The route for the men's and women's Tour de France will be announced on October 27, and as usual, rumors abound about where in the country the race will visit.

The Tour de France Fam Avec Zwift, which will be held for the second time, has not escaped the rumor mill. Last week it was revealed that race director, former professional and former French champion Marion Rousse, was preparing for the July 23 Grande Pearl in Clermont-Ferrand.

Last year's race started in Paris, with the peloton racing ahead of the men's peloton on the final stage 21 on the Champs-Elysées Boulevard. This gave the women's peloton more exposure along the roadside and in the media, and their departure from this race suggests that organizer ASO is confident in the race's status.

All of the riders Cyclingnews spoke to at the Tour de Romandie Féminine were enjoying the opening day in Paris this year, and all welcomed the move.

"Honestly, I'm very happy," Ashley Moolman-Pasio (SD Works) said before her mountain stage win in Switzerland.

"Running the Champs Elysées is symbolic, but it's not necessarily the best way to start a Grand Tour.

"It's a different race for the men. They race the last lap or two, but it's more like a parade.

The most impressive thing about this year's inaugural event was the sheer number of spectators. The largest crowd of the eight stages of the race was in Paris on the first day, but the French public took the race straight to heart with large crowds throughout.

Juliette Labouse (DSM), who finished fourth in this year's Tour, is a top rider at home, and she was surprised by the number of spectators along the roadside this year, but hopes to return in 2023. Wherever it starts.

"I was happy to see so many people in Paris, but I also felt like they were there for the riders.

Veronica Eworth, riding EF Education-TIBCO-SVB, finished ninth and thinks it's good to separate the race from the men.

"Some people say it's not ideal for the men to finish in Paris, but I'm not so sure," she told Cycling News. "I think it just adds another difference because the Tour de France is different for the men and the women, and I think it should be treated that way. So I think it's going to be really interesting and I think it's literally a change of pace."

Clermont-Ferrand is an industrial city in the Auvergne region, known for its extinct volcanoes. It is the heart of the Massif Central mountain range and is expected to start quite differently from this year's sprinters' stage, which was won by Lauren Wiebes (Team DSM).

"Some parts are gentle, some parts are really hilly. 'Romain Bardet [my teammate] is from this region and we talk about it from time to time. As far as his Strava file goes, it's really tough."

Though thoughts on the ideal parcours varied, the one thing that all the racers we spoke to thought would liven up the race was the time trial.

"A team time trial or an individual time trial or a prologue might spice things up," Cecily Uttrup-Ludwig (FDJ-SUEZ-Futuroscope) Ludwig told Cycling News. 'It was a little sad this year because we didn't have a TT or a lot of team time trials. So I think that's a good thing."

He said.

The move has not yet been finalized, but Moolman-Pasio believes that moving the race away from Paris suggests that organizer ASO is confident that the new race can stand alone.

"This is the strength of the ASO, the goal of a historic and symbolic race for the men and the start for us. I think the problem with road cycling is that it's always been stuck in history. There are pros and cons. I loved riding along the Champs-Elysées and it's a great opportunity to attract bystanders." The situation in cycling is changing, however.