2019 Tour de France Stage 6 Live Coverage
Welcome to our live coverage of Stage 6 of the 2019 Tour de France! Our live profile and commentary are below, followed by a preview of the technical aspects of the route.
Course Preview
The 6th stage of the Tour de France brings the first summit finish of this edition. The final haul up is the steep and partly unpaved La Planche des Belles Filles, while the 160.5 kilometres route serves a total of seven climbs.
Mulhouse hosts the departure of the Tour de Franceâs 6th stage. The last time that La Grande Boucle arrived in Mulhouse was in 2014. Tony Martin was on the attack during the whole day and in the last 50 kilometres he soloed to the win. The next stage started in Mulhouse to finish atop La Planche des Belles Filles.
Peaking at an elevation of 1,148 metres, the climb in the Vosges Mountains has established a reputation as a puncherâs finish in a short time. In 2012 La Planche des Belle Filles debuted in the Tour de France and now, after eight editions, it is already the fourth time that the climb is included. In 2017, Fabio Aru soloed to victory (16 seconds ahead of Daniel Martin and 20 seconds ahead of Chris Froome), in 2014 Vincenzo Nibali took the win in similar style (with Thibaut Pinot 15 seconds in arrears and Alejandro Valverde another 5 seconds further behind), while Chris Froome outclimbed Cadel Evans and Bradley Wiggins by 2 seconds in 2012.
In all three editions La Planche des Belles Filles was a climb of 5.9 kilometres with an average gradient of 8.5%. The 2019 race will feature an extra section of 1 kilometre and to pep things up this section is unpaved, except for the last 100 metres. Beginning with a leg-sapping ramp at 24%, the final kick up is too steep for gravel. The ânewâ Planche des Belles Filles amounts to 7 kilometres at 8.7%.
The stage also includes Le Markstein (10.8 kilometres at 5.4%), Grand Ballon (1.3 kilometres at 9%), Col du Hundsruck (5.3 kilometres at 6.9%), Ballon dâAlsace (11 kilometer Ă 5,8%) and Col des Croix (3.3 kilometres at 6.1%), making it a testing day in the Vosges Mountains. Moreover, GC riders are tempted to open up the finale on the Chevrères, a punchy 3.5 kilometres climb at 9.5%, as the first three riders over the summit earn time bonuses of 8, 5 and 3 seconds.
The Chevrères is crested with 19 kilometres. The descent leads to a false flat of 4 kilometres, which runs to the foot of the final haul up.\n
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