50 days to go!
3 mins read time
21 Apr 2019
There are just 50 days until the most eagerly-anticipated edition of the OVO Energy Women’s Tour to date takes place!
There are just 50 days until the most eagerly-anticipated edition of the OVO Energy Women’s Tour to date takes place!
Britain’s most prestigious women’s cycle race will reach new heights for its sixth edition between Monday 10 and Saturday 10 June.
Boasting a roll call of former champions including the likes of British world champion Lizzie Deignan and arguably the greatest rider of all time, Marianne Vos, the Women’s Tour expands from five to six days in 2019, features its first stages in Kent and Oxfordshire, a hill-top finish in Warwickshire and the hardest two stages in race history in the Welsh counties of Powys and Carmarthenshire!
2019 race route
This year’s route may be the hardest for the riders, but it’s also the most spectator friendly!
Stage one: Beccles to Stowmarket
We’re back in Suffolk for our Grand Depart, which this year takes place between the market towns of Beccles and Stowmarket. Those watching at the finish will see the riders cross the line twice, as we have a small finishing circuit to end this stage.
Click here to explore the stage one route.
Stage two: The Kent Cyclopark, Gravesend stage
The Kent Cyclopark, Gravesend stage on Tuesday 11 June comprises 25 laps of a 2.5km circuit, ensuring fans get multiple viewings of the peloton! This is the biggest international sporting event in the county since the 2007 Tour de France Grand Depart.
Click here to explore the stage two route.
Stage three: Henley-on-Thames to Blenheim Palace
Upon leaving the picturesque Henley-on-Thames, situated along the banks of the River Thames, stage three in Oxfordshire will finish at the stunning Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This could end in a bunch sprint, but a few undulations approaching the final kilometre could catch some riders out!
Click here to explore the stage three route.
Stage four: Warwick to Burton Dassett Country Park
The OVO Energy Women’s Tour’s fourth visit to Warwickshire in as many years will be celebrated with Burton Dassett Country Park hosting the first hill-top finish in race history on Thursday 13 June. The world’s best riders tackle two laps of a challenging 12.6-kilometre circuit to culminate a spectator-friendly day of racing that begins in the historic town of Warwick.
Click here to explore the stage four route.
Stage five: Llandrindod Wells to Builth Wells
The sting in the tail comes on days five and six of the race, as Wales hosts two stages of the tour for the first time. Stage five between Llandrindod Wells and Builth Wells will see the riders climb more than 2,200 metres in total altitude, making it harder than a Tour de France mountain!
Click here to explore the stage five route.
Stage six: Carmarthen to Pembrey Country Park
There’s no room for premature celebrating, either, as stage six between Carmarthen and Pembrey Country Park features gruelling, undulating terrain from start to finish – a total of 1,800 metres of elevation gain. The stage will start with a lap of the Carmarthen Velodrome and end at Pembrey’s new National Cycle Circuit.
Click here to explore the stage six route.
Drops rider Manon Lloyd at our Carmarthenshire stage launch
2019 teams
The British Drops squad will compete in the OVO Energy Women’s Tour for the fourth year in a row. News of the other 15 teams who will line up in Suffolk in June will be revealed in due course.
How to follow the race
Visit womenstour.co.uk for our daily online live stage blogs, rider interviews, highlights videos, behind-the-scenes exclusives and photo galleries.
Also, don’t forget to catch up with the action from each day’s racing with our nightly hour-long highlights show on ITV4.
