Tour de France

Tour de France

The Tour de France is the most important bike race in the pro road cycling calendar. It is an annual multiple-stage race held primarily in France every summer, occasionally venturing into surrounding countries.   It comprises 21 stages that take place over 23 days, which consist of flat, hilly, mountainous terrain, as well as individual time trial races.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - AUGUST 02: Lorena Wiebes of Netherlands and Team SD Worx - Protime - Yellow leader jersey celebrates at finish line as stage winner during the 5th Tour de France Femmes 2026, Stage 2 a 147.9km stage from Aigle to Geneva / #UCIWWT / on August 02, 2026 in Geneva, Switzerland. (Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images)

What is a Tour de France rider’s resting heart rate? 

Pro cyclists have extremely low resting heart rates, but just how low? And how do you compare?
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Mont Ventoux gravel

I cycled Mont Ventoux’s lesser-known gravel climb and it was a completely different mountain

Having completed the Cinglés challenge of climbing Mont Ventoux via all three road routes in one day, we returned to the bald mountain to discover a little-known fourth route
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Mont Ventoux

“It was the hardest mountain” – the history of Mont Ventoux at the Tour de France

The 2026 Tour de France Femmes tackles the infamous Mont Ventoux on stage 7, a mountain that inspires both fear and a sense of wonder, writes Jeremy Whittle
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03/08/2025 – Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2025 – Étape 9 - Praz-sur-Arly > Châtel Les Portes du Soleil (124,1km) - Anna Van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime)

Do women ride the same bikes as men at the Tour de France?

We explore the importance of gender and rider proportions for bike choice and setup at the Tour
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The first hours of nightly sleep are perhaps the most important. Getty Images

How many hours a night do Tour de France riders sleep?

Good-quality sleep is essential for Tour contenders, but how much do they get?
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Matej Mohorič Bianchi Specialissima RC at the 2026 Tour de France

2 pro tech trends you should copy – and 3 you shouldn't

Does Tour de France tech work for the rest of us?
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Eddy Merckx (left) and Jacques Anquetil (right).

Vote now: who is the greatest Tour de France rider of all time?

Tadej Pogačar is the youngest cyclist to win the Tour de France 5 times, but does that mean he's the greatest of all time? Let us know by voting in our poll
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TOPSHOT - UAE Team Emirates - XRG's Slovenian rider Tadej Pogacar wearing the overall leader's yellow jersey leads the pack of riders (peloton) up Rue Lepic on the ascent of the Butte de Montmartre during the 21st stage of the 113th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 88,7 km starting and finishing in Paris, on July 26, 2026. (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP via Getty Images)

Aero everything, gorging on sugar and Tadej Pogačar: why Tour de France speeds have just gone up again

Speed records continued to tumble in the fastest edition of the Tour yet – often in pursuit of the flying Slovene
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Alpecin - Premier Tech team's Dutch rider Mathieu van der Poel and UAE Team Emirates - XRG's Slovenian rider Tadej Pogacar, wearing the overall leader yellow jersey, cycle on the Avenue des Champs-Elysees during the 21st stage of the 113th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 88,7 km starting and finishing in Paris, on July 26, 2026. (Photo by Jeff PACHOUD / AFP via Getty Images)

Which bike brands won the most stages at the 2026 Tour de France? The winners (and losers) revealed

Only 9 bike brands chalked up a stage win at the Tour this year – here's how they ranked
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Slovenian Tadej Pogacar of UAE Team Emirates-XRG celebrates as he crosses the finish line at stage 21 of the 2026 Tour de France cycling race, a stage of 130km from Thoiry to Paris Champs-Elysees , on Sunday 26 July 2026. The 113th edition of the Tour de France starts on Saturday 4 July in Barcelona, Spain, and will finish in Paris, France on the 26th of July. BELGA PHOTO JASPER JACOBS (Photo by JASPER JACOBS / BELGA MAG / Belga / AFP via Getty Images)

5 records Tadej Pogačar set during the 2026 Tour de France – and one he’s yet to beat 

Pogačar won the 2026 Tour de France in emphatic fashion. We look at the records he broke along the way
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Matej Mohorič Bianchi Specialissima RC at the 2026 Tour de France Continental tyre.

Raw carbon frames and weight-weenie hacks: 9 ways Tour de France riders make their bikes lighter

Pro hacks for a lighter bike for the climbs
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Alpe d'Huez during the Tour de France

The 10 most iconic climbs in Tour de France history, ranked

With the 2026 Tour de France reaching its crescendo in the Alps, we reveal the 10 most iconic ascents in the history of the race
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ALPE D'HUEZ, FRANCE - JULY 24: Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia and UAE Team Emirates - XRG - Yellow Leader Jersey celebrates at finish line as stage winner during the 113th Tour de France 2026, Stage 19 a 127.9km stage from Gap to Alpe d'Huez 1835m / #UCIWT / on July 24, 2026 in Alpe d'Huez, France. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)

Tadej Pogačar wins on Alpe d’Huez to finally break Marco Pantani's 29-year-old record

Pogačar breaks record that stood for nearly three decades
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Thomas Pidcock riding Alpe d'Huez during 2022 Tour de France.

21 switchbacks and a lightning-fast record: the history of Alpe d’Huez at the Tour de France in numbers 

It’s one of the icons of the Tour de France and among its toughest climbs, but what’s behind the ski resort’s unique place in the race’s history?
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Tour de France 2022 in Alpe d'Huez

How Alpe d'Huez became the Tour de France's favourite climb

The final battle for this year’s Tour will take place on the slopes of Alpe d’Huez. We look back at how this relatively recent addition became the race’s most celebrated climb
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Shimano netural service bike Tour de France 2026

Watch our Shimano Neutral Service bike check: the 10-year-old bike still being used at the Tour de France

Simon von Bromley explains why no pro wants to ride this bike, until they have to
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Tadej Pogačar drinking from bottle.

Pogačar's new lactate super fuel is a "breakthrough" in sports nutrition, but should you believe the hype?

Enervit's new lactate gel mix has been called a 'breakthrough' in sports nutrition, but skepticism remains
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Team Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe is photographed during LaVision PIV testing at Catesby Tunnel in Birmingham, United Kingdom on September 30, 2025. // George Marshall / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202510141054 // Usage for editorial use only //

4 performance innovations pro cyclists are using at the 2026 Tour de France

From Tadej Pogačar’s sleep technician to riding through helium bubbles at Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe, the battle for glory at the Tour de France is as competitive between the scientists as the riders
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Eddy Merckx wearing the yellow jersey at the 1974 Tour de France

Why is Eddy Merckx cycling's GOAT? And why is he the rider Tadej Pogačar is always compared to?

The Cannibal won a remarkable 525 races in an unmatchable career
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Maurice Garin 1903 Tour de France winner

1903 to 2026: how Tour de France bikes have evolved since the race began

From frames to wheels, tyres and finishing kit, here's how the Tour de France bike has evolved since the inaugural edition
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Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard at the Tour de France.

UCI defends nighttime anti-doping tests at Tour de France: “the fight against doping is an absolute priority” 

Nighttime anti-doping tests at the Tour prompted the Cyclistes Professionnels Associés to say the fight against doping should respect “fundamental rights”. Now the UCI has sought to justify the disruption to riders
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Paul Seixas

Paul Seixas carries the hopes of a nation on his shoulders, but what makes the 19-year-old cyclist so good?

Paul Seixas is the youngest Tour de France rider in 89 years. His meteoric rise is a continuation of modern cycling’s obsession with youth
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CHOLET - JULY 15: Policemen stay nearby Festina team sportive director Bruno Roussel's car in Cholet, West of France on July 15, 1998 as he is questioned about doping. (ELECTRONIC IMAGE) (Photo by JOEL SAGET/AFP via Getty Images)

Is doping a problem at the Tour de France?

There have been no major scandals since the Armstrong era and anti-doping measures have been toughened up, but the issue hasn't disappeared
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