Nine stages and a total of 1,168 kilometers to cover. The Tour de France Femmes is getting longer and starting a day early, on Saturday, July 26th, starting in Brittany. There are no time trials, but several challenging stages and an explosive finale.

The start, with the Plumelec stage, seems to favor the attackers, as does the second stage, with the finish in Quimper and four categorized climbs, the last one just 4 km from the finish. The third stage will be for the sprinters, as will the following one in Poitiers. At 165.8 kilometers, the Chasseneuil-du-Poitou (Futuroscope) / Guéret stage is the longest of the 2025 Tour de France Femmes, with three short climbs in the finale. The route then reaches Ambert after several ups and downs and a difficult finish. Heading towards the Alps, a 160 km stage finishes in Chambery and the Col du Granier with 17 km to go. The eighth stage will take place on Saturday, August 2nd, finishing on the Col de la Madeleine, at an altitude of 2,000 meters. Finally, on Sunday, August 3rd, the final stage will be the 124 km Praz-sur-Arly-Châtel Les Portes du Soleil. The programme includes the Côte d'Arâches-la-Frasse (1st category), the Col de Joux-Plane (Hors Categoria) and the Col du Corbier (1st category).

Katarzyna Niewiadoma will be looking to repeat her 2024 victory, which she achieved by a few seconds over Demi Vollering . Vollering, the pre-race favorite and winner of the 2023 Tour de France Women, is the latter.

Other interesting names for a strong overall ranking include Paulina Rooijakkers of Fenix-Deceuninck, who will also have Puck Pieterse, a classics star. Of course, keep an eye out for Marlen Reusser, who is having a great season, and Elisa Longo Borghini, winner of the Giro d'Italia about ten days ago. Kim Le Court, winner of Liège-Bastogne-Liège, will be joined by Sarah Gigante, third in the Giro and winner of two uphill stages, on the Ag Insurance team.

France is expecting Pauline Ferrand-Prévot's return to racing, competing in the Tour after having to withdraw from the Vuelta España. Visma Lease a Bike also has a second top-tier rider: Marianne Vos. In the sprints, Lorena Wiebes (Sd Worx) promises a spectacular performance, with Elisa Balsamo and Charlotte Kool looking to counter the European champion's dominance.

Speaking of SD Worx, there's great curiosity about the condition of world champion Lotte Kopecky, who's struggling with back problems. Should she aim for the stages, Anna van der Breggen could try for a GC spot.

Don't forget to field your team in the Fantacycling Women's League!

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