The Tour de France 2013 will include three Corsican stages for its 100th edition
Three stages of the hundredth edition of the Tour de France will be hosted at the Mediterranean Island, as the race will be visiting Corsica for the first time.
Director of race, Christian Prudhomme, unveiled the route of the race as he made the announcement for the 2013 track.
Prudhomme commented on the inclusion of the three stages as he said, “Setting of the Island of Beauty will definitely offer a terrain and roads designed for attacks and we are already thoroughly looking forward to enjoying the magnificent scenery boasted
by the sea and the mountains!".
He further added, "There are almost 100km of time trialling, more than double what we had last year. That will also serve to increase the amount of potential winners. Of course, you need to be able to climb, but you don't necessarily need to be a phenomenal
climber”.
The three Corsican stages for the Tour de France 2013 will be held from Saturday, June 29, to Monday, July 1, 2013.
The first stage will be a 200 kilometre race, starting from Porto and finishing at Bastia, whereas the second stage will favour the climbers. Cyclists will kick off from Bastia and will move towards the west, at the tough mountains of Corsica.
The three top climbs during the second stage will be: Col de Bellagranajo, Col de la Serra and Col de Vizzavona.
Stage 2 will be a real test for the climbers towards the end for yet another time, as they will come across the steep slope of Monte Salario.
The third day in the Corsica Island will be a 145 kilometre long stage, starting from Ajaccio and finishing at Calvi.
Major difficulties for the cyclists will be the Col de San Bastiano, Cols de Lava, de Palmarella and de Marsolino.
It is expected that the yellow jersey will switch hands during the first three Corsican stages before the cyclists finally reach France.
Tour de France is considered to be the most prestigious cycling event in the sport and is one of the oldest races, as it was first initiated in 1903.
The 100th edition of race will start with a 6.1 kilometre individual time trial stage on June 30th 2012. There will be a total number of 20 stages in the coming edition of the race, with two rest days in the middle.
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