Cycling: Tomorrow the fans of the KulTour de France will get their money's worth. On the way from Millau to Carcassonne, viewers are presented with wonderful images of landscapes and buildings. In our Tour de France preview, however, we want to focus primarily on the sporty side of the 15th stage. Will the breakaways take their chance, or will a favorite from the peloton prevail?
Beautiful pictures from start to finish
The Tour de France moves tomorrow with pleasant temperatures over 181,5 kilometers from Millau to Carcassonne. Above all, the cultivated viewers get their money's worth. Impressive pictures will result right at the start when the peloton under the Millau Viaduct the race begins. The bridge is up to 350 meters high, making it one of the largest in the world. Also the nearby ones Gorges of the Tarn will certainly be captured by the camera helicopters. Then the highlight at the finish: In Carcassonne, the stage winner is chosen, while in the background the City of Carcassonne you can see. The medieval castle is located on the right bank of the Aude and is a World Heritage Site. Despite the wonderful landscapes and buildings, the drivers will hardly have time for interested looks. On the way south, 41,5 kilometers before the destination, the pic de nore, which has never been ridden in a Tour de France.
Tour de France preview: The mountain classifications of the 15th stage
- 172,5km to go: Cote de Luzencon (3rd category / 3,1 km at 5,9%)
- 117,0km to go: Col de Sie (2rd category / 10,2 km at 4,9%)
- 41,5km to go: Peak of Nore (1rd category / 12,3 km at 6,3%)
The breakaways use the favorite hide-and-seek game
Carcassonne is a well-known placement game. Tomorrow, however, the favorites will probably serve us a game of hide-and-seek. With the Pic de Nore, the biggest obstacle of the stage has to be overcome. Since the climb ends 41,5 kilometers from the finish and is only 6,3 percent steep on average, we will probably not see any time gaps between the favorites. The ascent is far too easy, the way to the finish is far too long. Instead, the runaways can enjoy one of their days. Since hardly any team will consistently do the tracking work, a larger group should decide the stage win among themselves. The stage winner is not only required to have climbing qualities, but also downhill skills. Of course, the world-class puncheurs will have to do it again tomorrow Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) and Julian Alaphilippe (Quick-Step Floors) must be observed.
Velomotion prognosis: This time Mikel Nieve can no longer be caught
In our Tour de France preview, however, we are betting on an outsider: Mikel Nieve (Mitchelton-Scott) almost won the eleventh stage, but should have recovered a bit by today. In the Mitchelton-Scott team, due to the weakness of Adam Yates now go full stage hunting. Therefore, the Spaniard is a top candidate for a breakaway for tomorrow. The teams Astana, Lotto Soudal and the wildcard teams should also be considered. The class riders who have failed so far could also sense their chance of a day's victory tomorrow. Rafal Mayka (Bora-hansgrohe), Ilnur Zakarin (Katusha-Alpecin), Build Mollema (Trek Segafredo) and Bob jungels (Quick-Step Floors) might even let the Sky team go. In the fight for the mountain jersey, you also have to Serge Pauwels (Dimension Data) and Warren Barguil (Fortuneo-Samsic) show.
*** Mikel Nieve
** Alejandro Valverde, Julian Alaphilippe
* Tanel Kangert, Tomasz Marczynski, Serge Pauwels
