Le Markstein returns to the Tour three years after Tadej Pogačar's victory there, but the road to the summit will be very different this time.
In 2023, Pogačar was already seven minutes behind Jonas Vingegaard after imploding on stage 17 to Courchevel, so his victory at Le Markstein was a redemption, even if he only gained a few bonus seconds over the Dane.
This year, the situation is the opposite: Vingegaard is 3:36 behind Pogačar and in need of his own redemption after two straight years of being on the receiving end of a Tour de France beat-down.
Arguably, the 2023 climb was harder, approaching Le Markstein via the Col du Platzerwasel (7.1km at 8.4%) but the narrow, winding Col du Haag is longer at 11.2km and nearly as steep, averaging 7.3%.
While Pogačar seems unlikely to have a jour sans after what has been a flawless first 13 stages, Vingegaard has a lot more to be concerned about.
The Dane has seven riders within 90 seconds, including Remco Evenepoel only 30 seconds behind, Tom Pidcock climbing thanks to his stage 13 breakaway to fourth, only nine seconds further back, and Juan Ayuso just another seven in arrears.
Paul Seixas, the darling of France, continues to hold a strong position 4:35 from Pogačar - 1:01 behind Vingegaard, while Florian Lipowitz is also a real danger just nine more seconds down.
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Even Pogačar's teammate Isaac del Toro is within striking distance on a stage like Saturday's, lying in eighth at 5:08.
If the Massif Central stages were ambush territory, Saturday's outing to Le Markstein could be a far more dangerous 155.3-kilometre day.
The Grand Ballon, Col du Page and Ballon d'Alsace aren't the steepest and are unlikely to see any major GC action because the Col du Haag is such a tough, irregular ascent.
The first four kilometres are nearly double-digit gradients, and while there is a brief downhill before the road tilts upward again, the grade is close to 10% for all but a couple kilometres.
The last 5km of the stage is flat, which might limit how big of a gain anyone can make in the GC standings, but there should be fireworks.
Stage details
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Elevation profile for stage 14 of the 2026 Tour de France
(Image credit: ASO)
(Image credit: ASO)
(Image credit: ASO)
(Image credit: ASO)
Route map of stage 14 for 2026 Tour de France
(Image credit: ASO)
Starting in Mulhouse, the 155.3km stage 14 packs 3800 metres of climbing into a stage short on distance but unrelenting in difficulty, and very likely the moment the GC battle truly ignites.
The climbing begins just 15 kilometres in with the Grand Ballon, followed by the first pass through the finish line before the route rolls on through the Col du Page and the Ballon d’Alsace, the latter tackled for the second consecutive day.
Points at finish: 20-17-15-13-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Hidden on the 111-km loop is one of the most explosive passages in the entire 2026 route: the maiden Tour ascent of the Col du Haag, a forest track converted into a bike path that winds for 11.2 kilometres at 7.3% on average, with an irregular rhythm and ramps touching 15%. From its summit, only six kilometres stand between the peloton and the finish at Le Markstein.
Lyne has been involved in professional cycling for more than 15 years in both news reporting and sports marketing. She founded Podium Insight in 2008, quickly becoming a trusted source for news of the North American professional cycling world. She was the first to successfully use social media to consistently provide timely and live race updates for all fans. She is proud to have covered men's and women's news equally during her tenure at the helm of the site. Her writing has appeared on Cyclingnews and other news sites.
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