Tour de France 2023: a very mountainous 3,404 kilometer route which will visit the five massifs

The 110th edition of the Tour de France, which leaves Saturday from Bilbao, will pass through the five massifs of France during 21 stages, for a total distance of 3,404 kilometers. This will be the 25th departure from abroad of the Grande Boucle, which will then visit six regions and 23 departments of France. It will cross in order the Pyrenees, the Massif Central, with in particular the unprecedented ascent for 35 years of the Puy de Dôme, the Jura, the Alps – where the Col de la Loze (2,304 m) will be the roof of this edition – and the Vosges.

Of the 21 stages, there will be eight flat stages, four hilly stages, eight mountain stages with four altitude finishes (Cauterets-Cambasque, Puy de Dôme, Grand Colombier and Saint-Gervais Mont-Blanc) and one against the -individual watch. Two days of rest are added. The first stage in Bilbao on Saturday already appears to be a goal for Julian Alaphilippe. “The course suits me well and I worked hard to get in shape from the start of the Tour”, indicates the one who has already worn the yellow jersey 18 times but who missed the previous edition due to injury.

“The Tour is so tricky”

For Richard Virenque, former tricolor runner and Europe 1 consultant for the Tour de France, beyond the physical aspect, the runners will sometimes have to count on a little help from fate. “The Tour is so tricky. You have to be very, very vigilant from the first stage and also have the luck factor. Because you may have the legs, if you don’t have luck with you, it can be complicated” , he analyzes.

Last year, only Christophe Laporte had won a stage victory in the French delegation. It was in Cahors two days from the end. Since 2000, a Grande Boucle has never ended without at least one tricolor rider crossing the finish line first.