PREVIEW | La Route d'Occitanie 2023

Preview. From the 15th to the 18th of June one of the final preparation races for the Tour de France takes place. It is within the French's south and Pyrenees that La Route d'Occitanie will be race.

The opening stage takes place from Narbonne from Gruissan, it's an open day which should end in a sprint however it features a final circuit which includes a 1.3-kilometer climb at 5.4%, a hilly section which ends with just some kilometers to go. Stage 2 is quite a tough and tricky day. The second half of the day is mostly flat and much indicates that it could end in a sprint, however the first half is quite difficult and can see a strong group go up the road and gain enough time on the peloton. 11.9Km at 6.5%, 3.9Km at 4.7% and 4.6Km at 8.5% will be the climbs where damage can be done.

Stage 3 is the queen stage of La Route d'Occitanie. It's a tough day with a summit finish where the overall classification should be decided. The riders go up the Col de Menté (10.8Km at 6.4%), however it'll all come down to the finale. The climb to Cap Nestes is 13.2 kilometers long at 7.1% but it features much tougher sections. The opening 8 kilometers average 8.4%, and after a pan-flat section the final 2 kilometers average a whole 9.5%.

The final day in the race once again features quite some climbing and is open, to a sprint, breakaway or even a late attack to succeed. The route from Saint-Gaudens to Saint-Girons is 165 kilometers long, the riders climb up the Col de la Core (14.2Km at 5.9%) and the Col de Latrape (5.9Km at 7.1%). The climbs shouldn't decide the overall classification but do allow for attacks, but the final 37 kilometers are downhill and flat where the race can change quite a lot.

*** Michael Woods, Ruben Guerreiro
** Cristían Rodríguez, Simon Carr
* Domenico Pozzovivo, Luke Plapp, Jesús Herrada, Iván Sosa, Einer Rubio

Pick: Ruben Guerreiro