Etape du Tour Confirmed to take place September 6th in Nice

Riders unable to make the new date of September 6th will have the opportunity to choose between participating in the 2021 edition or another A.S.O. event in 2020 and 2021. 

ASO confirmed to Gran Fondo Guide "With the Grand Départ of the Tour de France taking place at the end of August, the organisers and the Ville de Nice held a meeting concerning the organisation of the Étape du Tour de France in order to be able to communicate a new date to the numerous participants patiently awaiting its confirmation. As initially planned, the Étape du Tour de France will be the weekend following the Grand Départ, meaning that this year it will be taking place on Sunday 6th September 2020. The Étape du Tour de France will follow the same route as the second stage of the Tour de France, Nice-Nice."

"The organisers are closely following the evolving situation and will be respecting any directives from the health authorities, with whom they are working hand in hand."

"The riders who are unable to make the new date of September 6th will have the opportunity to choose between participating in the 2021 edition or taking part in another A.S.O. event in 2020 and 2021. The practical information will be communicated to all participants by mid-July."

Air Bridges

2020 Etape du Tour Route

The 2020 Etape du Tour sportive will be run over stage two of the Tour de France, with three mountain passes and more than 3,750m of climbing in the Southern Alps.

Nice will welcome riders on Sunday September 6th for the 30th edition of the hugely popular sportive – the first to take place on the south coast of France.

In another first, the 177km route is a loop. That is, the course starts and finishes in Nice, neatly eliminating many of the logistical issues facing riders on a point-to-point route typical of the Etape.

Col de Colmiane (16.3km at 6.3%)

The first climbing challenge will be the Col de Colmiane (sometimes known as the Col Saint-Martin) – a feature of Paris-Nice in both 2017 and 2018.

British rider Simon Yates was victorious on the climb in the latter edition, though on that occasion it was tackled from the opposite direction.

L’Etape du Tour 2020 riders will take on the 16.3km ascent from La Bollinette, where the climb boasts an average gradient of 6.3 per cent.

Col de Turini (15.3km at 7.2%)

After a 20km descent, things then ramp up again with the Col de Turini, the second major climb of the day.

After featuring in the 2019 Paris-Nice, where Daniel Felipe Martinez claimed stage honours, and Team Ineos’s Egan Bernal moved into the yellow jersey, the climb is back at the Tour de France after a 47-year absence.

The climb will be tackled in the same direction it was in Paris-Nice, up its western ascent. From that direction it is 15.3km long with an average gradient of 7.2 per cent and a steepest section nearer 9 per cent.

Col d’Eze (7.8km at 6.1%)

The longer, shallower south-eastern side forms the descent, before a Paris-Nice classic rounds off the climbing challenges: the Col d’Eze.

At 7.8km, and with an average gradient of 6.1 per cent, the Col d’Eze may be shorter than the climbs that come before it, but it’s the most iconic ascent on the route because of its regular inclusion as the final (and frequently decisive climb) in Paris-Nice.

The Race to the Sun often uses the Col d’Eze for a time trial, which Sean Kelly won five times and Sir Bradley Wiggins completed in a record 19 minutes 12 seconds in 2012. Strava suggests an average time of 40 minutes for men and 47 minutes for women is a more realistic benchmark for L’Etape riders to target, though the climb will come after a long and arduous day in the saddle.

The route then sweeps back down into Nice for a finish on the seafront.

For more information, please visit: https://www.letapedutourdefrance.com/en