In the inaugural year of the Ladies Tour of Estonia (2022), 13 women’s teams took part. The men’s start list then—just as this year—featured 21 squads, which means the record increase comes from one additional women’s team. It is still possible that two more men’s continental teams—one from Asia and another from Central America—will join the line‑up.
Which riders will travel to Estonia is still being finalised, but Tallinn will welcome a truly international contingent: teams from 18 different countries in total.
“The European racing calendar is busy, and the fact that 35 teams are making their way to Estonia shows we’ve done something right over the years. With the women’s tour, we can see that by the fourth edition we no longer need to persuade anyone—the race is a natural part of the programme. Holding the women’s and men’s events on the same weekend also gives the entire festival a more coherent feel,” says race director Indrek Kelk.
Among the men, two Estonian teams will start: the continental Quick Pro Team (including former Tour champions Mihkel Räim, Martin Laas, Karl Patrick Lauk and other local stars) and the Estonian national team. In total, the men’s race features 16 continental squads and one pro‑continental team—Novo Nordisk representing the USA.
In the women’s field there are four home teams: the national team, Tartu University Sports Club, Peloton and Trismile. Returning as last year’s winner is the Norwegian continental team Coop‑Repsol, whose roster includes Estonians Aidi Gerde Tuisk and last year’s Ladies Tour of Estonia third place Laura Lizette Sander. Both of them took recently part in Vuelta.
This year’s men’s Tour of Estonia consists of two stages: Friday’s Tallinn–Tartu GP (196.4 km) and Saturday’s legendary Tartu GP (164.8 km).
The women’s pro race, the Ladies Tour of Estonia, remains a one‑day event; the 104.2‑kilometre race will be held immediately before the men’s Tartu GP on Saturday.
The Tour of Estonia is followed on Sunday by the 44th Tartu Rattaralli, which attracts thousands of amateur riders as well as many of the professionals who compete in the tour.
More information about the Tour of Estonia—including the full programme and complete men’s and women’s team lists—can be found HERE.
