After almost a week without major mountain difficulties, the Tour reaches the Jura massif with the third summit finish of this edition. It is time to see the duel between those who want to win the yellow in Paris, in a long port, 17 kilometers long, with an average slope of 7%.
The climb to the Grand Colombier is a slide, which alternates hard with landings. After two hard km at 10% there are another two of recovery almost on false flat. Something that happens again later because after two km at 9 and 10% another comfortable zone will come. The slope gets steeper again on the final ramp.
The Grand Colombier is a relatively recent top on the Tour. It has only been uploaded once, in 2020, and it won… Tadej Pogacar. It was the Slovenian’s second victory in the French round, although there were few differences that day. Yes, it ended Egan Bernal’s aspirations to repeat. It has also been used in the Tour del Porvenir. The last time two years ago when Tobias Johanessen won to take the lead. Carlos Rodríguez that day was placed second.
The stage coincides with France’s national day, so local cyclists will be extra motivated. It will surely be flown because in addition to having a single port, the peloton will have to travel less than 140 km, the third shortest stage in 2023.
