Distance: 150km
Start location: Le Grand-Bornand
Finish location: Alpe d’Huez
Start time: 13:40 CEST
Finish time: 18:38 CEST
The Alpe d’Huez is one of France’s most mythical climbs, with deeply intertwined links to cycling and the Tour de France. The three-week long men’s race has visited the climb 32 times since it was first included in 1952. Unlike many of the climbs that feature in the men’s race, the Alpe d’Huez has hosted the women’s peloton before in the 1992 Tour Cycliste Feminine and again the following year. It featured on the highly-anticipated last stage of the nine-stage race in 1992, which had a prologue in Paris and finished atop the fabled mountain. Leontien Zijlaard-Van Moorsel and Jeannie Longo went head-to-head for the stage win, but in the end, it was Moorsel who snaked up the 21 hairpin bends first to take the stage win, taking the overall race win by nine seconds ahead of Longo. Moorsel went on to defend her Alpe d’Huez title the following year, beating the second-placed rider by over two minutes on the climb.
The women’s peloton has never returned to the Alpe d’Huez since throughout the different variations of the women’s race in France. However, this year, the Tour de France Femmes makes its inaugural visit to the Alpe d’Huez, rounding off the week-long stage race. If there are small time gaps between the general classification riders, the slopes of the Alpe d’Huez will be where the race can be won or lost, with the 2024 Tour de France Femmes winner crowned at the top of such a storied mountain.
Alpe d’Huez is the second hors category climb of the 149.9km stage with the women’s peloton facing the Col du Glandon prior to the summit finish, tackling it from the hardest side which is 19.7km long with an average gradient of 7.2%. Whether it is a pure climber who comes to the fore or one of the general classification riders, whoever wins this stage will cement their name into cycling history alongside some of the greatest riders of all time.
Stage profile sourced via ASO
Contenders
Stage eight is the last chance for the general classification, and everything will be to play for. The defending champion Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) still sits 1:15 behind the yellow jersey Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon//SRAM). The SD Worx rider will do everything she can to drop the Pole on the slopes of Alpe d'Huez, and we saw a small glimpse of her power on the run into the line on stage seven. Vollering is a powerhouse in the mountains and last year, she dominated on the Tour's Col du Tourmalet, and we would not be surprised if she did the same here, riding back into the yellow jersey in true Vollering fashion. If Niewiadoma wants to keep her yellow and win the Tour de France Femmes, she simply needs to stick to her rivals wheels and defend her time limit. However, doing too much work could be her downfall.
Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) sits second on the GC. Her form in the mountains is still relatively unknown, however, her performance on Le Grand-Bornand demonstrated that she still poses a threat, placing seventh on stage seven. She had her teammate Pauliena Rooijakkers (seventh on GC) all the way to the line and if they can replicate this strength, both will end up with a strong place on the overall GC and the white jersey with Pieterse.
The other rider vying for the white jersey is Shirin van Anrooij (Lidl-Trek). She sits just 45 seconds behind Pieterse, so could look to try something on this stage to take the white jersey from the leader. Van Anrooij is one of Lidl-Trek's GC riders alongside Gaia Realini, who is 12th on the GC at the moment. Realini an excellent climber, so could look to move up a few spots on the GC on the double-digit gradients of the Alpe d'Huez.
Cédrine Kerbaol (Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling Team) is third on the GC at the moment, however, didn't look the strongest of the GC contenders on the first mountain stage of the weekend. The other French hope is Juliette Labous (Team DSM-Fermenich PostNL), who will be desperate to secure a podium finish at the end of the race.
Thalita de Jong (Lotto Dsnty) and Évita Muzic (FDJ-Suez) sit in the top 10 at the moment and will want to remain there. Outside the top 10, Enrica Magnaldi (UAE Team ADQ) and Liane Lippert (Movistar) will look to try and move into the top 10 in this final stage. Polka dot jersey and stage seven winner Justine Ghekiere (AG Insurance-Soudal Team) had the ride of her life on Le Grand-Bornand and should not be counted out for putting on another epic display on the Alpe d'Huez. She's now 10th on the GC, moving up 12 spots on stage seven and will want to be at the front to scoop up more points for the KOM jersey and her spots on the GC. AG Insurance also has Sarah Gigante, who is a super strong climber over this type of terrain.
Stage eight winner prediction
We think Demi Vollering will take the stage win.
