The route for the 103rd edition of the Tour de France has been announced and Turbine athlete, and defending champion, Chris Froome is confident, saying “It suits me better than this year’s tour”. The forthcoming Tour will start up north in the Manche region of France and will eventually visit Spain, Andorra and Switzerland. The 21 stages will cover 3,519KM and includes:
- 9 flat stages
- 1 hilly stage
- 9 mountain stages including 4 summit finishes (Andorre Arcalis, Mont Ventoux, Finhaut-Emosson et Saint-Gervaix Mont Blanc)
- 2 individual time trial stages
- 2 rest days
Absent from the 2016 Tour will be the team time trial, the prologue time trial and a cobbled stage. While time bonuses will again be used in the 2016 instalment, since been re-introduced in 2015 after a seven year break. Bonuses of 10, 6 and 4 seconds will be given at the end of normal stages to the top three finishers respectively.
Some are speculating that the upcoming tour, featuring 16 unseen sites and stage cities, will favour the climbers and give Froome a run for his money. However, here at Turbine HQ, we’re breathing comfortably, since we know Froome will be too with Turbine and he did make the point that “I’m still 30 years old and feel I have a lot left in my legs.” Here’s a slice of his marginal gains advantage as part of his 2015 winning strategy:
Regarding the 2016 course, Froome said, “It really does test every aspect of the cyclist – there’s time trialling, there’s climbing (some really tough climbing) …and a lot of finishes at the end of some tricky descents.”
If there is one stage that Froome is fired up for, it is Stage 12 up Mont Ventoux on Bastille Day. “The beautiful thing about the Tour de France is that it’s not specifically about one stage – I think it’s going to take a complete cyclist – but the stage that certainly stands out for me is Mont Ventoux.” And here is why:
I won the stage in yellow on Bastille Day in 2013 & 2015… Good omen I hope! 👍☺️
— Chris Froome (@chrisfroome) October 20, 2015
Lastly, Game of Thrones fans will be pleased with the official Tour promo too. The 3D course video takes a lot of inspiration from the popular series intro.
Le parcours 2016 en 3D / The 2016 route in 3D by tourdefrance
Photos and map credits: www.letour.com
