The 2020 Tour de France is under way!

Even the start of this year’s race is an almost unexpected triumph. For a long time it wasn’t certain le Tour would be staged at all in 2020, and the race was still in doubt right up to the start.

The route promises an exciting mix of mass sprint finishes, days made for puncheurs who can climb multiple smaller hills then smash out a strong sprint, and showcases for pure climbers who can leave rivals behind on grueling ascents. The racing is expected to be faster and even more intense than usual, because of the very limited race calendar. In a typical year the teams would already have been battling it out for several months of stage races, one day classics, and the earlier grand tour, the Giro d’Italia. This year, legs are far fresher.

This may be one of the toughest Tour de France routes yet, according to riders who have reconnoitered it. From the spectator’s perspective, this is a Tour where the possibilities for advantages to be won and lost emerge early, and do not let up until the peloton arrives in Paris. It could be anyone’s race, and will be a nail biter to watch.