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

Few European ski resorts attract summer crowds like Alpe d’Huez, where cyclists are drawn like bees to a honeypot thanks to the climb’s sweeping switchbacks and place in Tour de France legend.

Despite first appearing at the Tour in the 1950s, it wasn’t until 1976 that the peloton returned. Since then, it has become one of the most iconic climbs of the race. 

Here are the numbers behind Alpe d’Huez and the Tour de France. 

2

The 2026 Tour de France will visit Alpe d’Huez twice. First, the peloton will ride up its 21 hairpins on stage 19, before ascending Alpe d’Huez the next day from the other side for the first time in the Tour de France’s history.

7

The seventh bend is known as Dutch Corner, where orange-clad, beer-fuelled supporters cheer the peloton on. Fans from the Netherlands have populated the bend since Dutchmen won eight of the first 14 victories on Alpe d’Huez, with Joop Zoetemelk first in 1976.

20

When the climb was last featured at the Tour in 2022, Britain’s Tom Pidcock won the stage.

But it was Sepp Kuss who took the Strava KOM that day with an average speed of 20kph.

21

Part of Alpe d’Huez’s difficulty lies in its 21 hairpins. But this also adds to the climb’s beauty, at least for viewers watching from home.

29

Although Kuss set a new Strava KOM in 2022, the record for the climb has stood for 29 years. In 1997, Marco Pantani set a time of 37 minutes and 35 seconds. 

There is some discrepancy between Pantani’s record and modern attempts. Back then, the full climb was measured at 14.5km, whereas today it measures 13.8km. Still, that is a faster speed than Kuss’ ascent four years ago. 

13.8

With an average gradient of 8.1% and the summit at 1,850m, the 13.8km-long climb is one of the toughest ascents to feature in the Tour.

1952 

Alpe d’Huez first appeared in the Tour de France in 1952 on stage 10, which was won by Fausto Coppi, who went on to claim the general classification.