The scale and importance of the inaugural Tour de France Femmes Avec Zwift is undeniable.

On the morning of the race, Rachel Hederman, director-turned-director of EF Education-TIBCO-SVB in Paris, stressed to great fanfare in Paris that it would be difficult to convince the riders that this was just another race.

"You can't fool anyone into thinking it's the same as the Joe Martin Stage Race." Say what you want to remind the riders, but they are still watching all of this. The rider briefing yesterday, the pictures, everything, it's not like any other race."

Aside from the overall size of the race, it is clear that the teams are putting more manpower and resources into this race that has already become the centerpiece of the women's calendar.

"One of the big things for us is that we're used to having a mechanic, two swanis, and myself in the race. 'And here we have more than 10 staff members and a lot of sponsors with us. Even the whole team, instead of the usual 10 people, I think there are 30."

"Right from the start, the size of the team has been very different from what we are used to."

Part of this is due to the increase in sponsorship that has appeared since the announcement of the Tour de France Fam, which has allowed the team to use more of those resources

"The Tour de France has been a great success.

"None of the sponsors are saying, 'We're going to sponsor a women's team because of the Women's Tour. It's just that the profile of women's cycling is that much higher, and the Tour is a sign of that." Women's cycling has become more well-known worldwide, and that's what's getting sponsors involved."

"The Tour is a great example of that."

"The Tour is a great example of that.

While much has been said about the Tour de France and the progress of women's cycling, Hederman believes that the commercial growth of the sport does not necessarily mean a change in racing or level.

"When we were racing, we were just as aggressive as the athletes today, so there is no difference. 'The dynamism of the race itself is similar to what it used to be. That is the biggest change, not the race itself, but the visibility."

However, the scale of the race has already seen its limits. While many riders were excited about being on the podium in Paris before the race, the women will not be on the podium for the main, iconic stage 21. The post-stage presentation will take place in an additional stage, and there will be no yellow jersey handover on Sunday evening.

Additionally, much of the infrastructure around the race was still being set up in the final hour of the women's race, and the VIP stands lining the Champs-Elysées were not welcoming guests in the early afternoon, with the schedule still geared to the men's race.