The Tour's longest stage is an opportunity for strong riders with the ability to kick at the finish to come out and make their presence felt after days dominated by the climbers and GC heavyweights. Look for McEwen to be back in the thick of it, and Thor Hushovd to spread his wings after tough days hanging out the back up the climbs. With two cat 3 and cat 4 cols, this stage is surprisingly tough due to its distance and the regularity of the smaller climbs. There won't be much movement on GC as riders in with a shot at the overall title will take the opportunity to relax before the final time trial and the run into Paris.
TOPICS
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Étoile de Bessèges: Mathieu Kockelmann rushes ahead of Dylan Groenewegen to win stage 2 in photo finish
Matteo Moschetti third as peloton sweeps up breakaway rider in final 100 metres on rainy day -
'The barriers are flying over the road' – Strong winds force Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana organisers to decide stage 2 time trial times will not count for GC
17-kilometre race against the clock will go ahead with all riders on road bikes, but no changes on GC -
'This is one of the harder sprint stages to do' - Wiebes takes confidence from sprint victory at UAE Tour Women
Quasi-unbeatable sprinter speaks about the details of her craft -
UAE Tour Women: Lorena Wiebes storms to victory on stage 1 sprint
Dutch champion accelerates away from Lara Gillespie in second and Zoe Bäckstedt in third
