le Tour de France, 2021

26th June - 18th July, 2021

starting to shed covid
and plenty of mountains

what to look foward to

With the 2020 Olympics in Japan rescheduled due to Covid-19, this year's Tour de France dates have also been advanced, from July to 26 June to 18 July 2021, to avoid having to reschedule the already rescheduled Tokyo Olympic Games.

Originally planned to start in the Danish capital of Copenhagen, this year's Tour de France instead starts in Brittany with the first two stages ending with sharp climbs. The next three weeks will stay almost completely in France in order minimise nternational travel complications. The only exception will be stages 15 and 16 which enter and leave Andorra, with a rest day in this high altitude principality in between. As usual, there will be the Paris finish on the Champs d'Elysées.

The 2024 Olympics are being held in France, so the proximity of the Olympics road race (25 July, 2024), as well as the very mountainous world championship scheduled in Martigny will inevitably influence the preparation programmes and the motivation of the Tour's favourites.

(The 2022 TDF will start in Denmark.)

Brittany in yellow!

This year, and for the first time,  the Tour de France and its main partner LCL promote the Yellow Jersey through a contest between the eight stage-cities of 2021 Grand Départ Bretagne. The competition started on 29th May and continues throughout June. From Brest to Fougères, passing by Landerneau, Perros-Guirec, Mûr-de-Bretagne Guerlédan, Lorient, Pontivy and Redon, each city aims to decorate itself in yellow! A bike park will be offer to the winner city by LCL

climbing here we come

Travelling clockwise, this year's Tour again skips the north of France, with its less wealthy rural regions. The Tour first visits the Armorican 'mountains' in Brittany. Stage 1 features Landerneau's finish on the 3 km, 5.7% Cote de la Fosse aux Loups.  Stage 2 which finishes at the summit of the 2 km, 6.9% Mur-de-Bretagne. On Stage 7, the longest stage since 2000, the race covers 249 km over the lumpy Morvan 'mountains' in the Central Massif. A short passage in the Alps follows on Stages 8 and 9.

The double-ascent of Mont Ventoux is on Stage 11, with exposed sections and its famous brutal winds towards the top will make for a hard challenge.

Andorra provides the next test with a passage of the 2,408m high Port d’Envalira on stage 15.

The Pyrenees offer hard climbing with Stage 17 going up the Col du Portet (16 km at 8.7%)  and then several stretches of over 10%, while Stage 18 tackles the Col du Tourmalet before a summit finish to Luz Ardiden.

Mountain ranges:

Armorican 'mountains' (stages 1, 2)
Morvan (stage 7)
Alps (stages 8, 9)
Andorra (stage 15)
Pyrenees (stages 17, 18).
with 3 summit finishes

 

First-time climb:

le Signal d’Uchon in the Morvan

feeling the pinch still more

The 2019 Tour de France [TDF] was held almost entirely in the eastern half of France, except for the required excursion into the Pyrenees and the final day trip to Paris, and the 2020 TDF was even more graphic and extreme in its avoidance of regions that cannot afford stage hosting bills. This year, the 2021 TDF is just as lean.

2021 tour de france route

The race will cover 3,417.5 km, with:

• 8 flat stages (stages 3, 5, 7, 10, 11, 14, 19, 21)
• 5 hilly stages (stages 1, 2, 7, 14, 16)
• 6 high mountain stages (stages 8, 9, 11, 15, 17, 18)
• 3 summit finishes
  Tignes (9),
  Saint-Lary-Soulan col du Portet (17),
  Luz Ardiden (18)
• 2 individual time trial stages (stages 5, 20)
• 0 team time trial stage
• 2 rest days

  There will be 10 towns or sites not visited before by the Tour de France:
  

• Landerneau (finish stage 1)
• Pontivy (finish stage 3)
• Changé (start stage 5)
• Vierzon (start stage 7)
• Sorgues (start stage 11)
• Malaucène (finish stage 11)
• Quillan (finish stage 14)
• Céret (start stage 15)
• Pas de la Case (start stage 16)
• Chatou (start stage 21)

the stages for 2021

[Note: blue links go to profile section on this page,
            yellow links go to associated pages at abelard.org]

There will be 21 stages. These include 6 mountain stages, 5 hilly stages and 2 against-the-clock 2 [contre-le-montre] time trials. There are 2 rest days. All other days are 'on the plain' - relatively flat days. The race's distance is be 3,417.5  kilometres or 2,123.5 miles.

bonus seconds and bonus points

bonus seconds

They will distributed at the finish of each normal stage allowing the first three riders to gain 10, 6 and 4 seconds.

bonus points

Given at the summits of six significant climbs - 8, 5 and 2 seconds (under the approval of the Union cycliste internationale).

• Stage 2: Mûr-de-Bretagne, first passage
• Stage 7: Signal d’Uchon
• Stage 8: Col de la Colombière
• Stage 11: Mont Ventoux, second passage
• Stage 14: Col de Saint-Louis
• Stage 15: Col de Beixalis

this year’s t-shirts

Again, this year's TDF t-shirts are standard and without imagination, and the prices are still daftly steep. For those with a certain morbid curiosity. this is the TDF online boutique.

the teams for 2021

team jerseys/colours

2021 TDF team jerseys

this year’s top ten riders according to betting odds

last year (2020): the first ten riders

mountain stages, uphill and summit finishes

Mont Ventoux remembering when Chris Froome ran up the mountain after a crash with a motor bike
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39oWOONz_0E
1m37s

• 5 medium mountain stages (stages 5, 6, 9, 15, 17)
• 5 high mountain stages (stages 12, 14, 18, 19, 20)

Stage 1, 26th June - Brest to Landerneau

The punchy short climb to finish stage 1 on the Côte de la Fosse aux Loups.

Stage 1 - Brest to Landerneau

Stage 2, 27th June - Saint-Étienne to Brioud

Two climbs of the famed local climb, the Mûr-de-Bretagne. This climb has a long Tour de France history.

Stage 2 - the Mûr-de-Bretagne

Stage 7, Fri. 2 July -Vierzon to Le Creusot

258 km long, the longest stage in two decades. 3,000m of vertical elevation. The Tour climbs the second category Signal d’Uchon for the first time this year.The climb is a 5.7 km test at 5.7% that averages 13.1% for the final kilometre.

Stage 12 profile

The Signal d'Uchon, Stage 7

Stage 8, Sat. 3 July - Oyonnax to Le Grand-Bornand

 This stage has three category 1 climbs: Cote de Mont-Saxonnex, Col de Romme, and Col de la Colombiere. This last climb offers a tasty final climb at 7.5km at 8.5%.

Stage 8 profile Oyonnax to Le Grand-Bornand

Stage 9, Sun. 4th July - Cluses to Tignes

Tignes returns after the snow storms and landslides of 2019 wrecked its stage finale highlight.

Stage 9 profile - Cluses to Tignes

Stage 11, Wed. 7 July - Sorgues to Malaucène

This stage sees two hors categorie ascents of Mont Ventoux by two different routes. First is the 'easy' way from Sault: 24.3km at 5%. Then comes the 'classic' Bédoin climb: 15.7km at 8.8%.

Stage 11 profile - Sorgues to Malaucène

Stage 15, Sun. 11 July - Céret to Andorra: Andorre-la-Vieille

After crossing the border from France to Andorra, this stage presents the highest col of the entire TDF, the Port d’Envalira's Souvenir Henri Desgrangenwith its summit reaching 2,408 m.

Stage 15 profile, Céret to Andorra: Andorre-la-Vieille

Stage 17, Wed. 14 July - Muret to Saint-Lary-Soulan Col du Portet

A tough day of successively higher peaks - the Col du Peyresourde, the Col de Val Louron-Azet, then finishing on the 2,215 m Col du Portet.

Stage 17 profile - Muret to Saint-Lary-Soulan Col du Portet

Stage 18, Thurs. 15 July - Pau to Luz Ardiden

The hors categorie Tourmalet with its 17.1 km at 7.4% is the prelude to the second hors categorie climb of the day ending at Luz Ardiden. Its 13.3 km at 7.4% are the final mountain miles of the Tour.

Stage 18 profile - Pau to Luz Ardiden

watch tdf broadcasts

We will provide this information when it is available, closer to the race start.

email email_abelard [at] abelard.org

© abelard, 2021 17 june


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