PARIS-CHAMPS-ÉLYSÉES-He will miss one of the four Canadians at the start of the 21st and final stage of the Tour de France on Sunday near Paris.

• Read also: Tour de France: avoid damage before the Champs-Élysées

• To read also: Tour de France: for the honor of France

Michael Woods has tested positive for Covid and will not be able to participate in the 115 kilometer stage which connects Paris La Défense Arena to the Champs-Élysées.

This announcement is heartbreaking for the cyclist who will not be able to celebrate three weeks of intense effort.

It is also another loss for the Israel-Premier Tech team, reduced to just four riders today. Fortunately, the Tour is over.

Chris Froome and Simon Clarke have already quit for the same reason, while Denmark's Jakob Fuglsang retired through injury.

That leaves Hugo Houle, Guillaume Boivin, Guy Niv, and Krists Neilands.

Michael Woods, 35, was 36th overall, 2h20m50s behind the yellow jersey Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma).

He finished 3rd in the 16th stage in Foix behind his compatriot and teammate Hugo Houle and Frenchman Valentin Madouas.

Woods is the 17th runner who had to leave the Grande Boucle because of the coronavirus.

In the early afternoon of Sunday, the women's Tour de France was launched before the arrival of the men.

Held between 1984 and 2009, the event returns after a twelve-year absence until July 31, 2022.

Quebecers Simone Boilard, Olivia Baril and Magdeleine Vallières-Mill are taking part in the event, each with a different team.

A few hours before the first pass of the peloton around 6 p.m. (12 p.m. Quebec time), the Champs-Élysées are already invaded by tens of thousands of people and the crowd continues to grow.

The weather is beautiful and Danish fans with the red and white flag are everywhere to cheer the future champion of the Tour de France 2022, Jonas Vingegaard.