Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2023: Everything you need to know

Only in its second edition, the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift is already one of the flagship stage races of the women’s WorldTour calendar. 

The eight-day event, organised by men’s Tour de France organisers ASO and overseen by race director Marion Rousse, will begin this year on 23 July in Clermont-Ferrand. With the addition of a mountaintop finish and a time trial, the race promises to be a marked step-up on last summer's edition, though the number of stages remains the same.  

Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. 

Read more: The untold story of the Tour de France Femmes

Race overview

Dates: 23-30 July 2023
Number of stages: 8
Total distance: 956km
Number of teams: 22
Prize money: There is a total prize purse of €250,000, of which €50,000 goes to the overall winner. While this is among the highest on the women's calendar, it is a fraction of the men's Tour de France prize money, which sees the winner take home €500,000 from a total fund of €2,288,450. 

Read more: How do the 2023 Tour de France Femmes contenders stack up? 

Route

After starting in the shadow of Paris’s Eiffel Tower in 2022, the race moves away from the French capital in 2023, and down to Clermont-Ferrand in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. All eight stages are concentrated in the south and southwest of the country, with flat stages primed for the sprinters and a passage through the Pyrenees mountain range. 

July 23: Stage one - Clermont Ferrand > Clermont-Ferrand (124km)

Though mostly flat, the opening stage offers a challenging kicker with 10km to go, in the form of the 1.7km Côte de Durtol, pitched at 7.2%. 

July 24: Stage two - Clermont-Ferrand > Mauriac (148km)

An undulating day follows, with six categorised climbs, as the race leaves Clermont-Ferrand. 

July 25: Stage three - Collonges-La-Rouge > Montignac-Lascaux (147km)

The first clear opportunity for the sprinters comes on stage three, which passes through some of the country's most quaint villages.  

July 26: Stage four - Cahors > Rodez (177km)

Four tough ascents make up the finale on the race's longest day. The 10% climb of Côte Saint-Pierre, though only 570m in length, is likely to prove a decisive launchpad. 

July 27: Stage five - Onet-Le-Château > Albi (126km)

Travelling across hilly terrain, stage five crosses into France's Tarn region with a flat run-in to Albi. 

July 28: Stage six - Albi > Blagnac (122km)

The peloton ventures further south with a day tailored to the sprinters. A few lumpy climbs and the threat of wind might could rain on their parade, though. 

July 29: Stage seven - Lannemezan > Col du Tourmalet Bagnères-de-Bigorre (90km)

The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift welcomes it's first-ever HC climb, the iconic Col du Tourmalet (17km at 7.3%). The Pyrenean giant comes after the 12km Col d'Aspin, making for a tough day in the mountains. 

July 30: Stage eight - Pau > Pau (22km, ITT)

After going without a time trial in 2022, this July's edition concludes with a race against the clock in Pau, a city that has featured regularly in the men's race.

Read more: Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2023 route unveiled

Provisional start list

The race organisers have invited 22 teams to take part in this year’s Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. These include the 15 women’s WorldTour teams, the two best-ranked Continental teams (Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling and Lifeplus Wahoo), and five others: AG Insurance - Soudal Quick-Step, Arkéa Pro Cycling, Cofidis, St Michel - Mavic - Auber93, Team Coop-Hitec Products. 

Women's WorldTour teams

Canyon-Sram 

Sarah Roy
Ricarda Bauernfeind
Elise Chabbey
Kasia Niewiadoma
Soroya Paladin
Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka
Alice Towers

EF Education-Tibco-SVB

Veronica Ewers
Alison Jackson
Kathrin Hammes
Georgia Williams
Letizia Borghesi
Magdeleine Vallieres
Sara Poidevin

FDJ-Suez

Vittoria Guazzini
Jade Wiel
Évita Muzic
Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig
Loes Agedeest
Grace Brown
Marta Cavalli

Fenix-Deceuninck

Marthe Truyen
Yara Kastelijn
Christina Schweinberger
Julie Van de Velde
Evy Kuijpers
Sanne Cant
Julie De Wilde

Human Powered Health

Eri Yonamine
Alice Barnes
Henrietta Christie
Antri Christoforou
Barbara Malcotti
Marjolein van't Geloof
Audrey Cordon-Ragot

Israel Premier Tech Roland 

Elizabeth Stannard
Lara Vieceli
Nathalie Eklund
Tamara Dronova
Claire Steels
Fien Delbaere
Elena Hartmann

Jumbo-Visma

Marianna Vos
Riejanne Markus
Coryn Labecki
Eva van Agt
Amber Kraak
Anna Henderson
Karlijn Swinkels

Lidl-Trek

Lizzie Deignan
Ilaria Sanguineti
Lauretta Hanson
Amanda Spratt
Elisa Longo Borghini
Lucinda Brand
Elisa Balsamo

Liv Racing TeqFind

Caroline Andersson
Rachele Barbieri
Thalita De Jong
Jeanne Korevaar
Silke Smulders
Quinty Ton
Mavi García

Movistar

Annemiek van Vleuten
Liane Lippert
Floortje Mackaij
Aude Biannic
Emma Norsgaard
Paula Patiño
Sheyla Gutiérrez

Team dsm-firmenich

Megan Jastrab
Pfeiffer Georgi
Léa Curinier
Esmée Peperkamp
Juliette Labous
Elise Uijen
Charlotte Kool

Team Jayco AlUla

Ane Santesteban
Jessica Allen
Teniel Campbell
Georgina Howe
Nina Kessler
Alex Manly
Amber Pate

SD Worx

Demi Vollering
Lotte Kopecky
Lorena Wiebes
Mischa Bredewold
Marlen Reusser
Christine Majerus
Elena Cecchini

UAE Team ADQ

Alena Amialiusik
Olivia Baril
Silvia Persico
Lizzie Holden
Eleonora Gasparrini
Chiara Consonni
Erica Magnaldi

Uno-X Pro Cycling

Marte Berg Edseth
Wilma Olausson
Hannah Ludwig
Maria Giulia Confalonieri
Mie Bjørndal Ottestad
Susanne Andersen
Anouska Koster

Top-ranked Continental teams

Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling 

Kathrin Schweinberger
Arianna Fidanza
Sandra Alonso
Nina Berton
Cédrine Kerbaol
Alice Maria Arzuffi
Marta Lach

Lifeplus-Wahoo 

Natalie Grinczer
Babette van der Wolf
Kaja Rysz
Margaux Vigie
Ella Wyllie
April Tacey
Typhaine Laurance

Invited teams

AG Insurance - Soudal Quick-Step

Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
Justine Ghekiere
Maaike Boogard
Mireia Benito
Romy Kasper
Julia Borgström
Lotta Henttala

Arkéa Pro Cycling

Megan Armitage
Danielle de Francesco
Anaïs Morichon
Anastasiya Kolesava
Amandine Fouquenet
Maaike Coljé
Marie-Morgane Le Deunff

Cofidis

Gabrielle Pilote Fortin
Špela Kern
Morgane Coston
Rachel Neylan
Josie Talbot
Clara Koppenburg
Martina Alzini

St Michel - Mavic - Auber93

Coralie Demay
Simone Boilard
Dilyxine Miermont
Célia Le Mouel
Sandrine Bideau
Camille Fahy
Margot Pompanon

Team Coop-Hitec Products

Jenny Rissveds
Lucie Jounier
India Grangier
Tiril Jørgensen
Stine Dale
Josie Nelson
Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset

How to watch the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift

More than 22 hours of live coverage were broadcast from last year’s inaugural edition of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, with nearly 20 million viewers watching in France alone. 

The host broadcasters for the race are France TV Sport and Eurovision Sport. 

The race will be shown live in the UK and Europe on Eurosport, Discovery+ and GCN+. It is expected that viewers in the US will be able to tune in to the action on CNBC and Peacock Premium, like last year.