The close links between the Tour de France and the Tour de l’Avenir, as well as the strong support of the International Cycling Union, were underlined by the presence of Christian Prudhomme, Director of the Tour de France, and Madame Amina Lanaya, UCI General Manager, alongside Philippe Colliou, Director of the event organized by Alpes Vélo, at the official presentation held on the Tour’s second rest day in Saint-Gervais.
This year sees the creation of the women’s Tour de l’Avenir, which will follow directly on (August 28 – September 1) from the 59th edition of the men’s event (August 20 – 27), considered to be the real Tour de France des jeunes (open to U23 riders).
While the routes were announced in outline last May at CIC headquarters in Paris, the new partner of the Maillots Jaunes de Leader for both events, Philippe Colliou, gave more details on the high level of difficulty and participation.
The men’s race will start in Morbihan and cross over to the usual drop-off point in Savoie, and Haute-Tarentaise in particular. The women’s race will start in Saône-et-Loire and finish in Sainte-Foy-Tarentaise.
The boys will face a particularly mountainous edition, including a finish on the Col de la Loze, explored by the Tour de l’Avenir in 2019 and since then set to become a classic of the “Grand Tour”, but also a time trial to the resort of Les Karellis during a mountainous day divided into two sectors with an unprecedented finish on the Col du Mont-Cenis. The Col de l’Iseran will be climbed again on the final stage, before the epilogue in the Haute-Tarentaise.
The young women will also have to contend with high mountain terrain, particularly on the final stage, which will include the Col des Saisies and the Cormet-de-Roselend before the final finish, also in Sainte-Foy-Tarentaise.
Both events are run as national teams (with an Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regional selection). Twenty-seven teams have been selected for the men’s event, and nineteen for the women’s event. A World Cycling Centre team (100% African in the boys’ category) will be lining up for both events, representing all five continents.
For boys and girls alike, the Tour de l’Avenir continues to reveal the talents of tomorrow.
Bernard Hinault – 5 fois Vainqueur du Tour de France, Responsable des Relations extérieures du Tour de l’Avenir
Christian Prudhomme – Directeur du Tour de France
Amina Lanaya – Directrice de l’UCI
Michel Callot – Président de la Fédération Française de Cyclisme
Martial Saddier – Président du Département de la Haute Savoie
