What catches the eye, looking at the route of the 110th Tour de France, which will start tomorrow from Bilbao, is the design of the race. In fact, excluding the final apotheosis in Paris on the Elysian Fields on Sunday 23 July, at the end of the 3,404 kilometers envisaged, the journey has the appearance of a butterfly, crossing France from east to west with the exclusion of both the north and the Midì . Rather than the Grande Boucleperhaps it would be better to define this edition the Papillonsin homage to the tie made famous in Italy by the great political reporter of the first republic, Vittorio Orefice.
The first two stages in the Basque country will immediately move the classification, fueling the hopes of wearing the yellow jersey of the classic specialists. In particular, the arrival of the second in San Sebastian will be nothing more than a taste of the main Spanish race scheduled for July 29, the Saturday following the conclusion of the Tour. On the third day the race will return to France with an arrival for sprinters in Bayonne which will be followed by a similar epilogue in Nogarò. At this point, much earlier than usual, there will be the two Pyrenean stages, demanding but objectively less tough than usual with the Tourmalet placed almost 50 kilometers from the finish line. Luis Ocana will be commemorated, on the fiftieth anniversary of his yellow triumph, with the departure from Mont de Marsan, home of choice of the Franco-Spanish champion, in a stage that will presumably end in Bordeaux in the sprint. Instead, the finale in Limoges 24 hours later should be crackling in which Mathieu van der Poel will try to honor the memory of his maternal grandfather, Raymond Poulidor, by winning in his homeland. Sunday 9 July, after 35 years, the Tour will find an iconic finish line. The riders will cycle 184 kilometers from Saint Leonard de Noblat to reach the top of the Puy de Dome, the iconic peak of the Massif Central. In the lands that were the scene of the battles between Julius Caesar and Vercingetorix, we will begin to have an initial idea of the names of the contenders for final success.
After the first rest, it will resume on Tuesday 11 July from the Vulcania amusement park towards Issoire for a potentially difficult section amidst the continuous ups and downs of the Auvergne. The following day, moving from Clermont Ferrand, we will head north towards Moulins, a destination destined for fast wheels. Thursday 13 July, as an appetizer to the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille, we will ride west on the road that will take the riders from Roanne to Belleville-en-Beaujolais. France’s national day will be celebrated appropriately with the third uphill finish at the 1,500m La Grande Colombiere in the Jura Massif. This will be followed by the arrival in Morzine of Les Portes du Soleil at the end of a slightly softer day which will be the prelude to the first of the two alpine stages. On Sunday 16th July we will start from Les Gets Les Portes du Soleil to arrive, after 179 kilometers and 4,000 meters in altitude, in Saint-Gervais at the foot of Mont Blanc.
The day after the second rest, the sixteenth stage will take place, the only time trial of this edition. It will be 22 kilometers of light ups and downs from Passy a Combloux which will not produce significant detachments. The second Alpine stage will take place on Wednesday 19 July with the very tough Col de la Loze, Souvenir Henri Desgrange this year at an altitude of 2,304, just 6,500 meters from the finish line in Courchevel. At this point, the race will head north with two fractions that shouldn’t affect the standings. The arrival in Bourg en Bresse will reward those who have the energy left to try their luck while, the following day in Poligny, the sprinters remaining in the race will play for the success of the day. On Saturday 22 July, the Alsatian stage in the Vosges will formalize the name of the winner of the 2023 Tour de France. There will be only 133 kilometers, but of continuous ups and downs, which will take the yellow caravan from Belfort to the finish line at Le Markstein Fellering. There will be no Planche des Belles Filles but, before the five climbs of the day, the Ballon d’Alsace will return, where, in 1969, Eddy Merckx conquered his first Tour victory. Then, everyone by train to Paris and the apotheosis at sunset in the shadow of the Arc de Triomphe.
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