A tricky time trial with some fast moments and some surprisingly steep sections making harder than a classic mountain time trial. How much will Chris Froome extend his lead by today?
Month: July 2016
Tour de France Stage 17 Preview
The racing resumes as the Tour de France and a summit finish awaits. This time there’s no bad weather to cut the stage short and the barriers are in place.
Tour de France Rest Day Review
A deserved rest day and as the riders soft-pedal around Bern and the surrounding cantons in the sunshine they can see the Alps on the horizon.
Tour de France Stage 16 Review
With no stage preview tomorrow, a quick review of Stage 16 and a chance to examine a few other matters in and around the Tour de France today from Oleg Tinkov to prize money to the quality of hotels this year.
Reading L’Equipe
If you’re able to catch the Tour de France live on TV most days, chances are this is only part of your experience of the race during July. There’s lots more to read about and listen to and French sports newspaper L’Equipe is required reading for many on the race.
Tour de France Stage 16 Preview
Sprint or breakaway? Today’s stage is accessible to the sprinters but it’ll depend on their teams and their ambitions and whether they can wrestle with the many breakaway hopefuls who’ll want to pick off the stage, the last non-Alpine opportunity before Paris. Many others will fancy their chances in a breakaway. A spicy finish in the Swiss capital awaits with climbs and cobbles before the finish line.
Tour de France Stage 15 Preview
Up and down all day and it’s live on TV from start to finish. This is a promising stage given the hilly terrain suits a breakaway and the difficulty of the Grand Colombier, climbed twice in the finish.
Tour de France Stage 14 Preview
A likely sprint finish but an uncertain outcome. Mark Cavendish has proved the best sprinter so far yet each of his wins has been a surprise rather than an inevitability. With time and flat roads running out this is a high pressure stage for the likes of Katusha, Lotto-Soudal, Lotto-Jumbo and Direct Energie who all want and need a stage win.
Tour de France Stage 13 Preview
After the summit finish and the chaos here’s the simple inevitability of a time trial and the promise of an indisputable outcome.
The Running Man
Have you ever seen anything like it? Chris Froome is seen running up Mont Ventoux in his yellow jersey. It was an extraordinary image, the race leader bereft of his bike as he ran past the cheering crowds.
Here’s a look at what happened and an attempt to make sense of it all.