About the Women's Tour

The Women’s Tour Stage 1 - Grand Départ will see over 100 of the world’s best riders racing between Colchester and Bury St Edmunds.
 
The 142 kilometres  (88.2 miles) route begins at the Colchester Sports Park at Northern Gateway, the town’s acclaimed new multi-sport facility at junction 28 of the A12. The route takes in many of Colchester’s historic town centre landmarks – including the Jumbo Water Tower, Town Hall, Natural History Museum and Firstsite arts venue – in the opening kilometres.  The route then heads south from Colchester to Layer-de-la-Haye, Abberton, and back through Old Heath and Greenstead before heading towards Manningtree and over the River Stour. Once into Suffolk riders will travel under the Orwell Bridge before heading north west through the Babergh District. Bildeston will be raced through twice as part of an anti-clockwise loop through Mid-Suffolk that takes in the 2019 stage finish location of Stowmarket. The finish line on Angel Hill in Bury St Edmunds will be approached from the south via Lavenham.
 
Subsequent days of the race will include a first visit to Gloucester (stage three, Wednesday 8 June), with a route through the Forest of Dean between Tewkesbury and Gloucestershire, before two stages in Wales (stages four and five, Thursday 9 and Friday 10 June). The latter features the most elevation gain of any stage in this year’s race (2,065m), in part owing to the summit finish atop Black Mountain in the Brecon Beacons.
 
The Women’s Tour will conclude in Oxfordshire on Saturday 11 June with a stage between picturesque Chipping Norton, in the Cotswolds, and the heart of historic Oxford.
 
While spectators can watch all the action by the roadside for free, highlights of this year’s race will once again be shown on ITV4 in the UK, and around the world via Eurosport and GCN.
 
To discover the stage route and plan a visit to the Women’s Tour - an interactive map and downloadable stage timetable is available from women's tour.