The last time the Tour de France held a women's stage race was in 1988. Unlike the La Course by Le Tour de France — a one-day race that the Tour's organizers have put on for women since 2014 — the new event will be a multi-stage race from July 24-31 and will be sponsored by Zwift. The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift will begin after the men's race ends, with riders embarking from the iconic Champs-Élysées in Paris on the same day the men finish racing.

August marks the start of professional cycling’s official transfer period, the only time a UCI World Team may recruit riders. From August 1-15th, new pro riders and those with expiring contracts have the opportunity to sign to a new team. For any change of team between two seasons, the transfer period extends from August 1 to December 31st.

The Tour de France is currently racing its 108th edition. The epic, man-powered journey across France looks quite different from the scenes of the inaugural race in 1903.

Portugal's Joao Almeida ensured he will wear the pink jersey for a 14th consecutive day after defending his overall race lead on Tuesday on the Giro d'Italia's 16th stage won by Slovenian Jan Tratnik.

Italy's Diego Ulissi won the 13th stage of the Giro d'Italia on Friday as Joao Almeida retained the race leader's pink jersey ahead of a crucial time trial that the Portuguese rider admitted will be "difficult".

Ecuador's Jhonatan Narvaez gave the Ineos team their third stage win in this year's Giro d'Italia, crossing the line alone on a wet stage 12 at Cesenatico on Thursday.