La Course by Le Tour de France

La Course by Le Tour de France was an elite women's professional road bicycle race held in France. First held in 2014 as a one-day race on the Champs-Élysées in Paris, it has been part of the UCI Women's WorldTour since 2016 as a one or two day race. The race was organised by the ASO, the organisers of the Tour de France.[1] It was replaced in 2022 by Tour de France Femmes, a multi day stage race organised by ASO.[2]

This article is about the 21st century women's road cycling one day race. For the 1946 Monaco-Paris replacement for the Tour de France due to war, see La Course du Tour de France. For the surname, see La Course (surname).
"La Course" redirects here. Not to be confused with Course.
La Course by Le Tour de France
Logo of La Course by Le Tour de France
Race details
DateJuly
RegionFrance
Nickname(s)La Course
DisciplineRoad
CompetitionUCI Women's World Tour
OrganiserAmaury Sport Organisation
Race directorChristian Prudhomme
Web sitewww.lacoursebyletourdefrance.com/en/
History
First edition2014 (2014)
Editions8 (as of 2021)
Final edition2021
First winner Marianne Vos (NED)
Most wins Annemiek van Vleuten (NED) &  Marianne Vos (NED) (2)
Final winner Demi Vollering (NED)

History

Following criticism by the professional women's peloton and campaigners such as Kathryn Bertine regarding the lack of a women's Tour de France,[3][4] ASO launched La Course by Tour de France in 2014.[5][6]

This race would be held in conjunction with the Tour de France, with the first edition taking place as a one-day race on the Champs-Élysées in advance of the final stage of the men's race. In subsequent years, the race took place in a variety of locations such as Pau, Col de la Colombière and Col d'Izoard in conjunction with the men's race, as the ASO argued that this was the "best way to shine a light on female cycling".[5][7]

The race was initially praised for the exposure gained by 'sharing the stage' with the Tour de France, however La Course was criticised for not being a "full Tour de France", being overshadowed by the men's race and not having a challenging enough parcours.[7][8][9][10] ASO were also criticised for not doing enough to promote the race.[10][11] ASO stated that logistical issues mean that a men's and women's Tour de France would not be able to be staged simultaneously,[6] and that any race must be financially sustainable.[10][12]

In June 2021, ASO announced that the Tour de France Femmes - a multi day stage race - will take place for the first time in 2022. This new 8 day race would take place following the Tour de France, replacing La Course.[2][13]

Locations
    Start and Finish

      Winners
      Year Country Rider Team
      2014  Netherlands Marianne Vos Rabo–Liv
      2015  Netherlands Anna van der Breggen Rabo–Liv
      2016  Australia Chloe Hosking Wiggle High5
      2017[lower-alpha 1]  Netherlands Annemiek van Vleuten Orica–Scott
      2018  Netherlands Annemiek van Vleuten Mitchelton–Scott
      2019  Netherlands Marianne Vos CCC Liv
      2020  Great Britain Lizzie Deignan Trek–Segafredo
      2021  Netherlands Demi Vollering SD Worx

      A total of six of the eight editions were won by cyclists from the Netherlands.[15]

      Notes
      1. Although a pursuit race also scheduled according to the organisation as stage 2, the race results in the UCI database were constituted from the result on the Col d'Izoard. Whether using the terminology of the organisation or the UCI, the winner was the same.[14]

      References
      1. "La course by le Tour de France innovating women's cycling". letour.com. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2014.
      2. "THE TOUR DE FRANCE LAUNCHES THE TOUR DE FRANCE FEMMES AVEC ZWIFT - Tour de France 2022". www.letour.fr. 17 June 2021. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      3. "Women's Tour manifesto published". BBC Sport. 12 September 2013. Retrieved 2022-02-15. More than 93,000 have signed a petition by the group, led by cyclist and writer Kathryn Bertine, World Ironman champion Chrissie Wellington, and cyclists Marianne Vos and Emma Pooley.
      4. Macur, Juliet (2014-07-26). "Women as Athletes, Not Accessories, at Least for a Day". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      5. "La Course by Le Tour de France: everything you need to know". BikeRadar. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      6. "La Course to showcase women's cycling". BBC Sport. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      7. "Polarized opinions remain on La Course". VeloNews.com. 2018-07-17. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      8. "Annemiek van Vleuten unhappy with 'step back' for women's La Course race". Cyclist. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      9. Richardson, Hollie (2019-06-24). "The lack of women's Tour de France proves sexism in sports". Stylist. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      10. "Why is there no women's Tour de France?". BBC Sport. 16 July 2018. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      11. "LET THEM RACE | THE CASE FOR A WOMEN'S TOUR DE FRANCE". Liv Bicycles. Retrieved 15 February 2022. But, if you ask many of the elite racers at La Course, the women’s race feels like a parade compared to the grandeur of the Tour de France the men take for granted.
      12. Ballinger, Alex (2019-02-05). "Women's Tour de France alongside men's race 'impossible', says director Christian Prudhomme". cyclingweekly.com. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      13. David, Maria (2021-10-15). "Tour de France Femmes: A jewel that we must cherish, says Marion Rousse". cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
      14. "2017 La Course by Le Tour de France - Individual Road Race - 20 Jul 2017". UCI.ch. Union Cycliste Internationale. 20 July 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
      15. "History - La Course by Le Tour de France 2021". www.lacoursebyletourdefrance.com. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
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