Fan access will be restricted to certain areas on Friday’s stage 5 of the Tour de France Femmes due to the risk of wildfires.
The stage will finish on the summit of Mont Ventoux, and is the first time the Tour de France Femmes will climb the ‘Giant of Provence’. But no spectators and hikers will be allowed inside the Dentelles de Montmirail massif or alongside the Departmental Road 90, the race organisers and the Vaucluse department revealed yesterday.
“While an extensive safety and emergency response operation will be deployed over both days in coordination with the event organiser, Amaury Sport Organisation, the Prefect has decided, due to the sensitivity of the area and the wildfire risk, to prohibit public access to the Dentelles de Montmirail massif. Only access to the Paty exemption area will be permitted,” an official press release said.
The statement said the following rules must be observed: no smoking; no lighting of fires; and no driving or parking, even temporarily on DFCI forest access tracks, which are reserved for emergency vehicles.
Pressure to reroute
The Tour de France Femmes faced pressure last week to reroute the Queen stage because of the threat of wildfires in Provence.
The Vacleuse department said on its website: “At a time when forest areas are at a peak risk of fire, the prefecture has asked the organisers of the Tour to consider an alternative route. Following a fire risk assessment on Tuesday 4 August, an alternative route will be implemented should the wildfire risk be considered extreme.”
But there has been no adaptation of the 146.8Km route, with only public restrictions announced.
Tomorrow’s Tour de France Femmes stage could prove decisive for the general classification. Marlen Reusser leads the race after Wednesday’s stage five, which saw the Swiss rider finish second behind race favourite Demi Vollering and defending champion Pauline Ferrand-Prévot fall out of contention.
You can view a map of open/closed forest areas here.
Disruption at the men's Tour de France
Three stages of the men’s Tour de France were disrupted by wildfires and the allocation of emergency services. The final stage to Paris on Sunday 26 July was shortened from 133km to 89km as France’s internal security forces were redeployed to fight wildfires.
Extreme heat at the race also led the UCI to relax its feeding rules to ensure riders remained hydrated.
