Tour de Romandie Feminin 2023: Route, stages, TV coverage
Romandie is the French-speaking part of Switzerland. This is where the Tour de Romandie Feminin stage race will take place in the coming days. The region also lends its name to the race. The Tour Romandie Feminin took place for the first time in 2022 and was part of the UCI Women's World Tour (WWT). Last year's premiere was held to mark the 75th anniversary of the men's tour.
As part of the UCI Women's World Tour, the penultimate stage race of the season naturally also plays a role in promoting women's cycling. The organisers offer a challenging and professional course paired with the prominent name that is already known to the public from men's cycling.
Tour winner Vollering, Lippert and Niedermaier at the start
The top female riders who will be competing in Switzerland have also become celebrities, and not just since this year's Tour de France Femmes. Tour winner Demi Vollering (SD Worx) is at the start and has the best Swiss rider on her team in Marlen Reusser. In Liane Lippert (Movistar) and Antonia Niedermaier (Canyon//SRAM), there are also two great hopes from Germany.
Canyon is also sending Tour bronze medallist Kasia Niewiedoma into the race. The climb-heavy tour has also attracted strong female cyclists Juliette Labous (Team dsm-firmenich), Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (FDJ-Suez), Silvia Persico (UAE Team ADQ), Ane Santesteban and Kristen Faulkner (Jayco-AlUla), former champion Mavi Garcia (Liv Racing TeqFind) and Elisa Longo Borghini and Gaia Realini (Lidl-Trek).
Tour de Romandie Feminin 2023 - All stages at a glance
The Tour de Romandie Feminin consists of three stages covering a total of 386.8 kilometres.
Stage 1 | Friday, 15 September | Yverdon-les-Bains - Yverdon-les-Bains | 144.1 kilometres
On the first day, the start and finish are in Yveron-les-Bains on Lake Neuchatel. The starting signal is given at 11:20 am and the race opens after a neutralised 3.3 kilometres. The stage begins with two laps (black line). On the third lap, the route is slightly different (purple line). There are a total of two intermediate sprints and three climbs in the third category. The circuit makes it easy for the local spectators to see the riders several times.
The hilly profile with 1674 metres of elevation gain can provoke various race courses, especially in the unpredictable women's cycling sport. Ultimately, it all depends on how the race is ridden. The last mountain classification or even an uncategorised climb just over 20 kilometres before the end are difficult enough to create gaps that can no longer be closed in the flat finale. A sprint from a smaller group is a conceivable scenario.
The top 10 of stage 1
- Sofia Bertizzolo (UAE Team ADQ) 3:53:10
- Carina Schrempf (Fenix-Deceuninck) +0:00
- Mischa Bredewold (SD Worx) +0:00
- Soraya Paladin (Canyon//SRAM) +0:00
- Fem van Empel (Jumbo-Visma) +0:00
- Jelena Eric (Movistar) +0:00
- Ruby Roseman-Gannon (Team Jayco-AlUla) +0:00
- Elise Chabbey (Canyon//SRAM) +0:00
- Loes Adegeest (FDJ-Suez) +0:00
- Marta Lach (Ceratizit-WNT) +0:00
Stage 2 | Saturday, 16 September | Romont - Torgon | 110.8 kilometres
Romont, a small town known for its stained glass, lies between Lake Neuchâtel and Lake Geneva. The second stage of the Tour de Romandie Feminin 2023 starts here, initially heading east before turning south at Lake Gruyère. The first intermediate sprint is not long in coming. The route then climbs steadily and increasingly steeply, with the first mountain classification to come.
The Les Mosses climb is 13.9 kilometres long with an average gradient of four per cent; a 1st category climb. And then the route turns west again. There is the second intermediate sprint at the UCI headquarters before the final climb with another mountain classification. 10.6 kilometres with an average gradient of 6.6 per cent and a mountain finish in Torgon, a small mountain village. And then the 110.0 kilometres with 2166 metres of elevation gain are ticked off.
The mountain finish is a case for the specialists - and all the big WWT teams have at least one of them. A solo winner will probably be celebrating in Torgon. And whoever raises their arms here has a good chance of winning the overall.
The top 10 of stage 2
- Demi Vollering (SD Worx) 3:01:19
- Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon//SRAM) +0:02
- Marlen Reusser (SD Worx) +0:06
- Juliette Labous (Team dsm-firmenich) +0:17
- Niamh Fisher-Black (SD Worx) +0:27
- Silvia Persico (UAE Team ADQ) +1:06
- Ricarda Bauernfeind (Canyon//SRAM) +1:06
- Erica Magnaldi (UAE Team ADQ) +1:06
- Anna Shackley (SD Worx) +1:06
- Gaia Realini (Lidl-Trek) +1:08
Stage 3 | Sunday, 17 September | Vernier - Lyon | 131.9 kilometres
On the third and final day of the Tour de Romandie Feminin, the 131.9-kilometre route includes 1630 metres of climbing. The start is at the other end of Lake Geneva, on the western shore. The stage starts in Vernier, the neighbouring town of Geneva. Two intermediate sprints and four category 3 climbs are on the programme here. From the start, the route heads north, where after 18.2 kilometres the riders set off on a final lap that is ridden twice.
After 35 kilometres comes the first intermediate sprint in Vinzel. On the second lap, the riders have to go full throttle again. A category 3 climb follows with the Mont-sur-Rolle. 2400 kilometres long, 6.5 percent average gradient. After the descent, it's straight into the next climb, also category 3: Le Molard awaits the riders with a length of 3.3 kilometres and an average gradient of 6.8 per cent. Both climbs also have an uphill classification on the second lap. After that, it's a hilly downhill. The finish in Nyon is located directly on the shores of Lake Geneva.
The same applies here as on stage 1: the outcome of the race depends on how the race is ridden. With a slightly more defensive riding style, a sprint is likely, if not from the peloton, then at least from a larger group, with 30 kilometres to go after the last mountain classification.
The top 10 of stage 3
- Liane Lippert (Movistar) 3:18:31
- Fem van Empel (Jumbo-Visma) +0:00
- Silvia Persico (UAE Team ADQ) +0:00
- Marlen Reusser (SD Worx) +0:00
- Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (AG Insurance Soudal - Quick Step) +0:00
- Demi Vollering (SD Worx) +0:00
- Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon//SRAM) +0:00
- Juliette Labous (Team dsm-firmenich) +0:00
- Yara Kastelijn (Fenix-Deceuninck) +0:00
- Ane Santesteban (Team Jayco-AlUla) +0:00
Live broadcast of the Tour de Romandie Feminin 2023
The Tour de Romandie Feminin will be broadcast live on Swiss television channel SRF, and the race can also be watched as a live stream via the broadcaster's platforms. The Tour de Romandie Feminin will also be available online on Eurosport, GCN+ and Discovery+.
- 1st stage from 14:05
- 2nd stage from 12:35
- 3rd stage from 14:10
Sandra Schuberth
Editor
