Skip to content

Women's Tour 2022 cycling starts in Essex and Suffolk

Justin Setterfield/getty Women's Tour 2022 final sprint in Bury St EdmundsJustin Setterfield/getty
Clara Copponi stays ahead of Italy's Sofia Bertizzolo in the final sprint in front of the cathedral in Bury St Edmunds

The Women's Tour 2022 cycle race has got under way as it navigated its way through Essex and Suffolk for its opening stage.

Dozens of the world's top female riders set off from Colchester's Northern Gateway Sports Park.

They finished on Angel Hill in Bury St Edmunds via Brantham, Hadleigh, Needham Market and Stowmarket.

The opening 142.1km stage was the first of six across the country and it was won by French rider Clara Copponi.

The stage had to be stopped temporarily at about 14:20 BST, with about 35km to go, to allow the medical services to attend an incident ahead of the race route.

Getty Images Female cyclists racing in the Women's Tour 2022Getty Images
The opening stage of the Women's Tour 2022 started at Colchester's Northern Gateway Sports Park, just across the A12 from Colchester United's stadium
JULIA WALSHAW Women's Tour 2022 cyclists in Holbrook, SuffolkJULIA WALSHAW
The first sprint stage was in Holbrook in Suffolk with a climb past the village's church as they headed towards the Orwell Estuary
Getty Images The Women's Tour passing past the Orwell EstuaryGetty Images
The cyclists completed a downhill stretch through Freston in Suffolk, and headed along the River Orwell estuary at Wherstead...
Justin Setterfield/Getty Women's Tour passes under the Orwell Bridge, SuffolkJustin Setterfield/Getty
...before passing under the Orwell Bridge
Joe Giddens/PA Women's Tour cyclists in Bildeston, SuffolkJoe Giddens/PA
The route then passed through Bildeston in Suffolk twice, where a Queen of the Mountain section took place on its first visit
justin setterfield/getty Clara Copponi with sparkling winejustin setterfield/getty
Clara Copponi on the podium after crossing the finishing line on Angel Hill in Bury St Edmunds

Stage Two of this year's race takes place on Tuesday and starts and finishes in Harlow, taking in Great Dunmow, Chipping Ongar and Epping.

Last year, Essex hosted the penultimate stage of what is considered to be Britain's biggest and longest-running international women's cycling stage race.

The final leg was then held in Suffolk, where world champion Elisa Balsamo crossed the finish line first in Felixstowe.

The opening stage of this year's event follows the four-day bank holiday weekend in the UK to celebrate Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee.

Allow Twitter content?

This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read  and  before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.
presentational grey line

Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected]