The Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic takes place on Sunday 6 September, with 130.7km of rough-road racing across western Brittany and a free French-language YouTube stream available for viewers in the UK.
The riders roll away from the Pointe du Raz at 12:15 BST, with the official start near Plogoff at 12:25 BST. The latest timetable published by the organisers now lists the finish in Plouhinec at 16:55 local time, or 15:55 BST.
That is later than some earlier schedules for the race, so anyone planning their Sunday viewing should work from the updated finish time.
Free French coverage begins during the afternoon, while HBO Max joins the race at 14:00 BST. The official YouTube stream can be watched below.
Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic key UK viewing times
| Race point | Approximate UK time |
|---|---|
| Neutralised start at Pointe du Raz | 12:15 BST |
| Official race start near Plogoff | 12:25 BST |
| ICI Bretagne coverage | From 13:45 BST |
| Vélo+ TV coverage | From 13:50 BST |
| Entry onto Plouhinec circuit | Around 13:54 BST |
| HBO Max/Eurosport coverage | From 14:00 BST |
| Recommended tune-in | 13:45-14:00 BST |
| Expected finish | Around 15:55 BST |
The timing of the television coverage fits the course particularly well. The riders are expected to reach the Plouhinec finishing circuit at around 13:54 BST, almost exactly as the main live broadcasts begin.
How to watch Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic free
The race has a free French-language YouTube stream available on Sunday:
Watch the Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic live on YouTube
The French broadcast is the best free option for UK viewers and should pick up the race around the point where the riders begin the six-lap finishing circuit.
HBO Max carries the Eurosport coverage from 14:00 BST for subscribers in the UK.
ICI Bretagne begins its coverage at 14:45 French time, or 13:45 BST, while Vélo+ TV follows five minutes later.
There is therefore little need to wait for the final hour. By the time pictures begin, the riders should already be approaching the part of the course where the race is most likely to split.
What time does Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic start?
The neutralised departure takes place beside the Sémaphore de la Pointe du Raz at 13:15 local time, or 12:15 BST.
Racing officially begins ten minutes later near Plogoff at 12:25 BST.
From there the field faces 130.7km, approximately 1,440 metres of climbing and around 18km of ribinoù, the rough Breton tracks that give the race much of its character.
There are 13 distinct rough-road sectors, although that figure does not tell the whole story. Three of the sectors form part of the finishing circuit and are crossed on every lap, producing 28 separate ribinoù passages over the full race.
Our Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic 2026 route guide breaks down how those repeated sectors shape the second half of the race.
Live coverage begins as the Plouhinec circuit starts
The organisers expect the peloton to enter the Plouhinec circuit at approximately 14:54 local time, or 13:54 BST.
That makes Sunday’s broadcast window unusually useful.
Viewers joining the French coverage at around 13:45 BST should see the approach to Plouhinec, while anyone starting with HBO Max at 14:00 BST should miss very little of the six-lap finale.
The circuit measures 9.32km and accounts for almost 56km of the race.
Three ribinoù sectors appear on every lap, meaning the riders face 18 rough-road passages during the circuit section alone.
It is the repetition that makes the finale difficult. There is no single cobbled or gravel sector where everyone knows the winning attack must happen. Instead, riders have to keep fighting for position, accelerating onto the rough roads and closing gaps as the same difficulties come around again.
For anyone new to the event, our beginner’s guide to the Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic explains why the ribinoù have become so important to the race.
What time should you start watching?
Between 13:45 and 14:00 BST is the ideal time to start watching.
That should catch the field just before or immediately after it enters the Plouhinec circuit, leaving almost two hours before the latest expected finish.
There is a temptation with a 130km one-day race to wait until the final 20 or 30 kilometres. Pointe du Raz is a poor race for that approach.
Paula Blasi’s victory last year came after the rough roads had already reduced the field to small groups. By the time the final attack arrived, much of the real selection had already happened.
The 2025 Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic race report shows how thoroughly the race had broken apart before Blasi eventually rode clear.
With more ribinoù in the 2026 edition, the same process could begin even earlier.
If you can only watch the closing hour, 14:45 BST is a reasonable fallback. Waiting until after 15:15 risks joining once the winning group has already formed.
Saturday showed how dangerous hesitation can be
Many of Sunday’s riders have already raced on the Plouhinec roads this weekend.
Sarah van Dam won Saturday’s Tout commence en Finistère Ladies Classic after a six-rider group stayed clear, beating Lily Williams in a photo finish for the first professional victory of her career.
Eva van Agt finished third ahead of Maëva Squiban, while the peloton eventually arrived more than a minute behind.
The Finistère Ladies Classic race report offered an immediate reminder that teams cannot assume everything will come back together on the roads around Plouhinec.
Sunday is a different race. It is longer, includes far more rough-road racing and has been promoted to UCI 1.Pro level, but some of the tactical lessons carry across.
A strong group can quickly become difficult to retrieve once cooperation behind breaks down.
Van Dam is also worth watching again. She finished fifth at Pointe du Raz in 2025 and now returns to the harder race less than 24 hours after winning on Saturday.
Paula Blasi returns with a powerful UAE team
Defending champion Paula Blasi returns with UAE Team L’IMAD after winning alone in 2025.
This time she has considerably more support and considerably more competition.
Elisa Longo Borghini and Maëva Squiban give UAE three riders capable of shaping the race themselves. That allows the team to attack rather than placing all responsibility on Blasi and waiting for the final lap.
EF Education-Oatly bring Cédrine Kerbaol and Noemi Rüegg, while FDJ United-Suez have Célia Gery, Ally Wollaston and Sofia Bertizzolo.
Our Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic 2026 contenders preview looks more closely at how those teams can use their numbers.
The full Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic start list contains 118 riders across 18 teams.
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Photo Credit: Arkea-B&B Hotels
Why the first Plouhinec laps matter
The obvious temptation for the strongest teams is to save everything for the last two laps.
That may not be the best way to race Pointe du Raz.
UAE have enough depth to send Squiban or Longo Borghini ahead while Blasi waits behind. EF can use Kerbaol aggressively without immediately committing Rüegg. FDJ have several riders who benefit from different types of finish.
Those numbers make the middle laps particularly important.
A move involving one rider from several major teams can suddenly become difficult to chase because nobody behind wants to sacrifice their own leader.
The rough roads then make closing the gap harder than it would be on a wide conventional circuit.
A ten-second advantage can disappear quickly on tarmac. On a narrow ribin, the group behind first has to enter in the right position, avoid punctures and keep enough momentum to chase when it returns to the road.
That is where a small move can turn into the winning selection.
The updated finish time is around 15:55 BST
The latest organiser schedule lists the finish on Rue Jean Guillou in Plouhinec at approximately 16:55 local time, which is 15:55 BST.
That is the time viewers should now work from rather than earlier estimates of around 15:40 BST.
Road-race schedules can still move depending on the speed of the peloton, so anyone specifically interested in seeing the finish should be watching comfortably before 15:45.
A fast opening section or aggressive racing on the circuit could bring the field in earlier than the headline estimate.
Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic 2026 live viewing summary
Date: Sunday 6 September 2026
Start: Pointe du Raz/Plogoff
Finish: Plouhinec
Distance: 130.7km
Climbing: Approximately 1,440 metres
Ribinoù: Approximately 18km
Rough-road passages: 28
UCI classification: 1.Pro
Neutralised start: 12:15 BST
Official start: 12:25 BST
French live coverage: From around 13:45 BST
Plouhinec circuit entry: Around 13:54 BST
HBO Max/Eurosport: From 14:00 BST
Recommended tune-in: 13:45-14:00 BST
Expected finish: Around 15:55 BST
Defending champion: Paula Blasi
Watch Pointe du Raz Ladies Classic 2026 live free on YouTube
The best viewing window begins as the race reaches Plouhinec. Starting at around 13:45 BST should cover all six finishing laps, the repeated ribinoù and the point where the strongest teams begin turning a large peloton into the small groups from which this race is usually decided.
