Away from the Vuelta today is November 1st so the start of next season. ("Everything feels possible on November 1" - David Millar) Things got off to an inauspicous start with the predictable announcement of the cancellation of the Town Down Under and Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, so that's the entire Australian swing gone given that the Herald Sun Tour was binned weeks ago. That'll now put the World Tour starting at the UAE Tour, be interesting to see what happens there after the race's Covid incident this year.
The Tour de France route has been announced. They've made sensible Covid precautions on that, the entire thing is in France apart from a visit to Andorra and there's only one transfer of significance, the final day to Paris. The Copenhagen start has been postponed until 2022 and they're starting in Brittany, with a lumpy finish to stage 1 and a double ascent of Mur de Bretagne the following day. There's a whopping 248k stage in the first week. Alps include another attempt to reach Tignes after weather intervened in 2019, and stage 11 includes tackling the Ventoux twice via different routes for a finish in the valley. Lots of Pyrenees, including Luz Ardiden for the first time in a good while. Probably about seven sprint days.
The Tour de France route has been announced. They've made sensible Covid precautions on that, the entire thing is in France apart from a visit to Andorra and there's only one transfer of significance, the final day to Paris. The Copenhagen start has been postponed until 2022 and they're starting in Brittany, with a lumpy finish to stage 1 and a double ascent of Mur de Bretagne the following day. There's a whopping 248k stage in the first week. Alps include another attempt to reach Tignes after weather intervened in 2019, and stage 11 includes tackling the Ventoux twice via different routes for a finish in the valley. Lots of Pyrenees, including Luz Ardiden for the first time in a good while. Probably about seven sprint days.
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