ASO – the organization behind Paris-Nice – announced the participating teams for the next edition of the 'Race to the Sun' on Wednesday, alongside unveiling the route. What stands out is that the final stage to Nice has undergone a significant overhaul.
Almost every year, the Promenade des Anglais is the place where Paris-Nice concludes, but in 2026 the race will finish at the Allianz Riviera, the modern football stadium in Nice and home to the football club OGC Nice, due to municipal elections.
This will happen after a particularly demanding week of racing, during which the riders will be pushed to their limits. The 84th edition of Paris-Nice will start in Achères, in the Yvelines department. The opening stage already promises excitement as the riders will finish on a challenging circuit around the finish town of Carrières-sous-Poissy, featuring the tough Côte de Chanteloup-les-Vignes (1.1 km at 8.3%) as its key challenge.
Image: ASO/Paris-Nice
Dress rehearsal for the Tour
In short, puncheurs will get to shine immediately, but the second stage from Épône to Montargis seems tailored for sprinters, given the almost flat finale to the finish. With the Tour de France Grand Départ in Barcelona in mind, day three will feature a 23.5-kilometer team time trial between Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire and Pouilly-sur-Loire. This stage can be seen as a dress rehearsal for the team time trial (TTT) in the upcoming Tour.
The riders will then head towards the roads of the Morvan. The fourth stage should not be underestimated, as the finale will throw two climbs at the riders: the Côte de la Croix de la Libération (4.6 km at 5.3%) and the final climb to Uchon (8 km at 4.5%). The fifth stage finishing in Colombier-le-Vieux is also tough, featuring four steep climbs in the last roughly 40 kilometers. In fact, the fifth stage has the most elevation gain.
The sixth stage – taking place between Barbentane and Apt – could also cause splits in the general classification. Along the way, there are two third-category climbs and two second-category ascents. After the last categorized obstacle – the Côte de Saignon (4 km at 5%) – there are just over 4 kilometers of descending left to the finish.
Challenging final weekend
The battle for the overall victory will fully ignite during the final weekend. The penultimate stage heads to the ski resort of Auron, where the finish line is located after a 7.3-kilometre climb averaging just over 7%. This year the French race also finished in Auron: Michael Storer soloed to victory in near-apocalyptic conditions.
The eighth and final stage will—as previously mentioned—finish in Nice, but not on the well-known Promenade des Anglais. The familiar decisive climbs in and around Nice—including the Col d'Èze—will be bypassed by the organizers next year. The action will instead focus on the slopes of the Col de la Porte (7 km at 7.2%), Côte de Châteauneuf-Villevieille (6.6 km at 6.6%), or the relatively unknown Côte de Linguador (3.3 km at 8.8%).
| Date | Stage | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 08-03 | 1 |  Achères | Carrières-sous-Poissy |
| 09-03 | 2 | Epône | Montargis |
| 10-03 | 3 | Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire | Pouilly-sur-Loire |
| 11-03 | 4 | Bourges | Uchon |
| 12-03 | 5 | Cormoranche-sur-Saône | Colombier-le-Vieux |
| 13-03 | 6 | Barbentane | Apt |
| 14-03 | 7 | Nice | Auron |
| 15-03 | 8 | Nice | Nice |
