2023 Tour de FranceJul 1 - 23

2023 Tour de France: 1 - 23 July, 2023

Also visit our: (1) All Time Hardest Tour de France Climbs, (2) Most Legendary and Famous Climbs of the Tour de France,  and, (3) 10 Highest Climbs in Tour de France History pages for more Tour de France inside information.

2023 TOUR DE FRANCE INFORMATION AND CLIMB DETAILS

Official Map of le Tour de France

2023 TdF Stage Statistics

This should be a year for a true climber to bring home the Polka Dots.  The past few years, the KOM competition has been dominated by the GC contenders, with the past three Yellow Jersey winners also earning the Polka Dot jersey.  This year, because of an unusually high amount of Category 2 and 3 climbs in the early stages, it is going to be tough for a GC rider to catch up with the KOM leaders during the second half of the tour, when winning mountain stages is crucial.  

Compared to most years, there aren’t too many HC climbs included, with the tour skipping iconic alpine locations like Briançon (Galibier), St. Jean de Maurienne (Croix de Fer, Télégraphe), and Alpe d’ Huez.

Even more in favor of the climbers, the only time trial in this year’s tour is a double hill climb, containing 640 meters of ascent in a mere 22 kilometers with both climbs topping 11%. Unless the tour awards a hefty amount of bonus KOM points to climbs like the Tourmalet, Grand Colombiere, Col de la Loze, or the Cormet de Roselend, we predict this is finally a year for Simon Geschke, Wout, or even American favorite, Sepp Kuss!

Col du Tourmalet -- Stage 6: July 6, 2023

Since 1910 - 89 appearances in the TdF - more than any other climb.

KOM Corner

Official post-race summary for Stage 21 (July 23) - Letour.fr - Stage 21

JORDI MEEUS TAKES THE FINAL STAGE

TOUR DE FRANCE 2023 | STAGE 21 | SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES > PARIS CHAMPS-ÉLYSÉES

Jordi Meeus (Bora-Hansgrohe) won the conclusive stage of the 110th Tour de France in Paris/Champs-Elysées in a bunch gallop that saw Jasper Philipsen and Dylan Groenewegen rounding out the podium in a very tight finish. Jonas Vingegaard became the 14th twice winner of the Tour de France, the first to achieve the Critérium du Dauphiné-Tour de France double since Geraint Thomas in 2018. Tadej Pogacar attacked on the Champs-Elysées but remained second overall. The same two riders finishing first and second two years in a row didn’t happen since Bernard Hinault and Joop Zoetemelk in 1978-79. The same two riders in the first two places at the end three years running is a first in the history of the race.

CAMPENAERTS AND CICCONE CELEBRATE THEIR ACHIEVEMENT

The start proper of stage 21 was given to 150 riders at 16.38. Victor Campenaerts (Lotto-Dstny) attacked from the gun with the consent of the peloton to celebrate his super combative award but he sat up quickly this time! After the traditional toasts and pictures, Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) crested the côte du pavé des Gardes (cat. 4), the only categorized climb of the day, in first position, cheered up by his team-mates Mads Pedersen and Mattias Skjelmose.

POGACAR ON THE ATTACK

In the real race, Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) attacked with 49km remaining. It forced Nathan van Hooydonck (Jumbo-Visma) to catch him and Alpecin-Deceuninck to chase them down. The Slovenian won the intermediate sprint. A group of ten riders came across but it was all together again 33km before the end. Simon Clarke (Israel-Premier Tech), Nelson Oliveira (Movistar) and Frederik Frison (Lotto-Dstny) rode away with 30km to go. They got a maximum advantage of 20’’ with 20km remaining. It was bunched up again 10km before the end. The times were taken one lap before the finish as it started raining in Paris.

MEEUS, A PIECE FOR A MUSEEUM

Uno-X brought former Champs-Elysées winner Alexander Kristoff to the front. Cofidis also showed up in the first positions for Bryan Coquard with 3km to go. Alex Kirsch (Lidl-Trek) took the lead for Mads Pedersen. They were followed by Bora-Hansgrohe setting up the sprint for Jordi Meeus. Pogacar didn’t have enough racing as he passed the red flame of the last kilometre in first position while Vingegaard let himself distanced to celebrate with his team-mates as the times had been taken at bell lap due to the rain. Jonas Rickaert took the lead to pilot Philipsen to a second win in a row on the Champs-Elysées and a fifth on this Tour de France but his compatriot pipped him on the line in a tight finish that required watching the photo. Meeus was chosen by Bora-Hansgrohe to substitute Sam Bennett, the winner in Paris in 2020. He waited for his time to come. 6th in Bordeaux was his best result so far. This is his first Grand Tour victory in his first participation in the Tour de France.

Photo - finish Stage 21 letour.fr

Jonas Vingegaard is the individual winner of the 2023 Tour de France (yellow jersey)

Jasper Philpsen is points winner (green); Giulio Ciccone KOM (polka dots) and Tadej Pogacar is best young rider (white)

TOP 10 MOST FREQUENT CLIMBS OF THE TOUR DE FRANCE

(AND 10 FAMOUS ONES AFTER THAT)

©PJAMMCycing.com

Interesting 2023 TdF Facts

• This is the 110th Tour de France;
• Start: Bilbao, Spain on July 1, 2023;
• Finish: Champs-Élysées, Paris on July 23, 2023;
• There are 18 teams competing;
• Only two countries are included in the 2023 TdF route: Spain (Basque Country, Stages 1-3), and France.

• The tour nears Switzerland on Stages 14 and 15 just south of Lake Geneva, but never crosses the border;

• All five mountain ranges of France are included in the 2023 TdF: The Alps, Pyrenees, Vosges, Jura, and Massif Central;
• There are 70 Categorized climbs (Category 4 to HC):  

• Six HC (Col de Soudet, Col du Tormalet, Pu de Dôme, Col du Grand Colombiere, Col de Joux Plane, and Col de law Loze)
• 13 Cat 1
• 11 Cat 2
• 23 Cat 3
• 17 Cat 4;

• Col du Tourmalet returns for the 89th time, far more than any other climb;
• Other notable climbs appearances:

• Col d’Aspin (74 appearances - second all-time; Pyrenees)
• Col des Aravis (42 - seventh all-time; Alps)
• Ballon d’Alsace (27 - 17th overall; Vosges)
• Col de Marie Blanque (14; Pyrenees)
• Puy Dome (13; Central Massif; first appearance since 1988)
• Col de la Forclaz and Col de Joux Plane (12; Alps)
• Col du Grand Colombier (5; Jura Mountains);

• The official tour release implies that Grand Colombier and Col de la Loze will get more attention in the future:

• “The return to this legendary climb [Puy Dome] will be accompanied by the rise in importance of sites that will mark the Tours of the future, such as the Grand Colombier or the Col de la Loze”;

• Distance: 3,350 kilometers (2,079 miles) - the longest tour was in 1926 at 5,745 kilometers (3,570 miles);
• Longest stage: Stage 2 (Vitoria-Gasteiz > Saint-Sebastien  209 km / 113 miles);
• Total Elevation gained: 57,378 m / 188,248’(well above 2022: 47,861m / 157,024’);
• Most elevation gained on a stage: Stage 17 (5,012 m / 16,444’; includes Cormet Roselend and Col de la Loze);
• Most elevation gained on a climb: Col de la Loze - 1,805 meters / 5,922’;
• Highest point on the 2023 TdF is Col de la Loze (Stage 17) at 2304 meters (7,559’);
• Steepest climb: Cote des Amerands 9.5% 2.9 km (Stage 15);
• Steepest segments: (you can filter yourself using the sorting tool in to the left of the map, above)

• 1 kilometer: Cote de Pike - 14.5% (Puy Dome #2 at 14.4%)
• 2 kilometers: Col de Marie Blanque - 13.2% (Puy Dome #2 at 12.3%)
• 5 kilometers:  Puy Dome - 11.3% (Col de Marie Blanque #2 at 10.6%)
• 10 kilometers: Col du Tourmalet - 8.9% (Col de la Loze #2 at 8.5%)
• 1 mile: Col de Marie Blanque - 13.6%
• 5 miles:  Col de la Loze - 9%;

• This is the 110th Tour de France since its first edition in 1903:

• No TdF 1915-1918 (WWI)
• No TdF 1940-1946 (WWII)
• TdF postponed from 27 June 2020, to 29 August 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic;

• Stages:

• 8 mountain stages;
• 6 hilly stages;
• 6 flat stages;
• 1 individual time trial
• One travel day between Denmark (Stage 3) and France (Stage 4);
• Two rest days (one after Stage 9 and one after Stage 15);

• There are four summit finishes:

• Cauterets-Cambasque (Stage 6; Pyrenees)
• Puy de Dôme (Stage 9; Central Massif)
• Grand Colombier (Stage 13; Jura Mountains)
• Saint-Gervais Mont-Blanc (Stage 15; Alps);

• Puy Dome is featured for the first time in 35 years;
• The hardest road bike climb in France is Col de la Loze (Meribel).  Col de la Loze (TdF 2023) from a slightly less difficult approach is featured on Stage 17;
• The five hardest climbs of the 2023 Tour de France are:

1.        Col du Tourmalet (16.9 km at 7.4%)

2.        Col de Joux Plane (11.5 km at 8.4%)

3.        Col du Grand Colombier (16.1 km at 7.1%)

4.        Puy Dome (13.8 km at 7.6%)

5.        Col de Soudet (15 km at 7.2%);

•  First timers to the TdF:  

• Côte de Vivero (Basque Country; 4.4 km at 7.1%),
• Col de la Croix Rosier (Massif Central; 5.4 km, 7.5%), and
• Col du Feu (Alps; 6.1 km, 7.5%);

• Bonuses:

• Time bonuses will be awarded at the finish of each stage: 10 seconds (first), 6 seconds (second), and 4 seconds (third).
• There will also be bonus seconds that will be located on climbs at strategic points: 8, 5, and 2 seconds for first through third riders past those points;

• No cobbles on this year’s Tour;
• Passes of the 2022 TdF:  

• Vosges (1)
• Alps (12)
• Massif Central (1)
• Pyrenees (9);

• HC & Category Climb: TBD

Historical Tour de France Facts of Interest

• Climb most often featured in the Tour: Tourmalet - 89 times as of 2023 with Col d’Aspin second as of 74.

From Campan: 16.9 km gaining 1267m at 7.5% average grade.

From Luz Saint Sauveur: 18.7 km gaining 1319m at 7.1%.

• Highest point ever reached in the Tour de France: Cime de la Bonette, at 2,802 meters

Cime de la Bonette is the highest point ever reached by the Tour de France.

2,802 meters - Stage 18 1962 (passed again in 1964, 1993 and 2008).

Five highest points the Tour de France has ever reached.

Also see Top 10 Highest Points of the TdF

• Highest point of first (1903) TdF:  Col de la République (1,161m).

• Most TdF wins:

• Yellow Jersey - overall winner:

• 5 Jacques Anquetil (1957, 1961-1964)
• 5 Eddy Merckx (1969-1972, 1974)

• Merckx has the most Grand Tour wins of anyone (11 - 5 TdF, 5 Giro, 1 Vuelta)

• 5 Bernard Hinault  (1978-1979, 1981-1982, 1985)

• Has the second most Grand Tour wins (10 - 5 TdF, 3 Giro, 2 Vuelta)

• 5 Miguel Indurain (1991-1995)
• 4 Chris Froome:  (2013, 2015-2017)

• Polka Dot (King of the Mountains - since 1933):

• 7 Richard Virenque: 1994-1997, 1999, 2003, 2004 (best tour finish #2 1997)
• 6 Frederico Bahamontes: 1954, 1958, 1959, 1962, 1963, 1964; nine in Grand Tours  

• Green Jersey (most points; since 1953)

• 7 Peter Sagan
• 6 Erik Zabel: 1997-2001

• Most days wearing the yellow jersey:

• 111 Eddy Merckx
• 79 Bernard Hinault
• 60 Miguel Indurain

• Most days wearing yellow jersey in a single TdF:

• 21: Jacques Anquetil 1961 - held the yellow jersey from day one.

• Most stage wins:  

• 34 Eddy Merckx
• 34 Mark Cavendish
• 28 Bernard Hinault

• Most stage wins in a single tour:  

• 8 Charles Pélissier, 1930
• 8 Merckx 1970, 1971
• 8 Freddy Maertens 1975

• Most times atop the podium (top three TdF finish):

• 8 Raymond Poulidor

• First mountain stage and climbs in the Tour:

• Stage 10 July 21, 1910: Luchon to Bayonne

• 326 kilometers
• Circle of Death: Col de Peyresourde, Col d’Aspin, Col du Tourmalet, and Col d’Aubisque
• On arriving at the top of Col d’Aubisque Octave Lapize (TdF 1910 winner) yelled to tour organizers what is variously reported as: “murderers,” “assassins,” or “criminals.”  He also said he would quit the tour after descending to Laruns, but he rallied to complete the stage and go on to win the 1910 Tour de France.

Circle of Death

Tourmalet was the highest point the tour had ever reached as of 1910 (2115m)

Previous high point had been Col de Porte (1326m).

• First mountain-top stage finish:  Alpe d’Huez (Dutch Mountain/The Alpe) was the first mountain-top finish in the history of the Tour de France in 1952, Stage 10.
• Country wearing the yellow jersey most:  

• France (709)
• Belgium (434)

Frenchmen have been in the maillot jaune (yellow jersey) far more than any other country.

• Winning TdF in first appearance:

• 11 between 1903 - 1983, but none since Laurent Fignon (1983) until 2020 and Tadej Pogačar 

• Youngest winner of the Tour:  

• Henri Cornet: France, age 19 (1904)
• Tadej Pogačar: Slovenia, age 21 (2020)

• Oldest TdF winner:

• Firmin Lambot: Belgium, age 36 (1922)

• Most TdF appearances:

• 18 Sylvain Chavenel (2001-2018 age 42; top finish 19 2009)

• King of the Mountains: Mountain Classification victories (first recognized in 1933; jersey introduced 1975)

letour.fr

“Symbol of the mountains, of a rider pushing beyond their limits and of courage, the red polka dot jersey, which is sponsored by Carrefour, is awarded to the Tour de France’s leader of the best climber classification. Although this classification was introduced in 1933, its symbol, the polka dot jersey, appeared in 1975, which was also the year the Tour first finished on the Champs-Élysées and was won by Bernard Thévenet. It owes its appearance to track racing specialist Henri Lemoine, who competed between the 1930s and 1950s, and that Félix Lévitan, co-director of the Tour with Jacques Goddetwhich, had particularly noticed. While Belgium’s Lucien Van Impe was its first winner and claimed the mountains classification six times, just like his illustrious predecessor, Spain’s Federico Bahamontes, the so-called “Eagle of Toledo”, Frenchman Richard Virenque holds the record for victories with seven titles” (Tour de France, Polka Dot Jersey).

• TdF:

• Richard Virenque: 7 (1994-1997, 1999, 2003, 2004; best tour finish #2 1997)
• Frederico Bahamontes: 6 (1954, 1958, 1959, 1962, 1963, 1964; nine in Grand Tours)  

• Triples (none ever in the same year):  Frederico Bahamontes and Louis Herrera.
• Doubles same year (TdF+Giro):  Fausto Coppi, Charly Gaul, Lucien Van Impe, Claudio Chaippucci

King of the Mountains is designated by the red polka dot jersey.

• Most green jerseys (total points):

•  7 - Peter Sagan

• Most white jerseys (best young rider):

• 3 - Jan Ullrich (1996-1998),
• 3 Andy Schleck (2008-2010)

• Least finishers:  

• 10 in 1919

• Shortest margin of victory:  

• 8 seconds: Greg Lemond over Laurent Fignon in 1989.  Lemond overcame 50 seconds in the final time trial using aero bars for the first time in the TdF.

• Greatest margin of victory:

• 2h49’21” in 1903 between Maurice Garin and Lucien Pothier.

• Country with most wins:

• France (36)
• Belgium (18)
• Spain (12)
• Italy (10)
• Britain (6)
• Luxembourg (5)
• USA (3)

• Hardest climb ever in the Tour de France:  Col de la Loze (Meribel).

• See our All Time Top 10 Tour de France Climbs page.

THE BIG MOUNTAIN STAGES OF THE 2023 TOUR DE FRANCE

STAGE 6 

COL D’ASPIN - COL DU TOURMALET - CAUTERETS CAMBASQUE

2023 TOUR DE FRANCE STAGE 6: Mountain Stage #2 (Summit Finish; Pyrenees)

145 km (90 mi)  / 3,778m (12,395’’)

TARBES > CAUTERETS-CAMBASQUE (JULY 6)

Tourmalet is the second hardest climb of the 2023 TdF

STAGE 13

COL DU GRAND COLOMBIER (4th hardest climb of the Tour)

2023 TOUR DE FRANCE STAGE 13:  Mountain Stage 4

152 km (94 mi)  / 2371 m (7,779’)

This stage features Col du Grand Colombier - the 4th hardest climb of the 2023 Tour.

16 kilometers gaining 1,149 meters at 7.1% average grade.

STAGE 14

COL DE JOUX PLANE (3rd hardest climb of the 2023 Tour)

2023 TOUR DE FRANCE STAGE 14: Mountain Stage #5

152 km (94 mi) / 4093 m (13,428’)

STAGE 17

COL DE LA LOZE - The hardest climb of the 2023 Tour de France

2023 TOUR DE FRANCE STAGE 17:  Mountain Stage #7

166 km (103 mi) / 5012 m (16,444’)

SAINT-GERVAIS MONT-BLANC>COURCHEVEL

Col de la Loze 2023 TdF route:

28.4 kilometers gaining 1,805 meters at 6% average grade (7.1% climb only).

EXPLANATION OF KING OF MOUNTAIN, KOM POINTS, AND BONUS POINTS

FOR THE 2023 TOUR DE FRANCE

KOM DEFINED:  Climb-related points are accumulated during the race.  The rider with the most accumulated points at the beginning of the stage wears the red polka dot jersey that day, and the rider with the most points at the end of the race is crowned that year’s Tour de France King of the Mountains.

“Category”:  When the mountain classification (King of the Mountains) was introduced in 1933, there were points given to the first 10 riders over the summit (10 for first, 1 for tenth).  In 1947, the Tour introduced two climb “categories” with a certain amount of points for the second category and twice as many as for the first category.  Over the years “categories” were added, in addition to an “Above” category (Hors or HC) and since 1979 there have been a HC (hardest), Category 1 (second hardest) on down to Category 4 (least difficult climb).

The category of the climb is significant for two reasons:

• The points awarded for the TdF KOM for each climb is based upon the category of climb - thus, “category” is the basis for the points that are used to determine each year’s King of the Mountains.
• Most cycling fans, particularly Grand Tour fans, are very interested in the climb “category” because that tells them how hard each climb on a stage is, where the riders will struggle more, and the point in a stage where that day, or even the entire tour, will be won or lost.

KOM HISTORY:  

• King of the Mountains: Mountain Classification victories (first recognized in 1933; jersey introduced 1975)

• TdF:

• Richard Virenque: 7 (1994-1997, 1999, 2003, 2004; best tour finish #2 1997)
• Frederico Bahamontes: 6 (1954, 1958, 1959, 1962, 1963, 1964; nine in Grand Tours)  

• Triples (none ever in the same year):  Frederico Bahamontes and Louis Herrera.
• Doubles same year (TdF+Giro):  Fausto Coppi, Charly Gaul, Lucien Van Impe, Claudio Chaippucci

• 2020 & 2021 King of the Mountains:  Tadej Pogačar, Slovenia (also won the TdF and the Young Rider classification)

POINTS:  KOM points are awarded in three ways on the Tour de France:

•  To riders first over the summit of categorized climbs (in descending order HC, 1-4).  

• The higher the category the more riders receive points (HC points are awarded to eight riders, while CAT 4 points are awarded to only one rider).

• Bonus point (see below).
• Points for altitude finishes.

TDF POINTS FORMULA: Wikipedia has the best summary and graph we’ve seen for TdF KOM points distribution:

The points gained by consecutive riders reaching a mountain top are distributed according to the following classification:

Wikipedia - Mountains Classification - Tour de France

BONUS POINTS:  These points go towards the King of the Mountain designation and are awarded to the first (8 points), second (5 points), and third (2 points) riders reaching designated summits in the race.  

• There are no KOM bonuses in the 2022 Tour de France.  

MONEY PRIZES FOR KING OF THE MOUNTAINS

• Prize for first to eighth place:

• Winner = €25,000
• 2nd = €15,000
• 3rd = €10,000
• 4th = €4,000
• 5th = €3,500
• 6th = €3,000
• 7th = €2,500
• 8th = €2,000

• Daily prize for wearing the Polka Dot jersey = €6,000
• Per category climb:

• HC

• 1st = €800
• 2nd = €450
• 3rd = €300

• Cat 1

• 1st = €650
• 2nd = €400
• 3rd = €150

• Cat 2

• 1st = €500
• 2nd = €250

• Cat 3

• 1st = €300

• Cat 4

• 1st = €200

• Souvenir Henri Desgrange €5000 first to Col du Galibier pass Stage 11.

The maximum amount the KOM winner could earn if he won every stage and wore the jersey from Stage 2 to the finish is $60,300 Euros (62,773 USD)