The race started and finished on the Festplassen in Bergen, with the riders completing eight laps of a circuit 19.1 kilometres (11.9 miles) in length.[4] The main feature of the circuit was the climb of Salmon Hill, about 7 kilometres (4.3 miles) into the lap; the climb was 1.5 kilometres (0.93 miles) long at an average gradient of 6.4%. At 152.8 kilometres (94.9 miles), the 2017 women's road race was the longest in the championships' history, surpassing the previous record of 140.05 kilometres (87.02 miles) in 2013.[5]
Qualification
Qualification was based mainly on the UCI World Ranking by nations as of 15 August 2017. The first five nations in this classification qualified seven riders to start, the next ten nations qualified six riders to start and the next five nations qualified five riders to start.[6] All other nations had the possibility to send three riders to start. In addition to this number, the outgoing World Champion and the current continental champions were also able to take part.[7]
153 cyclists from 47 nations were entered in the women's road race, however Cuba's sole representative Marlies Mejías did not start the race. The number of cyclists per nation is shown in parentheses.[1]
^"Countdown to the road races". Bergen2017.no. Bergen 2017 AS. 23 September 2017. Archived from the original on 24 September 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2017. The women's race will go a distance of 152,8 km, including 8 laps on the 19.1 km long circuit.
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