The Col du Tourmalet is a Tour de France staple with 57 inclusions since 1947, yet the race included only two summit finishes before. Jean-Pierre Danguillaume won the Tourmalet stage in 1974 and in 2010 Andy Schleck crossed the line in first position with yellow jersey Alberto Contador following his wheel.
The 2019 Tour de France ascends the giant in the Pyrenees from Luz-Saint-Sauveur. This climb amounts to 19 kilometres with an average gradient of 7.4%, while its last kilometre slopes at 10.5%. This section also features the steepest ramp of 13.5%.
The 14th stage sets off in Tarbes, which was last included in the 2014 Tour de France, also as a departure place. The race went to La Pierre Saint-Martin. It was the first high mountain stage of that edition and Chris Froome soloed to victory with a clear 1 minute margin over his rivals.
In 2019, the route includes some minor hurdles in the first 50 kilometres before the Col du Soulor is tackled on the Ferrières side. The climb is 11.9 kilometers and the average slope sits at 7.8%, while the maximum grade is 9%.
The Soulor is crested just after the halfway point. The route descends to Argelès-Gazost and then runs false flat to Luz-Saint-Sauveur, where the final haul up the Tourmalet kicks in.
Time bonuses of 10, 6 and 4 seconds are awarded to the first three riders on the line.
Another interesting read: results/race report 14th stage 2019 Tour de France.
Tour de France 2019 stage 14: route, profiles, more
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