It often feels like the Tour de France really sneaks up on us right after we’re done with the Giro d’Italia, but that’s truer than ever this year with the Paris Olympics pushing the Tour start up by a week. The Tour peloton will roll out from Florence, Italy, on June 29, which means it’s high time to take a closer look at the route of this year’s race.
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The 2024 Tour route is all about balance, with two time trials, a variety of climbing stages ranging from some high-altitude beasts to punchier hills, plenty of opportunities for the sprinters, and even a little bit of gravel. It will be the sort of race where the GC battle will favor an all-around talent, and we don’t have long to wait now to see just who that talent might be.
Here is your stage-by-stage guide to the 2024 Tour de France, and stay tuned for a closer look at the top contenders for the race coming soon …
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Stage 1: Florence to Rimini – 203.6 km
Date: Saturday June 29, 2024
Stage type: Hilly
Summary: A Tour start in Bella Italia! The profile has the look of a breakaway day, but will the peloton allow the escapees much breathing room on the very first day of the race? This stage could come down to either a big name with some punch getting clear on the final climb – or to a big name with some punch winning from a small group.
Stage 2: Cesenatico to Bologne – 199.2 km
Date: Sunday June 30, 2024
Stage type: Hilly
Summary: The second stage of the Tour, much like the first, will favor the more versatile riders in the peloton. Two late trips up the steep (10.6%) Côte de San Luca on the run-in to Bologna will be too hard for the purer sprinters, but at just 1.9 km long it won’t favor the pure climbers either. In any case, the GC riders will be on alert.
Stage 3: Plaisance to Turin – 230.8 km
Date: Monday July 1, 2024
Stage type: Flat
Summary: With nearly 50 km of flat to finish the stage, the sprinters will have their time to shine in Turin. There are two sharp bends in the final kilometers but then it’s a long straightaway to the line that will favor the most powerful riders in the bunch.
Stage 4: Pinerolo to Valloire – 139.6 km
Date: Tuesday July 2, 2024
Stage type: Mountains
Summary: Yes, you are reading the profile correctly: That’s the Col du Galibier just four stages into the Tour. It’s the second highest point of the 2024 race, and the long slog to the top will help bring the GC riders to the fore at a refreshingly early stage in the Tour. The Galibier is not an especially steep mountain from the side the Tour climbs it this year, but it’s a real slog to the top, and then there’s a long downhill to the finish. Diesel climbers who don’t mind the altitude and strong descenders will like their chances.
Stage 5: Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne to Saint-Vulbas – 177.4 km
Date: Wednesday July 3, 2024
Stage type: Flat
Summary: A day after the Galibier, the sprinters will get another shot on a day with a very flat run-in to the line. A late right-hand turn and then a few gentle curves are the main features of what will be a fast finish.
Stage 6: Mâcon to Dijon – 163.5 km
Date: Thursday July 4, 2024
Stage type: Flat
Summary: Stock up on mustard and wine as the Tour heads to the Burgundian capital of Dijon on a flat-as-a-pancake parcours. There is a roundabout with just under kilometer to go, and then it’s a straight run to the line: another day for the high-octane sprinters.
Stage 7: Nuits-Saint-Georges to Gevrey-Chambertin – 25.3 km (ITT)
Date: Friday July 5, 2024
Stage type: Individual time trial
Summary: Contre-la-montre! The stage 7 time trial should have a big impact on the GC battle, and it wouldn’t be a shock to see a GC rider win it either. It’s not an especially climber-y route, but that lump in the middle of the profile is not nothing (especially for heavier TT specialists), and on top of that, the GC favorites do tend to shine against the clock in three-week races when everything is riding on them.
Stage 8: Semur-en-Auxois to Colombey-les-Deux-Églises – 183.4 km
Date: Saturday July 6, 2024
Stage type: Flat
Summary: There aren’t any individually hard climbs on the docket for stage 8 but the up-and-down route could give the break a chance. Look for the Classics specialists to try their luck up the road, and for the sprinters’ teams to try to bring it all back.
Stage 9: Troyes to Troyes – 199 km
Date: Sunday July 7, 2024
Stage type: Hilly
Summary: Gravel! Stage 9 features 14 sectors of “chemin blanc” gravel, totalling 32 km in length, with a few small climbs on the docket for good measure. With the sectors sprinkled throughout and the last one 3.5 km long and coming just 10 km from the line, it should be a fun and unpredictable stage, and the winner can enjoy the champagne celebration all the more because the next day is the first rest day of the race.
Stage 10: Orléans to Saint-Amand-Montrond – 187.3 km
Date: Tuesday July 9, 2024
Stage type: Flat
Summary: Stage 10 should give the sprinters another chance to shine, but that uncategorized climb near the finish could liven things up a bit. There will also be two big corners to get through with around a kilometer to go before a straight and flat run-in to the line, so there will be plenty of incentive in the last few minutes of the race for the fast finishers to be and stay near the front.
Stage 11: Évaux-Les-Bains to Le Lioran – 211 km
Date: Wednesday July 10, 2024
Stage type: Mountains
Summary: Stage 11 takes the Tour into the Massif Central for a day that could have GC implications and that will likely go to a break. This finale is tough. The second-category Col de Neronne is officially only 3.8 km in length but its 9.1% gradient will be all the harder after after almost 20 km of gentler but sustained climbing that precedes it, and then the Puy Mary Pas de Peyrol and the Col de Pertus await before the Col de Font de Cère tops out just before the line. Some pretenders will be found out on these short but steep ascents.
Stage 12: Aurillac to Villeneuve-sur-Lot – 203.6 km
Date: Thursday July 11, 2024
Stage type: Flat
Summary: It’s possible that this could end up being another 200+ km sprint stage, but the rolling hills and the distance could at least give the break a chance. If there is a fast finish, either from the bunch or from a smaller group, it will be a real drag race with a very straight final kilometer.
Stage 13: Agen to Pau – 165.3 km
Date: Friday July 12, 2024
Stage type: Flat
Summary: The town with a long history of Tour stages is back in 2024 for not one but two days, as stage 13 finishes in Pau before the following day rolls out from the same place. With the Pyrenees looming, race organizers managed to design a route for stage 13 that gives the sprinters yet another chance in a Tour that will have already seen several days for the fast finishers.
Stage 14: Pau to Saint-Lary-Soulan Pla d’Adet – 151.9 km
Date: Saturday July 13, 2024
Stage type: Mountains
Summary: After 70 flattish kilometers to start stage 14, it will be time for the GC favorites to prove themselves. First up is the legendary Col du Tourmalet, 19 km of nonstop ascending that finishes at a not-insignificant elevation of 2,115 meters. The second-category Hourquette d’Ancizan is a bit more forgiving but the hors categorie Saint-Lary-Soulan / Pla d’Adet finish should draw out the yellow jersey hopefuls, especially with a rest day to follow.
Stage 15: Loudenville to Plateau de Beille – 198 km
Date: Sunday July 14, 2024
Stage type: Mountains
Summary: Stage 15 may have some lengthy stretches of flat in parts, but the climbs that punctuate the stage are not to be underestimated. Things start with the first-category Col de Peyresourde right from the flag drop and the next two climbs are very steep, which could make for a very long day for anyone dropped early. The Plateau de Beille finish will again see GC action.
Stage 16: Gruissan to Nîmes – 188.6 km
Date: Tuesday July 16, 2024
Stage type: Flat
Summary: Stage 16 finishes in Nîmes, which means that it could be pretty hot, and you will hear puns likening the riders to gladiators in homage to the Roman arena in town. This particular clash will favor the sprinters.
Stage 17: Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux to Superdévoluy – 177.8 km
Date: Wednesday July 17, 2024
Stage type: Mountain
Summary: The breakaway specialists will be all over this stage, where the peloton will probably let them get a big gap early and then might not show much interest in setting a high tempo on the medium-difficulty ascents at the end of the day. That said, it will be someone who can climb that takes the win with the one-two-three punch of the Col Bayard, the Col du Noye, and the Superdévoluy climbs to finish things off.
Stage 18: Gap to Barcelonnette – 179.5 km
Date: Thursday July 18, 2024
Stage type: Hilly
Summary: Any of the breakaway specialists who missed out on stage 17 will be happy to see that the stage 18 profile again favors their skillset. It’s a stage that is geared a bit more to the Ardennes Classics types and without any huge climbs near the finish, it could come down to a reduced sprint too.
Stage 19: Embrun to Isola 2000 – 144.6 km
Date: Friday July 19, 2024
Stage type: Mountains
Summary: Three hard climbs at high altitude will make stage 19 a key battleground for the GC riders. The first two ascents are grinders, and then it’s a 7.1 percent average gradient to the Isola 2000 ski station at the finish. The gaps will be substantial on this stage.
Stage 20: Nice to Col de la Couillole – 132.8 km
Date: Saturday July 20, 2024
Stage type: Mountains
Summary: With four solid climbs spread across just 132.8 km of racing, stage 20 should be an entertaining finale for the climbers – and the descenders too. There is not a whole lot of flat on the profile, and the break – which could form on the slopes of the Col de Braus and thus be full of climbers – has a great chance of going the distance.
Stage 21: Monaco to Nice – 33.7 km (ITT)
Date: Sunday July 21, 2024
Stage type: Individual time trial
Summary: Ah, the sprint finish on the Champs-Èlys— wait a minute, that’s not Paris! Just in case you haven’t already heard, thanks to final preparations for the Olympics, the 2024 Tour de France ends not with the classic sprint stage on the Champs, but instead with a time trial on the Mediterranean coast in Nice. It’s a hilly one too, with two tough climbs in the first half of the stage that will make pacing tricky. In all likelihood, the GC standings will be pretty decided by this point, but just in case it’s close, this will be a thrilling TT battle where the GC favorites will also be the stage favorites.
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