After two hard days of a totally different nature in the Pyrenees and before more big climbs to come, stage 18 gives some respite to the riders who have been used to having several consecutive mountain stages in Grand Tours.
This is also a new way to come up with the route. Pau is a bit too far away from the giants of the Pyrenees but a necessary meeting point on the route. It's the only French city that has a deputy mayor exclusively assigned to the task of hosting the Tour de France.
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