Stage 18 Vif - Courchevel Col de la Loze (171.5km)
Queen stage will especially instill fear in Pogačar (and give confidence to Vingegaard)
The small village of Vif makes its debut in the Tour de France this year. Nevertheless, many members of the Tour caravan will probably stay in nearby Grenoble. There lies an important milestone in the history of the Tour. In Grenoble, on July 19, 1919, the first yellow jersey ever was awarded to Eugène Christophe. Halfway through that Tour, without too much fanfare. Race director and godfather of the Tour Henri Desgrange wanted to create recognizability for the leader in his race. And so the yellow jersey came about, inspired by the color of the paper on which l'Auto was printed. That was Desgrange's magazine with which he created the Tour. 'The yellow canary!' was the first reaction of Christophe's competitors. Still derogatory then, but the yellow jersey would grow into a global sports icon.
Then to the stage itself, which organizer ASO has designated as the queen stage. Not surprising, because with resounding names such as the Col du Glandon, Col de la Madeleine, and finish on the Col de la Loze, this ordeal leaves little to the imagination. After the start, the peloton races straight toward Alpe d'Huez. But instead of following the D1091 to Bourg d'Oisans, they turn left at the last moment onto the D526. Not much later, the ASO conjures up the foot of the Glandon near the village of Oz.
Once at the top, a long descent awaits, and the riders arrive in La Chambre after 83.5 kilometers. That is then the nursery of the next climb of the day: the Madeleine. The Dutch will remember 2002, when Michael Boogerd cycled solo over the Madeleine in the lead-up to his impressive victory on La Plagne. The global audience will especially recall 1996, when the Festina team put everything together. Richard Virenque was the first to round the top, but Jan Ullrich - thanks to Bjarne Riis - straightened his back on the final climb. When the Festina bomb burst a year later, that day was viewed from a different perspective.
In 2019, the last six kilometers of the Col de la Loze were provided with an asphalt layer and closed to all motorized traffic. Previously, this climb was also done, but the road didn't go further than Courchevel. The extremely steep airfield there was still the finish in 2023, where Felix Gall won solo and especially Jonas Vingegaard decided the Tour of that year. Tadej Pogačar cracked and ultimately lost more than seven and a half minutes. In 2020, the Col de la Loze made its debut in the Tour. Then Miguel Ángel López won ahead of Primož Roglič, who also took the measure of Pogačar then. This year, they do the climb for the first time from a different side. After the notorious airfield of Courchevel follows an equally steep bike path to the top.
| Date | Thursday 24 July |
| Start |  Vif |
| Finish | Courchevel Col de la Loze |
| Distance | 171.5 km |
| Elevation gain | 5450 m |
| Start time | 12:10 |
| Expected finish | 17:12-17:50 |
Stage 18 Vif - Courchevel Col de la Loze (171.5km)
Queen stage will especially instill fear in Pogačar (and give confidence to Vingegaard)
The small village of Vif makes its debut in the Tour de France this year. Nevertheless, many members of the Tour caravan will probably stay in nearby Grenoble. There lies an important milestone in the history of the Tour. In Grenoble, on July 19, 1919, the first yellow jersey ever was awarded to Eugène Christophe. Halfway through that Tour, without too much fanfare. Race director and godfather of the Tour Henri Desgrange wanted to create recognizability for the leader in his race. And so the yellow jersey came about, inspired by the color of the paper on which l'Auto was printed. That was Desgrange's magazine with which he created the Tour. 'The yellow canary!' was the first reaction of Christophe's competitors. Still derogatory then, but the yellow jersey would grow into a global sports icon.
Then to the stage itself, which organizer ASO has designated as the queen stage. Not surprising, because with resounding names such as the Col du Glandon, Col de la Madeleine, and finish on the Col de la Loze, this ordeal leaves little to the imagination. After the start, the peloton races straight toward Alpe d'Huez. But instead of following the D1091 to Bourg d'Oisans, they turn left at the last moment onto the D526. Not much later, the ASO conjures up the foot of the Glandon near the village of Oz.
Once at the top, a long descent awaits, and the riders arrive in La Chambre after 83.5 kilometers. That is then the nursery of the next climb of the day: the Madeleine. The Dutch will remember 2002, when Michael Boogerd cycled solo over the Madeleine in the lead-up to his impressive victory on La Plagne. The global audience will especially recall 1996, when the Festina team put everything together. Richard Virenque was the first to round the top, but Jan Ullrich - thanks to Bjarne Riis - straightened his back on the final climb. When the Festina bomb burst a year later, that day was viewed from a different perspective.
In 2019, the last six kilometers of the Col de la Loze were provided with an asphalt layer and closed to all motorized traffic. Previously, this climb was also done, but the road didn't go further than Courchevel. The extremely steep airfield there was still the finish in 2023, where Felix Gall won solo and especially Jonas Vingegaard decided the Tour of that year. Tadej Pogačar cracked and ultimately lost more than seven and a half minutes. In 2020, the Col de la Loze made its debut in the Tour. Then Miguel Ángel López won ahead of Primož Roglič, who also took the measure of Pogačar then. This year, they do the climb for the first time from a different side. After the notorious airfield of Courchevel follows an equally steep bike path to the top.