Tour of California adds a second one-day women’s race

The Amgen Tour of California has added a second one-day women’s race to its program. The new criterium in Sacramento will join the existing time trial in Folsom held on May 11 and 12 in California. The news was first reported on Saturday on ESPN.com.

According to the event’s executive director, Kristin Bachochin, the additional women’s event will be sponsored by component manufacturer SRAM. The two events will have a combined prize purse of $20,000.

“It has always been our priority to create a race that promotes both men’s and women’s cycling as well as how cycling is beneficial to a well-rounded, healthy lifestyle for the entire family,” Bachochin wrote in an emailed statement to ESPN.com. “We are very pleased that with both the sponsorship commitment from SRAM and other logistical factors, we now have the ability to add a second day of women’s racing in 2014.”

The two single-day women’s events are held in conjunction with the UCI 2.HC Amgen Tour of California, a professional men’s event that starts on May 11 in Sacramento and concludes on May 18 in Thousand Oaks.

Last year, Jasmin Glaesser and Rhae Shaw placed 11th and 14th in the women’s time trial held in San Jose.

Amaury Sports Organization, organizers of the Tour de France, also recently announced the addition of a women’s race, La Course by Le Tour de France, to be held on July 27 on the Champs-Élysées.