Meet Harshita Jakhar, 19, first Indian woman at Tour de France Femmes

Harshita Jakhar, a 19-year-old cyclist from Rajasthan, turned heads in the global media after becoming the first Indian woman to feature at the Tour de France Femmes during the ceremonial start of Stage 2 in Aigle, Switzerland, last Sunday. The prestigious women's race, which began in Lausanne, concludes in Nice on Sunday (9 August).

The 19-year-old Harshita Jakhar from Rajasthan was among eight cyclists selected for the UCI World Cycling Talent Programme, which offers riders from developing cycling nations exposure to elite racing. The group, comprising cyclists from Afghanistan, Algeria, Chile, Ethiopia, Namibia and Uganda, completed a 4.5-km neutralised ride ahead of the professional peloton before Stage 2 of the race.

The Tour de France Femmes is part of the UCI Women’s World Tour and is one of the biggest and longest races on the women’s cycling calendar. Incidentally, India is yet to be represented in the men's Tour de France, the iconic race spanning more than 3,000 km.

Welcoming Harshita into the programme, UCI president David Lappartient expressed confidence that she would one day return to compete in the Tour de France Femmes.

"We are excited to have India's very talented Harshita Jakhar in our prestigious UCI World Cycling Talent Programme," Lappartient said. "I am sure she will enjoy being part of the Tour de France Femmes and will soon return to compete in the race."

Harshita, who announced herself on the national stage by winning three gold medals at last year’s Khelo India Youth Games, trains at the Sports Authority of India’s National Centre of Excellence in Patiala under her father and coach, former cyclist Rakesh Jakhar, who represented India at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

She has also won a silver and two bronze medals at the 2024 Asian Junior Cycling Championships in one of the most demanding sporting disciplines.