'I feel happy the organisation took it seriously': Annemiek van Vleuten pleased with varied terrain on offer at Tour de France Femmes

Annemiek van Vleuten at the Challenge by La Vuelta

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Annemiek van Vleuten says she is "happy the organisation took it seriously" when creating the Tour de France Femmes route for 2022.

Van Vleuten, who is currently the UCI Women's WorldTour leader, is likely going to be starting the race as one of the big favourites for the race's first overall win.

Van Vleuten shared her thoughts on the eight-day route, saying that it has "something for everyone."

"First of all, I feel happy the organisation took it serious," she said. "I have the feeling that, with this route, they made an effort to organise something good and representative. From a quick look, they did a good job in having something for everyone in these eight days of racing.

“Of course, I like the mountain stages, but I’m also happy, for example, to see that we start on the Champs-Élysées. It’s a really nice connection with the men’s Tour de France, to start where they finish.

"I like that setup because sometimes people are sad that the Tour de France comes to an end – this time, they can watch the women’s Tour de France. It’s nice that the two races are connected, while not being held at the same time. I like that concept."

The women's race starts just before the final stage of the men's race, much like the old La Course by Le Tour did when it was held in Paris. After that the women's race heads towards the Vosges mountains with varying terrain on the way.

"What also makes me excited is that they also put effort to take us into famous climbs, with names that everyone knows," continued Van Vleuten.

"If I see the Petit Ballon, the Grand Ballon, Planche des Belles Filles in this Tour de France, it’s a really good move from the organisation.

"La Planche is a finish which I really look forward to, and one that I don’t know, so I for sure will go do a recon there."

Vollering said on a video posted to Instagram by her team: "When I saw the last two days I got really excited. It's also close to where I live in Switzerland, so I've trained there already once and it's really cool area.

"I did the Grand Ballon and finished on the Planche des Belles Filles, so actually, yeah, I've trained a bit for this race without knowing - Belles Filles is a climb I really like."

Vollering added that she is keen to use the gravel early on in the race to create gaps and do "something cool".

Tim Bonville-Ginn is a freelance writer who has worked with Cycling Weekly since 2020 and has also written for many of the biggest publications in cycling media including Cyclingnews, Rouleur, Cyclist and Velo.