want to make the team for this tour. Itโs an important moment in womenโs cycling and everyone is going to be motivated to have success at this race.โ
THE STAGES
Stage 1 โ Paris Tour Eiffel โ Champs-รlysรฉes | 82km
Stage 2 โ Meaux โ Provins | 135km
Stage 3 โ Reims โ รpernay | 133km
Stage 4 โ Troyes โ Bar-sur-Aube | 126km
Stage 5 โ Bar-le-Duc โ Saint-Diรฉ-des-Vosges | 175km
Stage 6 โ Saint-Diรฉ-des-Vosges โ Rosheim | 128km
Stage 7 โ Sรฉlestat โ Le Markstein | 127km
Stage 8 โ Lure โ La Super Planche des Belles Filles | 123km