Mantes-la-jolie > Paris Champs Elysées
122km Sunday, 20 September Start 15:00 Finish 17:58
The GC might be done and dusted but for the sprinters who have suffered through the mountains this is always the big one. Terrain
■ The Tour and the department of Yvelines to the west of Paris have an agreement in place that means the final stage of the race will start in that region until at least 2023.
This year’s route is straightforward, the peloton heading into Paris from the west and entering the finishing circuit based on the Champs Elysées to complete eight laps.
■ Gameplan
The first order of the day is for the race winner and his teammates to go through the usual TV and photo protocols, including toasting each other with champagne in the opening kilometres.
The serious racing doesn’t actually get under way until those same riders have led the peloton through the Place de la Concorde and onto the Champs Élysées for the first time.
The sprinters’ teams are well rehearsed when it comes to starting their final pursuit on this circuit, generally reeling in the last break with half a lap left, then setting up their sprinter for the final dash to the line, arguably the most prestigious of the season for these speedsters.
■ Players
The bunch’s pre-eminent sprinter over the last few days will usually start as favourite. Last year Caleb Ewan won at the start of the final week and then capped off his Tour debut with victory on the last stage.
In previous seasons, Dylan Groenewegen, André Greipel, Mark Cavendish and the now retired Marcel Kittel have dominated in the same way.
With a number of the big-name sprinters not starting the race now, it is an ideal time for a younger or less-heralded name to claim that crown for the first time. Bennett is probably the rider most likely to but more experienced heads like Giacomo Nizzolo, freed from the shadow of Cavendish at NTT, Israel Start-up Nation fastman Rudy Barbier or or even world champion Mads Pedersen might fancy their chances.
■ Tour Fact
The last time the Tour visited Mantes la Jolie was during its third edition in 1905.