THE ROUTE
cyclo-cross champion Steve
Chainel, who hails from
Remiremont in the Vosges.
“The Côte des Trois-Épis
is really difficult. A lot of
sprinters won’t be able to
stay with the pace. On the
other hand, it won’t pose any
problem for Peter Sagan or
Julian Alaphilippe. But will
their teams want to take the
race on? We’ll have to see.”
Originally from Seppois-
le-Bas, in the Haut-Rhin,
Hugo Hofstetter would put
money on a group of 30
riders deciding the stage
in a sprint. “We’re at the
beginning of the Tour, so
the riders won’t be feeling
much fatigue yet,” says the
Cofidis sprinter. “But a lone
breakaway rider will also
have a chance, knowing
that there are only 10km of
flat from the final climb to
the finish.”
It’s difficult to get a good
idea who this route might
favour as it suits so many
different categories of rider.
The scenario of a battle
between the yellow jersey
favourites the day before
the Planche des Belles
Filles stage can perhaps
be discarded. But having
said that... “If someone has
already lost time early in
the Tour, they may want to
make a move on this first
day in the Vosges,” suggests
Hofstetter. “And a rider like
Thibaut Pinot might be
tempted to take the yellow
jersey before La Planche des
Belles Filles.”
Riders will pass the Château du
Haut-Koenigsbourg on Stage 5.
A hard climb
Stage 6 will certainly be very
special for the Groupama-
FDJ climber. His home
village of Mélisey, in Haute-
Saône, is only 20km from
the foot of what Steve
Chainel describes as the
“Alpe d’Huez of the East”, on
which the Tour is pitching
camp for the fourth time in
seven years. For Chainel,
Pinot is the favourite: “He is
on home ground, he knows
this climb inside out. He’ll
know exactly where to make
his effort, well aware that
he shouldn’t go from too
far out. I’m sure his second
place in 2014 behind
Vincenzo Nibali left him
feeling frustrated.”
In 2012 (when Chris
Froome won) and 2017
(Fabio Aru) there were no
real difficulties before La
Planche des Belles Filles, but
“THE LAST 200M
AVERAGE MORE
THAN 20%”
Eddy Merckx, followed by Rudi Altig, heads
up the Ballon d’Alsace in 1969, en route to
a stage win and the yellow jersey.
on this occasion the climb
comes at the end of a really
big mountain stage. “It is
perhaps the hardest of this
Tour,” declares Hofstetter.
“The climbs aren’t as
long as those in the Alps
or Pyrenees, but they are
steeper and the gradients
are more irregular. It’s harder
to manage your effort.”
Beginning in Mulhouse,
the stage extends to
160.5km and includes
five climbs for a total of
4 000m of vertical gain.
“The Markstein (10.2km at
5.5%) could quickly produce
a big selection because it
comes after only 20km of
racing. There will be a big
fight to get into the break,”
adds the former French
espoirs road champion.
Before they descend, the
riders will cross the Grand
Ballon (1.3km at 9%), the
highest point on the stage
(1 336m) and in the Vosges.
The Col du Hundsruck
(5.4km at 6.8%) will also
be a reason for concern
due to its descent. “It’s
short but twists a lot,”
warns Hofstetter. “There’s
a cobbled section. It’s quite
dangerous.”
The riders will also be
well aware of how wild the
Vosges can be, especially
if the weather turns bad.
Alberto Contador had bitter
experience of that in 2014,
falling on the Petit Ballon
before abandoning in the
fog on the Platzerwasel with
a cracked tibia. “The Vosges
can just as easily be good
or bad,” Chainel explains.
“There could be a heatwave
or it could be just a few
degrees above zero.”
Epic finale
In the second half of the
stage, the Tour will pay
homage to its first-ever
climb, the Ballon d’Alsace
(11km at 5.8%), first crossed
in 1905 but not used since
2005. From there, riders
will drop towards the finale,
which features the back-to-
back ascents of the Col des
Chevrères (3.5km at 9.6%),
with one kilometre averaging
15%, and the very variable
grades of La Planche des
Belles Filles (6.9km at 8.1%).
The latter will have a new
look as the race will head to
the top of the Haut-Saônoise
ski station (1 140m) for the
first time. This means an
extra kilometre of ascent has
been added.
Nicolas Boisson, a friend
of Pinot’s and a coach on
the Groupama-FDJ reserve
team, went to recce this
additional section, an old
walking trail that’s used as
a ski slope in winter: “The
last 200m average more
than 20%, with sections up
to 28%. I had to finish it on
foot! I thought that a gear
of 39x28 would be enough,
but it won’t be. It will require
39x32 or 36x30 at least.”
It’s an epic conclusion
that should surely produce
the first great battle of the
2019 Tour. ●
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