Spectators will be treated to one of the most anticipated days of the Tour de France Femme Avec Zwift when world-class cyclists ride through the gravel roads of Champagne on stage 4, arriving in Val sur Aube on Wednesday.

While it will undoubtedly provide a dramatic backdrop for the race and excite spectators watching along the roadside and on live TV, top peloton riders have conflicting opinions about whether a high-profile stage race like the Tour de France should include gravel roads, or cobbles They have.

Annemiek van Hulten (Movistar) is a favorite to win the overall and a self-confessed gravel race enthusiast, like two-time winner Strade Bianche. Still, she feels that there is a time and place for gravel racing, and that time and place is not stage racing.

"To be honest, I don't look forward to gravel days. It's a personal opinion, but I like the gravel of Strade Bianche, but not so much if I'm going for the GC," Van Vleuten said.

"It's a bit unnecessary and not fun to be decided by bad luck. But I always think, 'Don't think about bad luck, then nothing will happen.'"

Van Vleuten has previously spoken of her dislike of gravel roads in stage races, most notably at the 2020 Giro Donne, where she was forced to ride the gravel roads of Sedgiano heading into Archidosso for the second stage. That year she won a stage and the overall.

The route planned for stage 4 of the Tour de France Femme includes a total of 12.9 km of gravel roads, far less than the 31.4 km of gravel roads in Strade Bianche.

The race heads from Troyes to the Orient Nature Park, crossing Lake Orient before heading south for the only intermediate sprint at Val-Ur-Seine (60.4 km).

The peloton will encounter gravel and climbs in the middle of the race, with attacks and group breakaways expected.

There are four gravel sections: Chemin blanc de Celles (2.3km), Chemin blanc des Hautes Forêts (3.2km), Chemin blanc du Plateau (4.4km) and Chemin blanc de Vitry (3 km).

Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM) told Cycling News that the gravel sections will be another variable that will determine the team's strengths, tactics, and luck. She said she enjoys the gravel stages.

"Honestly, I would say it's not dangerous or special, just from what I've read on Velobiewer and the Internet, but after previewing the route, seeing it live, and riding the gravel roads myself, someone could get a flat tire in the wrong place, get into trouble, and it's a hard stage. Just taking that into account, I can assure you that a lot can happen," said Niewiadoma, who is currently in third place overall after the first three stages of the Tour de France Femme.

"I can say it's comparable to Strade Bianche. But it will definitely be difficult because it seems like there is always something going on in the last 80km or so. Yes, so it might not have a big impact on GC, but you can lose there, you might not gain much, but you can definitely lose a lot."

Niwiadoma believes that the changes in cycling and the frequent addition of new elements to the race, such as the gravel stages of the Tour de France Femme and the Paris-Roubaix cobbled sections added to the Tour de France, are good for the sport from an athlete and spectator perspective.

"It's cool. Cycling is changing and you can't please everyone. I feel like gravel roads let me discover more of my abilities and bike skills and add something that someone else enjoys and someone else doesn't.

"Like I said, it's impossible to please everyone. Then again, why not have gravel?

Simon Clark (Israel Premier Tec) defeated Taco van der Hoorn (Intermarque Wanty-Gobert Materio) and Edvald Boasson Hagen (Total Energies) in the fourth stage of the Tour de France Roubaix in July. (Total Energies) to win the championship. Niewiadoma watched live and enjoyed the new challenge of this event.

"Watching the Tour de France, I realized that when they try to do something different, something difficult, I want to see it. In a way, it excites me. And gravel roads: ...... I'm not racing on gravel roads like a professional mountain biker. These roads are still smooth. I don't think it's dangerous by any means," Niewiadoma said.

"It's fun, and for the riders, I mean, some might disagree, but I find it fun to race on gravel.