BRIANÇON # COL D’IZOARD

66KM MOUNTAIN DISTANCE TERRAIN

For the fourth edition of the women’s race at the Tour de France, attention turns away from the Champs-Élysées, where a circuit race has been staged ahead of the men’s race, and onto the Col d’Izoard. The race will cover much of the final 66km of the stage the men are riding, including the climbs of Vars and Izoard, though will end at the Casse Déserte point, 2km shy of the summit. It’ll offer a different spectacle to the sprinter-friendly race on the Champs-Élysées, but is some way short of the multi-day race that many want. Marianne Vos, instrumental in getting La Course established, believes that while it’ll freshen the race up after three years in Paris, it’s disappointing the course was shortened at both ends for the women. “That’s a shame,” Vos told Cyclingnews.com at the launch in October. “Of course, that’s difficult to explain to the people outside, why can’t the girls do 140km? We would love to.”