Tour de France
Tour snapshot: Leading women spin out victories

By Mark Akins
Seattle Times staff

Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo

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The Tour de France, known parochially as Le Grande Boucle (The Big Loop), has a little sister — La Grande Boucle Feminine.

It struggles for survival and gets minimal exposure, but the 20-year-old women's Tour somehow keeps ticking.

Weaker sex? The women ride the same big mountains in France, suffer in the same heat and descend at breathtaking speeds, although they ride a much shorter route.

This year, because it conflicts with next month's Olympics, La Grande Boucle Feminine won't be held.

Recently completed, however, was the 10-day, 528-mile Giro d'Italia Femminile, or women's Giro, which finished Sunday in Milan. Great Britain's Nicole Cooke was first, Italy's Fabiana Luperini second and Switzerland's Priska Doppman third.

Four riders from the United States, all racing for European teams, started the Giro, with Meredith Miller of El Cerrito, Calif., the highest finisher at 77th.

CJ Farquharson of womenscycling.net profiled some other top riders:

Jeannie Ciprelli-Longo, France: Still competing at 45, the three-time Tour Feminine winner lives much of the year in the U.S. with her husband. "She always manages to pull great performances out of the bag when the occasion is big."

Joane Somarriba, Spain: Winner of the past three Tours, Somarriba, 32, is focusing on the Athens Olympics and might retire after the 2005 World Championships in Madrid.

Leontien Zijlaard-van Moorsel, Holland: The two-time Tour Feminine champ and multiple world champion plans to retire after the Olympics.
 
Oenone Wood, Australia: An up-and-comer, Wood has been cycling only a few years but "won just about everything she entered in January and February."

Mark Akins: 206-464-8994 or makins@seattletimes.com.

Karen Wolfe contributed to this report.