15th Grande Boucle Féminine - 2.9.1

France, August 5-18, 2001

2000 results    Stage list    Preview    Start list     Past winners

The Stages

  • Stage 1a - August 5: Bilbao (Spa) ITT, 9.9 km
  • Stage 1b - August 5: Bilbao - Guernika, 107 km
  • Stage 2 - August 6: Barèges (Fra) - Campan, 34.4 km
  • Stage 3 - August 7: Barbotan les Thermes - Bergerac, 141.7 km
  • Stage 4 - August 8: Bergerac - La Rochefoucauld, 121 km
  • Stage 5 - August 9: Saint Porchaire - La Roche sur Yon, 138.6 km
  • Stage 6 - August 10: La Roche sur Yon - Bressuire, 84.7 km
  • Stage 7 - August 11: Montmorillon - Bourges, 164 km
  • Rest Day - August 12: Bourges
  • Stage 8 - August 13: Bourges - Domerat, 93.8 km
  • Stage 9 - August 14: St Yorre - St Galmier, 112.5 km
  • Stage 10 - August 15: St Galmier - Rive de Gier ITT, 42.8 km
  • Stage 11 - August 16: Langogne - Vernoux en Vivarais, 125 km
  • Stage 12 - August 17: Valreas - Superdévoluy, 131 km
  • Stage 13 - August 18: Guillestre - Vaujany, 135.5 km
  • Stage 14 - August 19: Pierrelaye - Paris, 117.8 km

Preview

Beginning on Sunday with a 9.9 kilometre time trial in Bilbao (Spain) is the 15th edition of La Grande Boucle Féminine, also known as the women's Tour de France. Last year's winner, Joane Somarriba (Alfa Lum) is in good condition for a repeat, after finishing 5th in the recent Giro Donne, despite not being well prepared for it. Her first goal will be to win the yellow jersey in the opening time trial, in order to wear it while the race remains in Spain.

"It would be fantastic," she said just two days prior to the start. But with riders such as Zulfia Zabirova (Acca Due O) and Somarriba's World TT champion teammate, Mari Holden, there will be some competition for that first yellow.

Somarriba's other competition includes Fabiana Luperini (Edil Savino), who has won this race three times, German Hanka Kupfernagel (Farm Frites-Hartol), and 1999 winner Diana Ziliute (Acca Due O).

There will be second stage on August 5, 107 kilometres from Bilbao to Guernika, which may see the jersey change hands. However, Stage 2 on August 6 takes the riders into France, from Barèges to Campan via the Tourmalet - the major difficulty in this short 34.4 km stage.

After the Pyrenees, the Massif Central and the Alps will be encountered during the race, with the Col d'Izoard on the second last day possibly causing a rearrangement to the GC. The 42.8 kilometre time trial in Loire on August 15 will also be quite important, and Somarriba excels in this discipline.

Start list 

Alfa Lum R.S.M.                    Bizkaia - Sabeco
 
1 Joane Somarriba Arrola (Spa)     11 Alexandra Le Henaff (Fra)
2 Sara Felloni (Ita)               12 Cristina Alcalde Huertanos (Spa)
3 Simona Grossi (Ita)              13 Isabelle Carro (Fra)
4 Mari Holden (USA)                14 Agurtzane Elorriaga Derteano (Spa)
5 Fany Lecourtois (Fra)            15 Maya Escolar Sardon (Spa)
6 Sari Saarelainen (Fin)           16 Rocio Gamonal Ferrera (Spa)
7 Daniela Veronesi (Smr)           17 Gemma Pascual Torrecilla (Spa)
 
Acca Due-O H.P Lorena              Gas Sport Team
 
21 Rasa Polikeviciute (Ltu)        31 Séverine Desbouys (Fra)
22 Priska Doppmann (Swi)           32 Tania Belvederesi (Ita)
23 Goulnara Ivanova (Rus)          33 Roberta Bonanomi (Ita)
                                   34 Alessandra Cappellotto (Ita)
25 Jolanta Polikeviciute (Ltu)     35 Gabriella Pregnolato (Ita)
26 Zita Urbonaite (Ltu)            36 Zinaida Stahurskaya (Blr)
27 Erika Vilunaite (Ltu)           37 Greta Zocca (Ita)
 
Edilsavino                         Carpe Diem Itera
 
41 Svetlana Boubnenkova (Rus)      51 Olga Slioussareva (Rus)
42 Nicole Brandli (Swi)            52 Vera Carrara (Ita)
43 Iryna Chuzhynova (Ukr)          53 Youlia Martissova (Rus)
44 Fabiana Luperini (Ita)          54 Lara Ruthven (USA)
45 Simona Parente (Ita)            55 Svetlana Samokhvalova (Rus)
46 Irene Puccioni (Ita)            56 Elena Tchalykh (Rus)
47 Sonia Rocca (Ita)               57 Olga Zabelinskaia (Rus)
 
Farm Frites/USA                    Michela Fanini Record Rox
 
61 Madeleine Lindberg (Swe)        71 Fatima Blazquez Lozano (Spa)
62 Yvonne Brunen (Ned)             72 Monica Ceccon (Ita)
63 Rhonda Quick (USA)              73 Nataliya Kachalka (Ukr)
64 Pamela Schuster (USA)           74 Marika Murer (Swi)
65 Esther Van Der Helm (Ned)       75 Regina Schleicher (Ger)
66 Sharon Van Essen (Ned)          76 Tiziana Smorgon (Ita)
67 Joan Wilson (USA)               77 Patricia Zulato (Ita)
 
Junkers-Noja                       Aliverti Mixed Team
 
81 Teodora Ruano Sanchon (Spa)     91 Marianna Lorenzoni (Ita)
82 Judith Arndt (Ger)              92 Annabelle Drew (Aus)
83 Mercedes Cagigas Anedo (Spa)    93 Gitana Gruodyte (Ltu)
84 Ruth Martinez Gomez (Spa)       94 Susanne Ljungskog (Swe)
85 Maribel Moreno Allue (Spa)      95 Francesca Castrucci (Ita)
86 Bettina Schöke (Ger)            96 Valentina Poli (Ita)
87 Anke Wichmann (Ger)             97 Alexandra Nohles (Ger)
 
Swam - Slovakia                    Bik Toscany Sport
 
101 Lenka Ilavska (Svk)            111 Rosa Maria Bravo Soba (Spa)
102 Alena Barillova (Svk)          112 Chantal Beltman (Ned)
103 Marcia Eicher-Vouets (Swi)     113 Ghita Beltman (Ned)
104 Zlatica Gavlakova (Svk)        114 Baukje Doedee (Ned)
105 Jeannie Longo Ciprelli (Fra)   115 Eneritz Iturriaga (Spa)
106 Katarina Lehocka (Svk)         116 Wendy Kramp (Ned)
107 Eva Potocna (Svk)              117 Kirsty Nicole Robb (NZl)
 
CA Mantes-La-Ville                 Catalonia
 
121 Magali Le Floch (Fra)          131 Marta Vilajosana (Spa)
122 Elisabeth Chevanne Brunel (Fra)132 Montserrat Alonso Bernal (Spa)
123 Cybil Diguistini (Can)         133 Elena Carbonell Font (Spa)
124 Emmanuelle Farcy (Fra)         134 Eva Clop Ponte (Spa)
125 Sandrine Marcuz (Fra)          135 Anna Ramirez (Spa)
126 Miho Oki (Jpn)                 136 Azucena Sanchez (Spa)
127 Sandra Wampfler (Swi)          137 Sandra Santanyes (Spa)
 
Team 24
 
141 Sylvie Riedle (Fra)
142 Emma James (Aus)
143 Carine Peter (Fra)
144 Stéphanie Reymond (Fra)
145 Rebecca Menart (Fra)

Past Winners 

2000:

1 Joane Somarriba Arrola (Spa) Team Alfa Lum
2 Edita Pucinskaite (Ltu) Team Alfa Lum
3 Géraldine Loewenguth (Fra) French National Team

1999:

1. Diana Ziliute (Lit) Acca Due O Lorena
2. Valentina Polkhanova (Rus) Russian Team
3. Edita Pucinskaite (Lit) Acca Due O Lorena

1998:

1. Edita Pucinskaite (Lit)
2. Fabiana Luperini (Ita)
3. Alessandra Cappellotto (Ita)

1997:

1. Fabiana Luperini (Ita)
2. Barbara Heeb (Swi)
3. Linda Jackson (Can)

1996:

1. Fabiana Luperini (Ita)
2. Rasa Polikeviciute (Lit)
3. Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo (Fra)

1995:

1. Fabiana Luperini (Ita)
2. Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo (Fra)
3. L. Zberg (Swi)

1994:

1. Valentina Polkhanova (Rus)
2. Rasa Polikeviciute (Lit)
3. C. Odin (Fra)

1993:

1. Leontien Van Moorsel (Ned)
2. Marion Clignet (Fra)
3. H. Van De Vijver (Bel)

1992:

1. Leontien Van Moorsel (Ned)
2. Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo (Fra)
3. H. Van De Vijver (Bel)

1989:

1. Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo (Fra)
2. Maria Canins (Ita)
3. I. Thompson (USA)

1988:

1. Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo (Fra)
2. Maria Canins (Ita)
3. Elizabeth Hepple (Aus)

1987:

1. Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo (Fra)
2. Maria Canins (Ita)
3. U. Enzenauer (FRG)

1986:

1. Maria Canins (Ita)
2. Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo (Fra)
3. I. Thompson (USA)

1985:

1. Maria Canins (Ita)
2. Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo (Fra)
3. C. Odin (Fra)

1984:

1. Mary-Ann Martin (USA)
2. H. Hage (Ned)
3. D. Schumway (USA)