Paris-Nice 2023 route

The organisers have touted a balanced route for the 2023 Paris-Nice, which begins in La Verrière on Sunday, March 5 and ends on the Promenade des Anglais in Nice on March 12.

Paris-Nice, also known by its nickname, the "Race to the Sun", celebrates its 90th anniversary in 2023 and has stages for the sprinters, climbers, puncheurs and a novel team time trial format.

The team time trial and the major mountain finish on the Col de la Couillole are the main features of the 81st edition of Paris-Nice.

Stage 1 - La Verrière - La Verrière

The race gets underway from La Verrière with a 169.4 kilometre stage that includes two trips over the short but steep Côte de Milon-la-Chapelle. It's only 500 metres long but kicks up to a 12% gradient. It shouldn't be too hard to dispatch the sprinters. However, a bonus sprint on the Côte des Dix-Sept Tournants comes just 5.9km from the finish and might disrupt the normal proceedings.

Stage 2 - Bazainville - Fontainebleau

If stage 1 was considered to be flat, then stage 2 from Bazainville to Fontainebleau is even flatter. The 164-kilometre stage hardly has a highway overpass to break up the stage. Another bonus sprint with 12.9km to go is followed by a slightly downhill run to the finish and the expected bunch sprint.

Stage 3 - Dampierre-en-Burly (TTT)

The team time trial returns to Paris-Nice in 2023 with a 32.2 kilometre route around Dampierre-en-Burly. The triangular circuit is not too technical and not too hilly but there is a twist: organisers have decided to set the time not on the fourth rider, but the first rider across the line. That means teams will be employing a sprint-style lead-out to launch their team leader to the fastest time.

Stage 4 - Saint-Amand-Montrond - La Loge des Garde

Stage 4 gives the sprinters a chance to relax because this is definitely not going to be their day. The 164.7km route from Saint-Amand-Montrond to La Loge des Garde has a finale for the climbers. The road begins tilting up at the first climb, the Côte du Vernet (2.1km at 5.8%) at kilometre 116, then keeps climbing higher. Next is the rather tame Côte de Cheval Rigon (5.7km at 3.9%) that precedes the bonus sprint with 15.4km to go to the hard finish at La Loge des Gardes, a 6.7km climb averaging 7.1% that will certainly begin sorting out the overall classification.

Stage 5 - Saint-Symphorien-sur-Coise - Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux

The longest day comes after a testing stage with 212.5 kilometres to ride between Saint-Symphorien-sur-Coise  and Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux. The stage is front-loaded with climbs where the breakaway artists will most certainly launch attacks. There are three in the first 35km - the Côte de Coise (1.5km at 8.6%), Côte de l'Aubépin (4.9km at 5.1%) and Côte de Trèves (2.3km at 6%).

What follows will be a long day of teams deciding who will chase down the escapees. Stage 5's bonus sprint is at kilometre 159 and will liven up the mid-stage lull. The Côte d'Aleyrac with 30.9km to go might hurt some pure sprinters at 4.5km in length, but averaging 4.3% it's not the toughest climb. A flat finish favours the fast men.

Stage 6 - Tourves - La-Colle-sur-Loup

The contenders will not want to have a jour sans on stage 6, another long day at 197.4 kilometres but chock full of steep pitches on six climbs. A long gradual descent to the line will mean all the action will come on the wall-like Côte de la Colle-sur-Loup.

A first climb from kilometre zero, the Côte de la Roquebrussanne (3.6km at 4%) starts the stage. The second climb, the Côte des Tuilières (2.3km at 7.8%) comes around 80km into the stage and has a pitch of 15%. The Côte de Callian (2km at 6.9%) at km 112 is even steeper with parts at 17%.

The fun continues with an even steeper gradient on the 5.3km long Côte de Cabris. The 5.8% average grade belies the early section that kicks up to 20%.

Then, there's the Côte de la Colle-sur-Loup on the finishing circuit that, fortunately, riders only have to tackle once. It's 1.8km long and averages 10% with grades up to 19%. Even after the summit, the pain doesn't end. The organisers placed the bonus sprint further up the climb on a 12% grade. Ouch.

Stage 7 - Nice - Col de la Couillole

You'd be forgiven for assuming that stage 6 was the queen stage. However, it's just a warm-up for the 143km penultimate stage from Nice, over the Côte de Tourette-du-Chàteau (17.8km at 4.6%) and finishing on the Col de la Couillole (15.7km at 7.1%) at an altitude of 1,678 metres. 

Unlike the previous day, riders won't need their granny gears. Instead, it's a long, slow burn with a steady incline between 6 and 8%. The last time the climb featured in Paris-Nice, Richie Porte beat Alberto Contador for the stage win. It's also featured in the late-May Mercan'Tour Classic Alpes-Maritimes.

Stage 8 - Nice-Nice

The previous two days will make stage 8 look like a sprint stage, despite the five classified climbs. The Nice stage is just 117.5km long and packs in the hills, with the Côte de Levens (6.1km at 4.9%) coming at 22km into the stage. The Côte de Châteauneuf (5.4km at 4.6%) and Côte de Berre-les-Alpes (6.3km at 6%) - all category 2 - and category 1 Côte de Peille (6.6km at 6.9%) all come in the first 69km.

There's a sprint in Èze at kilometre 82.9 and then the Col d'Èze (6km at 7.6%) tops out with 15.3km to go. The signature climb of Paris-Nice has a rather technical descent (hopefully dry) before concluding with a flat finish in Nice.