Tours (AFP)
The peloton left Tours Thursday at 2:04 pm and started the sixth stage of the Tour de France, a priori favorable to the sprinters while being favorable to the edges in its final.
The yellow jersey Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin) and 176 other riders, including Tadej Pogacar who is behind the Dutchman in the general classification after winning the time trial on Wednesday, started from the prefecture of Indre-et-Loire towards Châteauroux (Indre).
The arrival of the 160.6 km long stage is scheduled between 5:20 p.m. and 5:50 p.m.
On its way, the peloton will find a 4th category climb placed in the middle of the course as well as an intermediate sprint at a good fifty kilometers from the finish.
This essentially flat terrain could smile on sprinters Tim Merlier (Alpecin) or Mark Cavendish (Deceuninck), already winners on the Tour 2021.
Unless the wind gets involved and offers edge possibilities, "not to be excluded in the last 60 kilometers" for the course planner Thierry Gouvenou.
Leaving Tours, however, the wind was very moderate.
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During the two previous arrivals at Châteauroux (2008 and 2011), Cavendish had won.
In 1998, another sprinter raised his arms there in the person of Mario Cipollini.
© 2021 AFP