The men’s Tour de France is over, the Olympic Games are wrapping up but this is no time to turn off the spotlight, as the stage is set for another enthralling battle at the Tour de France Femmes.
The third edition of the race starts in the Netherlands on Monday, August 8, before working its way back toward the Alps and a crucial final two days in the mountain, with Alpe d’Huez the crowning glory. Defending champion Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) may be the outright favourite, but there are plenty of others that are set to play a significant role – including a contingent of 13 riders from Australia and New Zealand.
Some of those will be chasing their chances for stage victories, and perhaps giving one of the nations its first Tour de France Femmes stage victor, while others will be dedicated to helping their teammates. Either way – whether they are lining up for their first or last Tour de France Femmes – the strong group of riders from Australia and New Zealand will not go unnoticed as the peloton weaves its way across the 946km course from Rotterdam to the top of Alpe d’Huez.
Australia
Still, even though the final months of her career are quickly counting down and the pinnacle she has already reached is lofty, there is still much riding on this final Grand Tour with there being no question about just how important the race is to her French-based squad. The stage 3 time trial probably offers her the best opportunity to give her FDJ–SUEZ team the stage victory it is pursuing at the Tour de France Femmes, though stage 4 could also be an opportunity as the road to Liège has been kind to Brown this year, with the 32-year-old winning Liège-Bastogne-Liège in May. Her role, beyond that, is likely to be in support as FDJ-SUEZ has two strong options for the mountains and overall, Cecilie Uttrup…
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