| 2012 UCI World Tour, race 18 of 27 | |||
| Map of 2012 Tour de France | |||
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Dates | 30 June–22 July | ||
| Stages | 20+Prologue | ||
| Distance | 3,479.1 km (2,162 mi) | ||
| Palmarès | |||
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The 2012 Tour de France is scheduled to be the 99th Tour de France. It is scheduled to start in the Belgian city of Liège,[1][2] and end on the Champs-Elysées in Paris. The Tour visits besides Belgium also the country of Switzerland.
The route was accidentally published by ASO on its website on October 10, 2011.[3] On the official presentation of October 18, the leaked route was confirmed by the ASO.[4]
The route features a total of 96.1 km covered in individual time trials. This large amount of time trial kilometers favours 2011 winner Cadel Evans according to three time winner Alberto Contador. [5] The course is likely to also favour other GC contenders that excel in time-trials, such as Bradley Wiggins, Denis Menchov and Tony Martin. Climbers like Andy & Fränk Schleck, Robert Gesink, Jurgen Van Den Broeck, Ivan Basso and Damiano Cunego also have the disadvantage of only three uphill finishes: La Planche des Belles Filles (stage 7), La Toussuire - Les Sybelles (stage 11) and Peyragudes (stage 17)
The Col du Grand Colombier will be visited for the first time in Tour de France history. The climb was earlier featured in the Critérium du Dauphiné, Tour de l'Avenir and is regularly climbed in the Tour de l'Ain. Also the well known climbs of the Col de la Madeleine and the Col de la Croix de Fer (both Hors catégorie rated climbs) are visited in the passage of the Alps. The passage of the Pyrenees include the mythical Col de Tourmalet, Col d'Aubisque, Col d'Aspin and the Col de Peyresourde. The four climbs are climbed in stage 16 of the Tour. A total of 25 climbs will count for Cat 2, Cat 1 or HC points for the mountains classification.
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2010 winner Alberto Contador will, if not suspended for the use of Clenbuterol, focus on the Tour in the 2012 season and will not defend his Giro d'Italia title.[6] The three time winner names Cadel Evans as the top favourite because of the large amount of time trial kilometers. The 2011 champion will defend his Tour de France title in 2012, [7] whilst the course is also likely to suit Bradley Wiggins, Denis Menchov and Tony Martin. Johan Bruyneel, manager of the new fusion team between Leopard Trek and Team RadioShack, stated that it will be hard for three-time runner-up Andy Schleck and his brother Fränk Schleck to win the 2012 Tour de France due to the large ammount of kilometers against the clock. There may be a chance that one of the brothers will target the 2012 Giro d'Italia instead. [8]
| Stage | Date | Course | Distance | Type | Winner | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | 30 June | Liège – Liège | 6.1 km (4 mi) | Individual time trial | |||
| 1 | 1 July | Liège – Seraing | 198 km (123 mi) | Flat stage | |||
| 2 | 2 July | Visé – Tournai | 207 km (129 mi) | Flat stage | |||
| 3 | 3 July | Orchies – Boulogne-sur-Mer | 197 km (122 mi) | Medium-mountain stage | |||
| 4 | 4 July | Abbeville – Rouen | 214 km (133 mi) | Flat stage | |||
| 5 | 5 July | Rouen – Saint-Quentin | 197 km (122 mi) | Flat stage | |||
| 6 | 6 July | Épernay – Metz | 210 km (130 mi) | Flat stage | |||
| 7 | 7 July | Tomblaine – La Planche des Belles Filles | 199 km (124 mi) | Medium-mountain stage | |||
| 8 | 8 July | Belfort – Porrentruy | 154 km (96 mi) | Medium-mountain stage | |||
| 9 | 9 July | Arc-et-Senans – Besançon | 38 km (24 mi) | Individual time trial | |||
| 10 July | Rest day | ||||||
| 10 | 11 July | Mâcon – Bellegarde-sur-Valserine | 194 km (121 mi) | Mountain stage | |||
| 11 | 12 July | Albertville – Fontcouverte-la-Toussuire/Les Sybelles | 140 km (87 mi) | Mountain stage | |||
| 12 | 13 July | Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne – Annonay/Davézieux | 220 km (137 mi) | Medium-mountain stage | |||
| 13 | 14 July | Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux – Cap d'Agde | 215 km (134 mi) | Flat stage | |||
| 14 | 15 July | Limoux – Foix | 192 km (119 mi) | Mountain stage | |||
| 15 | 16 July | Samatan – Pau | 160 km (99 mi) | Flat stage | |||
| 17 July | Rest day | ||||||
| 16 | 18 July | Pau – Bagnères-de-Luchon | 197 km (122 mi) | Mountain stage | |||
| 17 | 19 July | Bagnères-de-Luchon – Peyragudes | 144 km (89 mi) | Mountain stage | |||
| 18 | 20 July | Blagnac – Brive-la-Gaillarde | 215 km (134 mi) | Flat stage | |||
| 19 | 21 July | Bonneval – Chartres | 52 km (32 mi) | Individual time trial | |||
| 20 | 22 July | Rambouillet – Paris (Champs-Élysées) | 130 km (81 mi) | Flat stage | |||
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