The world's best cyclists compete each year in the Tour de France. The famous cycle race covers 3500km of rural, mountainous and coastal terrain, before the sprint to the finish line down Paris' Champs-Elysées.
The 2009 race sets off from Monaco. From there, the course heads to Brignoles then onward to Marseille, Montpellier and Perpignan before crossing the Spanish border towards Barcelona. From there, the going gets tough as cyclists take on two days of high mountain terrain before the course winds its way back towards Limoges.
The flat routes through Saint-Fargeau and Vittel offer competitors soome respite before before more back-breaking mountain tests through Pontarlier, Martigny, Bourg-Saint-Maurice and Mont Ventoux, from where all roads lead north to ultimate glory in Paris.
Twenty teams of nine riders take on the 10 flat stages, five gruelling mountain stages, and two individual team-trial stages. By the end, there will be no doubt that the winner is the greatest racing cyclist in the world.
For full details of the route, please visit the Tour de France website.
The flat routes through Saint-Fargeau and Vittel offer competitors soome respite before before more back-breaking mountain tests through Pontarlier, Martigny, Bourg-Saint-Maurice and Mont Ventoux, from where all roads lead north to ultimate glory in Paris.
Twenty teams of nine riders take on the 10 flat stages, five gruelling mountain stages, and two individual team-trial stages. By the end, there will be no doubt that the winner is the greatest racing cyclist in the world.
For full details of the route, please visit the Tour de France website.
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