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This year's tour winner Tadej Pogačar at the Arc de Triomphe
Photo: Pete Goding / dpa
A cobblestone stage, the legend of Alpe d'Huez and two difficult mountain arrivals in the Pyrenees are the highlights of the 109th Tour de France.
Director Christian Prudhomme presented the 21 stages in the Palais des Congrès in Paris.
The tour starts on July 1st in Copenhagen and ends after trips to Belgium and Switzerland on July 24th, traditionally on the Parisian Champs-Élysées.
With the start in Denmark, there are three instead of two days of rest for the professional cyclists.
»Copenhagen and Denmark are a new frontier for the tour.
It will be the northernmost Grand Départ in history, «said Prudhomme at the presentation, which was once again held as a face-to-face event.
In addition to tour winner Tadej Pogačar from Slovenia, the guests included the British sprint star Mark Cavendish and the French world champion Julian Alaphilippe.
On the fifth stage, the drivers in northern France have to tackle almost 20 kilometers of cobblestones.
On the French national holiday, July 14th, the mountain arrival in Alpe d'Huez is due for the first time since 2018.
The decision will be made in the Pyrenees on the stages to Peyragudes and Hautacam as well as in a 40-kilometer individual time trial on the penultimate day.
The Tour de France Femmes route was also presented.
The women's race is experiencing its renaissance from July 24th to 31st and leads over eight stages and 1029 kilometers from Paris to the mountain final in La Planche des Belles Filles.
Marion Rousse is the race director.
bka / dpa