Despite not being a mountainous stage – and only featuring two fourth category climbs – at the end of this stage, the Tour will arrive in the Alps. Although those two climbs are the only ones to count, the altitude rises steadily from 46 metres at the start in Nîmes to 599 metres at the finish in Digne les Bains. The route crosses Provence and the Luberon wine area between Mont Ventoux and the Côte d'Azur before finishing in the spa town in the shadow of the high mountains that divide France form its neighbour Italy.
Digne les Bains is a fairly regular host to the Tour, having been a stage town eleven times before. Last time – in 2005 – David Moncoutié took the second of his two career stage wins after attacking the break on the road from Briançon to the north.
-
'Finally had everything go to plan' – New Zealand's Matthew Wilson moves past foiled finishes to claim first Life Time Grand Prix podium in Leadville
24-year-old comes second in debut at Life Time Leadville Trail 100 MTB after sprinting to the line with six-time winner Keegan Swenson -
2026 gravel national and continental champions index
A guide to the riders who have climbed to the top steps of the podium at their national or continental championships -
Gravel Earth Series: Geerike Schreurs takes solo win as Tobias Kongstad sprints to victory at CORE4
Emily Newsom and Cole Davis secure runner-up positions in penultimate round of Gravel Earth Series -
‘8 plugs, 3 Co2 - still no luck’ – Rosa Klöser’s Leadville 100 bid ends in a car after tricky acclimatization following Tour de France Femmes
Gravel star took on her fifth mountain bike race one week after French Grand Tour
