The fifth stage of the International Women's Cycling Tour of Ardèche will cross Lozère

La Néerlandaise Thalita De Jong a remporté les deux premières étapes du TCFIA. TCFIA – Patrick Ferrier

The start will be at 1:20 p.m., in La Canourgue, Saturday, September 7, 2024. The arrival is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. at the Mont Lozère nature resort.

“22 here you go girls”!”The Tour Cycliste Femmes International de l'Ardèche (TCFIA), for its 22nd edition, returns to Lozère. The fifth and penultimate stage of the event, which will be held this Saturday, September 7, 2024, will indeed start from La Canourgue, at 1:20 p.m., to reach the Mont Lozère nature resort, at an altitude of 1,414 m, at around 4:15 p.m. 103.7 km await the riders for 2,286 m of positive elevation gain. This is the toughest leg of this tour, which has six.

In total, 24 teams including five French (FDJ-Suez, Saint-Michel-Mavic-Auber 93, Arkea-BnB Hotels Women, Winspace and Team Komugi-Grand Est) and 137 riders of 29 nationalities make up the TCFIA peloton. During the Lozère stage, they will head towards La Malène, then go up the Tarn towards Saint-Chély-du-Tarn, Sainte-Énimie… They will follow the river to Molines. They will then climb the Causse de Sauveterre. After the Baraque de l'Estrade, they will leave the RD 31 for the RD 35 to Montmirat and the pass of the same name to pick up the RN 106.

Who will succeed Marta Cavali ?

They will then enter the Valdonnez: Rouffiac, Brenoux, Lanuéjols, Langlade, the Col de la Loubière. The RD 41 will take them to Bagnols-les-Bains. The end of this particularly difficult and winding stage will be by the classic road to reach Mont Lozère, along the Lot: Saint-Julien-du-Tournel, Saint-Jean-du-Bleymard, Le Bleymard and Le Mazel, first via the RD 901 then via the RD 20.

This Tuesday, September 3, the 22nd International Women's Cycling Tour of Ardèche got underway. Dutchwoman Thalita De Jong (Lotto DSTNY Ladies) won in 2 hours 32 minutes 10 seconds after the 88.12 km between Saint-Fortunat-sur-Eyrieux and Beauchastel. She finished one second ahead of Poland's Karolina Perekitko (Winspace) and Italy's Debora Silvestri (Laboral Kutxa-Fondación Euskadi).

The next day, between Tournon-sur-Rhône and Mauves (81.6 km for 1,173 m of elevation gain), Thalita De Jong shone once again by winning this second stage in a sprint in 2 hours, 11 minutes, 16 seconds. Canadian Sarah Van Dam (DNA Pro Cycling) finished second. Another Dutchwoman, Eline Jansen (Volkerwessels Cycling Team), completes the podium. The third round, this Thursday, September 5, will be held in Vaucluse, between Avignon and Bollène (126 km for 1,153 m of positive elevation gain).

Voluntary organization

In the general ranking, Thalita De Jong is still in pink (4 h 43 min 26 sec). In second place, we find the French Marion Bunel (4 h 43 min 27 sec). The verdict will be announced on Sunday, September 8. Cycling fans will know who will succeed Italian Marta Cavali, in pink in Privas in 2023, and who is not participating in the Tour this year.

The TCFIA is organized by volunteers from the Vélo club vallée du Rhône ardéchoise, whom it is time to greet. “Very nice people, claims the president of the Tour, Louis Jeannin. Members who have realized that the greatest gift they could give to others, in support of women's cycling, was their time. The vast majority of them are retirees for whom the word retirement can only apply to an army in disarray because they have all understood that anything is possible provided you show courage and ambition. Above all, they have realized that they are above all providing a public service delegated by the State to their federation. Knowing that they would have sleepless nights filled with doubt, they always knew how to take on a new edition, bounce back, adapt, and improve after the International Cycling Union reports and their recommendations."

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