Tour de France Alpine Stages Preview: The Climbs That Decide the Race

The Tour de France Alpine stages arrive this week, and they were built to settle this race once and for all. Three consecutive days through the Alps, headlined by the first back-to-back finish atop Alpe d'Huez since 1979, will decide not just who wins in Paris but who fills out the podium behind him. Here's a climb-by-climb breakdown of Stages 18, 19 and 20, and what's genuinely at stake on each of them.

The Alpine Stages at a Glance

Stage 18: Voiron to Orcieres-Merlette

Stage 18 opens the Alpine trilogy with 185.2km and 3,900m of climbing, including five categorised ascents. The Cote d'Engins (11.4km at 5.4%) arrives before the 40km mark, followed by the Monteynard climb (9.7km at 5%), before the road ramps steadily toward the finish at Orcieres-Merlette, a 7.1km final ascent averaging 6.7%, topping out at around 1,850m altitude.

This finish carries real Tour history. Luis Ocana launched one of the sport's most famous solo attacks here in 1971, riding clear for 60km to finish nine minutes ahead of Eddy Merckx. The last visit, in 2020, saw Primoz Roglic win from a group sprint, but that was a pandemic-shortened, unusually fresh peloton. With three weeks of racing already in the legs this time, expect a far more selective finish.

Stage 19: Gap to Alpe d'Huez

A shorter, punchier stage at just 128km, Stage 19 approaches the Alps via the Col Bayard, Col du Noyer and Col d'Ornon before delivering the tour's most iconic finish: Alpe d'Huez itself. The climb runs 13.8km at an average 8.1%, split across 21 numbered hairpins that count down from 21 at the base to 1 at the summit.

Each hairpin is named after a past Tour winner, number 21 carries Fausto Coppi's name, while hairpin 1 remains blank, waiting for the 2026 champion. The first two kilometres average close to 10%, and the legendary 'Dutch Corner' at hairpin 7 is always one of the race's greatest spectacles.

Stage 20: The Queen Stage and the Alpe d'Huez Double

This is the stage the whole route was built around. Stage 20 crosses the Col de la Croix de Fer, the Col du Telegraphe, and the Col du Galibier, at 2,642m, the highest point of this Tour, before descending via the Col de la Sarenne into a second consecutive finish atop Alpe d'Huez, this time from a different direction to Stage 19.

It's the first time the Tour has finished on Alpe d'Huez twice in the same race since 1979, and by some measures, it's the single hardest stage of climbing this Tour has ever produced.

What's at Stake in the GC Battle

With Jonas Vingegaard already out of the race following his Stage 15 crash, Tadej Pogacar's overall lead looks considerably more secure than it did heading into the final week. But that doesn't make these three stages any less consequential. Remco Evenepoel and Pogacar's own teammate Isaac del Toro are both fighting for the final podium spots, and with terrain this demanding, repeated summit finishes, sustained high-altitude efforts, and a genuinely brutal queen stage, there's every chance for real time gaps to open up between them before Paris.

How to Bet on the Alpine Stages

• Stage winner: Back a rider for the win on any of the three Alpine stages via the Tour de France betting page.
• Outright winner: With the Alps set to shape the final GC standings, check the cycling outrights page for the latest odds.
• Podium finish markets: With Evenepoel and del Toro both in contention for the final two podium spots, a podium-finish market may offer better value than backing a single rider to finish in an exact position.

Odds move quickly heading into demanding mountain stages like these, so treat any figure here as a snapshot and check live pricing before you bet.

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FAQs: Tour de France Alpine Stages

When are the Tour de France Alpine stages?

Stages 18, 19 and 20 run on Thursday 23, Friday 24, and Saturday 25 July, taking the race through its final and most demanding mountain block before the finish in Paris.

Has Alpe d'Huez been climbed twice in the same Tour before?

Not since 1979. The back-to-back finishes on Stages 19 and 20 this year are the first time the Tour has returned to the summit twice in a single edition since then.

Why is Stage 20 considered the hardest stage?

It crosses four major climbs, including the Col du Galibier at 2,642m altitude, before finishing with a second consecutive ascent of Alpe d'Huez, a combination that makes it one of the toughest single stages in the race's history.

Can Remco Evenepoel or Isaac del Toro catch Tadej Pogacar in the Alps?

Catching Pogacar for the overall lead looks unlikely given the size of his advantage, but both riders have a genuine chance to secure time on each other in the fight for the final podium spots.

Where can I bet on the Tour de France Alpine stages?

You can check odds and markets on the Tour de France betting page and the cycling outrights page at Sportsbet.io.

The Race Reaches Its Toughest Test

Three days, five major climbs, and a historic Alpe d'Huez double, the Tour de France Alpine stages have everything needed to settle the final standings. Check the latest odds on the cycling outrights page, follow every stage on the Tour de France betting page, and see the current promotions available at Sportsbet.io.

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