Jasper Philipsen shares his view on planned Tour's final stage: "It's a shame to change such a magnificent tradition"

The 2024 Tour de France was forced to replace it's traditional Champs-Élysées finish with a time trial in Nice due to Olympic Games. But if you thought that the traditional celebration ride for winners will be held this year in its usual form - you'd be wrong. Instead, the Montmartre climb featured during the Olympics will be done three times. For sprinters like Jasper Philipsen, it's a threat to their chances.

"As a sprinter, it's clearly a shame to see this stage change, it had become a magnificent tradition," Philipsen shares his opinion on the altered route in a conversation with L'Equipe. "Personally, I don't see a clear reason to change it, but I have confidence in the fact that ASO has valid and considered motivations."

However, the Alpecin-Deceuninck sprinter does not rule out the possibility of playing for victory despite the complexity of the route: "With this new route, the stage will become significantly more demanding for the sprinters, simply because there will be more riders capable of winning it."

Does that mean we can write off Philipsen for the victory on Champs-Élysées? Not at all. The Belgian counters: "That does not mean that a sprinter can no longer win it." Especially the normally quite versatile Philipsen could actually see his odds improve thanks to the challenging, yet not too long climb.

The main danger he sees would be if there would be any gain possible for the GC riders who could spark the race. "An important factor before this last stage will be the classification and the time gaps between the protagonists of the general classification. If everything remains close, the stress level in the peloton will clearly increase, especially as we approach Montmartre."

"None of the overall contenders will want to lose even a second, as the stage offers a final opportunity to move up the top 10 and gain valuable seconds. In previous years, the GC teams could just enjoy a more relaxed day, but now they'll have to stay completely focused until the end. Once again, this will change the overall tension in the peloton."