Tour 2015: Stage 3 Antwerp > Huy

159.5km | Monday July 6 | Start 13:10 – Finish 17:17 CET


STAGE FACT
Huy is the birthplace of John Joseph Merlin, the inventor of another form of wheeled personal transport: rollerskates.


Bonjour les Belges! The Tour hops across the border to Belgium for the second day on the road with a stage that seems designed as an homage to the one-day Classic Flèche Wallonne. The race heads south-east from the port city of Antwerp (also the world’s largest diamond centre) and into the hills of Wallonia. There are 4 categorised climbs on the route, culminating with a dash up the terrifyingly steep Mur de Huy.

Location, location

After the echelons, today is another one of those days where position in the bunch will be the key to success or failure. A rider finding himself at the back of the bunch approaching one of the short, sharp climbs could risk losing ground, getting caught behind a crash, or frantically chasing back up. Timing is going to be as important as stamina.

Tell me more about this finish…
The ‘Huy Wall’, or Chemin des Chappelles, to give it its proper name, is 1.3 km with an average gradient of 9.6%. So what’s the fuss about? The final few hundred metres of this twisty, narrow road kick up to over 20%, hence the name. Whether in a Classic or Tour de France stage, it’s a nasty way to end a bike race.

Did this year’s Flèche Wallonne tell us anything?
Alejandro Valverde has won 3 Flèche Wallonne Classic, most recently in April 2015. Chris Froome, on the other hand, crashed in the 2015 race and limped up the road to the finish. Whatever happens, it’s quite possible we’ll see the yellow jersey change hands at the end of the day.