THE ROUTE
Built by the Romans nearly 2 000
years ago, the Pont du Gard will
feature on both Stages 16 and 17.
PONT DU GARD
ACROSS HISTORY...
The iconic Pont du Gard takes centre stage as the peloton moves to Provence for
a loop around Nîmes that includes a historic ride across the ancient aqueduct,
and then heads east along the Rhône Valley en route to the Alps. BY JEAN-PAUL VESPINI
uilt around 50AD,
the beautiful
Pont du Gard
still stands
as a monument to the
engineering brilliance of
the ancient Romans. The
imposing structure served
as the main component of
a 50km canal that carried
water from a spring at Uzès,
across the Gardon valley,
to the Roman colony of
Nemausus (Nîmes). The
highest aqueduct built by
the Romans, it’s also one of
the best preserved. Now a
UNESCO World Heritage
Site, it comprises three
tiers of arched bridges,
B
built using 30 million shelly
limestone blocks.
Historic crossing
On stage 16, the Tour de
France peloton will traverse
the Pont du Gard for the
first time on a 177km
route that loops around
the department of Gard,
with a start and finish in
the ancient city of Nîmes.
They’ll speed across the
road bridge – added to
the first level of the Roman
monument in the 18th
century but now closed to
all traffic – in what should
prove a spectacular sight.
The flat out-and-back stage
will favour the sprinters, so
expect the breakaway to be
reeled in by then as the fast
men get ready to charge
for the finish and add their
names alongside those
of André Darrigade, Mark
Cavendish and Alexander
Kristoff, all winners in Nîmes.
Tour of history
The heritage theme
continues the following
day, when the Pont du Gard
serves as the start of a hillier
Stage 17 that takes the
peloton towards the Alps.
The route follows the Rhône
Valley, passing Orange
and Vaison-la-Romaine –
two more sites of historical
importance. Orange’s Roman
theatre, built in the 1st century
to accommodate 9 000
spectators, is a highlight, as are
the ruins at Vaison-la-Romaine
– a must-see on any visit to
Provence. Riders continue via
Provençal Baronies Regional
Natural Park, with its rich fruit
fields and pastoral lands where
the departments of Drôme
and Hautes-Alpes meet, on to
Gap, a common stop on the
Tour. The Col de La Sentinelle
(5.5km at 5.5%) rears up in the
last 10km before the finish,
an ideal springboard for a
breakaway from the likes of
Peter Sagan. ●
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