Tour de France: What to know about this year’s showcase cycling race

PARIS (AP) – Tadej Pogačar will look to add to his place in cycling history with a fourth Tour de France title. The 26-year-old Slovenian rider last year became the first cyclist to secure the Giro d’Italia and Tour double in the same season since the late Marco Pantani in 1998. His main rival will be Jonas Vingegaard, the Dane who has won the Tour de France and wants to challenge for the victory again after coming up short last year.

Here’s a look at what you need to know about the race:

Tour riders take to their saddles on July 5 and pedal off in the northern French city of Lille for the first of 21 stages and 3,339 kilometers (2,070 miles) of intense riding.

The final stage is on July 27 and sees a break from the traditional parade-like finish as riders tackle narrow cobbled streets as they climb Montmartre Hill three times. It adds suspense to what is usually a low-key last day but has prompted questions over security with massive crowds expected, just like during last year’s Olympics.

It will be tough to prevent another Pogačar win, even more so after he warmed up for the race with a dominant victory at the Critérium du Dauphiné last month, continuing his excellent form during the spring classics. Pogačar was at his brilliant best in the Tour’s grueling mountain climbs last year. But if Vingegaard is back to his best form, the 28-year-old Danish rider remains a major threat, providing his Visma-Lease a Bike team can match Pogačar’s supremely-efficient UAE Team Emirates lineup in the toughest mountain stages.

Slovenian veteran Primož Roglič narrowly lost the 2020 tour to Pogačar, but the four-time Spanish Vuelta winner could yet prove to be a dangerous outsider. Double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel is one of only three riders who have been able to get on the back of Pogačar’s wheel this year when he has launched a trademark uphill attack. He seems to have fully recovered from multiple injuries sustained in a big crash last year, but may not have enough in the tank to hang with Pogačar over three weeks. Pogačar’s teammate João Almeida has what it takes to be a leader in any other team and could take the mantle from his Slovenian leader if he has a problem. American cyclist Matteo Jorgenson and Giro d’Italia winner Simon Yates are both on Vingegaard’s team and could take over as the No. 1 should he falter. The 25-year-old Jorgenson defended his Paris-Nice title this year and is regarded as a future Grand Tour winner.

A total of 184 riders representing 23 teams will line up for the start on July 5. Withdrawals are commonplace: some due to injury, others due to fatigue or an inability to cope with mountain stages. A total of 141 riders finished last year’s race from 176 entrants.

The race features 21 stages: seven flat, six hilly and six in the mountains – with with five mountain finishes at Hautacam, Luchon-Superbagnères, Mont Ventoux, Courchevel Col de la Loze and La Plagne Tarentaise – and two time trials. At 2,304 meters, the Col de la Loze is the highest point of the Tour.

For the first time since 2020, the race won’t be visiting any foreign country.

Time bonuses will be awarded at the finish of each stage, with 10, 6 and 4 seconds awarded to the first, second and third riders, respectively.

Before Pogačar and Vingegaard took over as the dominant riders, there were one-off wins for Colombian Egan Bernal in 2019 and British rider Geraint Thomas the year before for once-dominant Team Sky, which also secured wins with British riders Chris Froome – in 2013, ’15, ’16 and ’17 – and Bradely Wiggins in 2012. Italian downhill ace Vincenzo Nibali won in 2014.

– In France: France Télévisions and Eurosport have comprehensive daily coverage of the race.

– U.S. viewers can follow the race via NBC and Peacock.

Fans can sometimes get perilously close to the riders, occasionally leading to falls. Others jump out in front of riders during mountain climbs or sprint behind them, shouting and often waving flags. While it seems chaotic and dangerous, the unwritten rule never to touch a rider is generally well obeyed.

Each team has its sporting director following behind, passing messages over team radio and occasionally moving up the road to reach a stricken rider. This often causes chaotic congestion, particularly in mountain passes, and can slow down the time it takes to reach a rider.