Women's Tour de France with Zwift 2025: An Extended, Tougher Course in Distance and Difficulty
Tour de France Femmes 2025: A Challenging Journey Through France
The 2025 Tour de France Femmes promises an exciting and gruelling nine-day race, covering 1,168.6 km with over 17,240 meters of elevation gain. The event, starting on a punchy note in Brittany, will test the mettle of the world's top cyclists as it moves through flat stages for sprinters, mountainous terrain across the Massif Central, and the decisive climbs in the final three stages in the Alps.
Brittany's Punchy Start
The tour kicks off with Stage 1, a 79 km hilly ride from Vannes to Plumelec. The route includes several categorized climbs, such as Côte de Botségalo (800 m at 5.3%) and Côte de Cadoudal (1.7 km at 6.2%), culminating in a climb finish. The following stages (2-5) offer a mix of flat and hilly profiles, ideal for both sprinters and breakaway specialists.
Mountainous Terrain and Decisive Climbs
The mountainous stages (6-9) present the real challenge. Stage 6, from Clermont-Ferrand to Ambert, marks the beginning of the steep ascents. Stage 7, Bourg-en-Bresse to Chambéry, features a hilly route with significant climbs, while Stage 8, Chambéry to Saint François Longchamp, is the queen stage, with a finish atop the hors catégorie Col de la Madeleine (18.6 km climb at 8.1%).
Stage 9, Praz-sur-Arly to Châtel les Portes du Soleil, concludes the tour with another mountainous finale, featuring the climb to the ski resort finish at Col de Joux Plane, another hors catégorie.
Breakaway Potential and GC Battles
The profile of each stage offers opportunities for breakaways and GC battles. For instance, Stage 6, with its early climbing and lack of a selective finish, seems perfect for a breakaway. Stage 7, with a 1,100m col placed in the final 20km, could see some action on the GC.
Stage 8, the queen stage, is expected to be decisive, with contenders like Demi Vollering (FDJ-SUEZ), Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ), Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek), and Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) likely to make their mark.
Key Climbs and Challenges
The route includes various categorized climbs, from category 4 (easiest) to hors catégorie (most difficult). Notable climbs include the Côte de Courpière (1.7km at 6.8%), Côte d'Augerolles (2.6km at 5.6%), Col du Béal (10.2km at 5.6%), Col du Chansert (6.3km at 5.5%), and a sprint for bonus seconds after a hill with just over 10km to go in Stage 6.
Stage 5, heading towards Guéret, features punchy climbs in the finale, potentially making it the stage where the yellow jersey changes hands for the first time since Stage 2. This stage could be crucial for riders like Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) or Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto), who might be looking to assert themselves in the race.
The Tour de France Femmes 2025 is shaping up to be a thrilling event, with its combination of tactical early stages and challenging mountainous finishes, particularly on stages 7 to 9 where the race is expected to be won or lost on long, steep climbs like Col de la Madeleine and Col de Joux Plane.
[1] Tour de France Femmes 2025 route details [2] Cyclingnews: Tour de France Femmes route analysis [3] Cycling Weekly: Tour de France Femmes route preview [4] Bicycling: Tour de France Femmes route analysis [5] VeloNews: Tour de France Femmes route preview
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