Preview - Tour de France 2022 stage 8

Stage eight of the Tour de France will see the riders once again change countries, as the peloton will be heading into Switzerland for another finale away from French territory. This 186-kilometer stage will be an interesting day, suited to a breakaway but having a finale that will please the puncheurs, and even some climbers who can nowadays be as explosive.

There will be 2500 meters of climbing, however the winning effort will with no doubt be the final ascent. Throughout the day the peloton will traverse three categorized climbs, and the intermediate sprint before them all will also ensure some action.

The day will end in the lake-side city of Lausanne, by the Olympic stadium. It will be an explosive finale, where several types of riders can thrive. The final climb is 4.8 kilometers in total with 4.6% average gradient, however that only tells half the story.

The climb is split into two sections, as the first two kilometers will average just above 5% and will be used to shed those who can’t climb with the best. There will be a whole kilometer with slight downhill gradients where the riders can rest a bit, but surely with a furious pace into the toughest ramps. The final 1.8 kilometers see 12% maximum gradient in the streets of Lausanne, before ramping back down to a false-flat drag that will take the riders into the line. A tricky finale to manage.

**** Wout van Aert

*** Tadej Pogacar, Dylan Teuns

** Michael Matthews, David Gaudu, Tom Pidcock

* Jonas Vingegaard, Primoz Roglic, Aleksandr Vlasov, Daniel Martínez