PREVIEW | Tour de France 2024 stage 18

The 2024 Tour de France is set to be a unique event, commencing with its Grand Depart in Florence and Emilia-Romagna, just across the border in Italy. Breaking tradition, the race will conclude for the first time in many years away from Paris, with the riders making their way to Nice for the grand finale. Spanning from June 29th to July 21st, let's preview the upcoming stage.

An interesting hilly day in the Alps, starting in Gap and finishing in Barcelonnette. The race organizers avoided adding any major climb to the day, but instead some small ascents. This is a day where a breakaway victory is almost certain, but some of the sprinters can climb and certainly a few teams may want to try and control the race for a final shot at a sprint victory.

All in all a very unusual day for a final week of the Tour, but that is a complement. It's a relatively novelty, a day fully in the Alps but showcasing some smaller climbs and purposefully avoiding high mountains so that it's a stage open for dozens of riders to be able to fight for a victory. And how the stage will be decided is a complete unknown.

The riders face a small hilltop right from the start of the stage which may see the breakaway formed right there. If not, the 14-kilometer climb that follows (only 4 kilometers are officially categorized, for some reason) should do the trick. Strong climbers, but also classics riders and rouleurs can move off the front here, as the gradients are never very steep.

Throughout the day then are a few non-steep, moderately hard ascents where attacks can come:

122.5Km to go - 2.2Km; 6.5%

106Km to go - 2.6Km; 6.1%

83Km to go - 5.2Km; 3.7%

59Km to go - 7.1Km; 5.6%

41Km to go - 3.5Km; 5.3%

24.5Km to go - 2.7Km; 4.5%

Note that this is the Tour de France, with brilliant climbers everywhere - both in and out of the GC battle. Destroying a group on climbs like this will not happen, but small groups can move off the front and then collaborate. But just as likely to succeed are attacks inbetween the ascents, with riders who can then survive the climbs. Anything can happen really, and different kinds of riders will play to their own strengths.

It is unlikely, but possible that in the peloton a couple teams try to control things and bring it back to a sprint, as the terrain is not brutal and if the breakaway is not too strong, it can be controlled. The final 28 kilometers are on a slight ride but the final kilometers are flat into Barecelonnette. The sprint, if it happens, is also flat.

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Prediction Tour de France 2024 stage 18:

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