"In the long run, there may no longer be any stages designed for the sprinters" - Tour de France route designer threatens end of 'boring' sprint stages

For as long as can be remembered, alongside the yearly battles between the Maillot Jaune favourites in the Alps and Pyrenees, the Tour de France parcours is peppered with flat stages for the peloton's sprinters to fight it out. According to the route designer of cycling's most famous race however, there may not be the case for much longer.

Already at the 2025 edition of the Tour de France there has been distinct lack of action on the sprint stages, with no breakaway to speak of on stage 3 won by Tim Merlier from the bunch, and for much of the day on stage 8 where Jonathan Milan powered to the victory in the sprint. Because of this lack of racing in the peloton and the perceived 'boring' nature of the stages, long time Tour de France route designer Thierry Gouvenou is threatening end the tradition of sprint stages if things don't change.

“That sort of thing didn’t used to happen,” Gouvenou reflected sadly of stage 8 in conversation with Eurosport. “In the past, you had teams that were invited to the race; now, nearly all of them are pre-selected. There’s no action in these kinds of stages, and we regret that. It’s disheartening to watch a peloton roll along without a single attack.”

There was a momentary bit of action as two TotalEnergies riders eventually gave the peloton something to chase, with Gouvenou delighted to see the French team showcase themselves at least momentarily. “We have to give credit to the two TotalEnergies riders who tried something yesterday. It was a lost cause, but efforts like that are part of what makes the Tour,” he says. 

Still though, the threat from Gouvenou is real. “I think the sprinters’ teams are shooting themselves in the foot,” he concludes. “This won’t last – in the long run, there may no longer be any stages designed for the sprinters. Is that a threat? (laughs). In the past, we had eight or nine of those flat, predictable stages. Now it’s five or six, and that might become the norm going forward.”