The 105th edition of the Tour de France was officially presented today. The Tour of 2018 takes place from Saturday 7 July until Sunday 29 July. For the sixth time ever La Grande Boucle starts in the Vendée, in the west of France. After 3,329 kilometres the race will come to an end on the Champs-Élysées in Paris.
The first week the sprinters get several opportunities, but there are also stages for punchers and Classics riders. On day three a team time trial of 35 kilometres is scheduled. The sixth stage there’s a double ascent of the Mûr de Bretagne and on Sunday, just before the first rest day, there’s a cobble stage to Roubaix. Then the Tour heads towards the Alps. The eleventh stage, only 108 kilometres long, there’s a first summit finish. The next day the stage finishes on Alpe d’Huez, after 175 kilometres with 5000 altitude metres. Then the route leads the riders to the Pyrenees. The seventeenth stage is a special one, a mountain stage of only 65 kilometres! The last Saturday an individual time trial of 31 kilometres is scheduled. There are gradients up to 21%, so it isn’t a course for the pure specialists. On Sunday 29 July it’s the traditional last stage to Paris.
Marc Sergeant, sports manager Lotto Soudal: “Like every year there are some peculiar things. The first nine days the race often takes the riders along the coast, which means there’s a chance of wind and echelons. That will cause nervousness in the teams of the GC riders as they will want to protect their leader and in the sprint teams as they will want to grab every sprint opportunity. In the first part of the Tour there are five stages that could end with a sprint, including three in the first four days. The stages to Chartres and Amiens, on day seven and eight, are sprint chances too. The stage to Roubaix is one for the cobblestone specialists, with fifteen cobbled sectors. That’s a day to look forward to for us as a Belgian team, just like the echelon stages. Bring it on.”
“After the second rest day, the climbing begins. We don’t have a GC rider, but we do have riders who can do well on a tough course and who have a chance of winning a stage when they are part of a breakaway. Just think of Tiesj Benoot and Thomas De Gendt. There are also three more sprint stages, including Paris.”
“It’s again a varied course with a lot of short stages. It’s a huge improvement that the number of stages above two hundred kilometres has been reduced; that’s less demanding for riders and staff.”
André Greipel: “It’s always a great moment when the course of the next Tour de France is revealed. I have taken a first look at the route. The start in the Vendée is nice. Most sprint opportunities are in the first part of the Tour. No doubt, the first week will be nervous, as usual. On top of that there is chance of echelons being formed, which means everyone will want to be at the front. The cobble stage to Roubaix is special. I am looking forward to it, but it’s a stage that suits a lot of others too. I see several opportunities and I am looking forward to riding the Tour with a strong Lotto Soudal team. I will, like always, do everything to be in top shape and will aim for my twelfth stage win.”
