The organizing agency ASO today announced the details of this year's Race to the Sun. The eight-day stage race from Paris to Nice will therefore take place without a prologue and without an individual time trial.
The 72nd edition of Paris-Nice begins on March 9th in western Paris. The first stage to Mantes-la-Jolie will cover 162.5 kilometers. The following day, the riders will tackle 205 kilometers to Saint-Georges-sur-Baulche, before the third stage finishes at the Magny-Cours race track.
It won't be until the fourth day that the riders will set their sights on the overall classification. The first decisive climb awaits them: Mont-Brouilly, which reaches gradients of up to 25 percent in places. The fifth stage leads from Belleville to Rive-de-Gier, from where the remaining riders travel to Avignon. Here begins the sixth stage, which at 221.5 kilometers is also the longest of the tour and finishes in Fayence, just under sixty kilometers from Nice.
The decision in the overall standings will probably only be made in the last two sections. Like last year, the ascent to the Col d'Eze may play into the hands of the overall winner. The total distance of this year's Paris-Nice edition is 1.447 kilometers.
As the ASO also announced, in addition to defending champion Richie Porte (Sky), world champion Rui Costa (Lampre-Merida) and John Degenkolb (Giant-Shimano) will be at the start. With Paris-Nice included on the WorldTour calendar, all 18 WorldTour teams will tackle the race. There are also the Pro Conti outfits Bretagne-Séché Environnement, Cofids and IAM.
//The stages
09.03.2014/1/162,5 – Stage XNUMX: Mantes-La-Jolie – Mantes-La-Jolie, XNUMX km
10.03.2014/2/205,0 – Stage XNUMX: Rambouillet – Saint-Georges-sur-Baulche, XNUMX km
11.03.2014/3/180,0 – Stage XNUMX: Toucy – Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours, XNUMX km
12.03.2014/4/201,5 – Stage XNUMX: Nevers – Belleville-sur-Saône, XNUMX km
13.03.2014/5/152,5 – Stage XNUMX: Crèche-sur-Saône – Rive-de-Gier, XNUMX km
14.03.2014/6/221,5 – Stage XNUMX: Saint-Saturnin Les-Avignon – Fayence, XNUMX km
15.03.2014/7/195,5 – Stage XNUMX: Mougins – Biot, XNUMX km
March 16.03.2014, 8 – Stage 128,0: Nice – Nice, XNUMX km