Tour Down Under Women 2026
17.01-19.01
The 2026 Tour Down Under Women was held from 17 to 19 January 2026 and covered 394.6 kilometres across three stages. The eleventh edition was won by reigning champion Noemi Rüegg, ahead of the Spanish UAE Team ADQ duo Mavi García and Paula Blasi.
How to watch?
Curious about how to watch the 2026 Tour Down Under Women? Discover it in our complete how to watch guide, featuring a full overview of all broadcasters and streaming options.
Route
The 2026 Tour Down Under Women opens with an immediate climbing test in the Mount Lofty ranges with the famed Willunga Hill. The three stages are a real puncheurs paradise with notable climbing on all three stages.
On stage 1, the riders will complete a loop that takes them around Port Willunga and McLaren Vale three times before tackling the day’s main test, the climb up Willunga’s High Street, which will serve as an uphill finish. Stage 2 is one for the versatile sprinters, traversing from Magill to Paracombe, with Norton Summit providing the main climb of the day, which arrives very early on in the stage.
Stage 3 starts at Norwood and provides a real showdown to the 2026 edition of the race, with two ascents of the short and steep Corkscrew Road climb, with an average gradient of 9.7%, a real GC battle can be expected here as riders compete for the Ochre Jersey.
Read our preview for more information on the 2026 edition.
Favourites
Noemi Rüegg returns as the rider everyone will measure themselves against. The Swiss champion is back in Australia to defend her title, backed by a strong EF Education-Oatly line-up that includes world champion Magdeleine Vallieres. If the race splits on the climbs or tightens late, that duo gives EF both protection and a decisive finisher.
Lidl-Trek look like the most obvious challengers on paper. Three-time winner Amanda Spratt knows exactly how to win here, and with Gaia Realini alongside her they have a clear climbing card to play whenever the road tilts.
Team Visma | Lease a Bike should not be overlooked either. With Marion Bunel, Margaux Vigié and Sarah Van Dam, they bring depth and options, the kind of line-up that can turn an open race into one shaped by pressure and timing.
Beyond those three anchors, the field stays wide. Canyon-SRAM Zondacrypto bring proven quality in Tiffany Cromwell and Chloé Dygert, while Mavi García begins her second spell at UAE Team ADQ. Add fast finisher Ally Wollaston, and the women’s race feels open enough that control, rather than raw strength alone, may decide it.
The full startlist is available via this link.
