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Bienvenue! After the first three stages in Denmark, the Tour arrives in France at its most northern tip, from the port city of Dunkirk, winding inland and looping back to the coast, to Calais. “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat,” a famous man once said.
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From our stage-by-stage guide, here’s what today’s preview has to say.
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Stage 4: Dunkirk-Calais, 171.5km
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Relatively short, and with a series of short, sharp climbs inland from the Channel coast, this stage will be “nervous”, as the riders put it, although the pattern should be familiar, with an early break of riders from the smaller teams looking to scoop up points on the five ascents. However, the final 25km along exposed roads around Cap Gris Nez could split the field if the wind blows from the north-west.
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Here’s how the GC standings fall, after Monday’s rest day, with the heavy favourite, Tadaj Pogacar, tucked nicely in third position.
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- 1. Wout van Aert (Bel/Jumbo-Visma) 9hrs 01mins 17secs
- 2. Yves Lampaert (Bel/Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) +7secs
- 3. Tadaj Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) +14secs
- 4. Mads Pedersen (Den/Trek-Segafredo) +18secs
- 5. Mathieu van der Poel (Ned/Alpecin-Fenix) +20secs
- 6. Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Jumbo-Visma) +22secs
- 7. Primoz Roglic (Slo/Jumbo-Visma) +23secs
- 8. Adam Yates (GB/Ineos Grenadiers) +30secs
- 9. Stefan Kung (Swi/Groupama – FDJ Same time
- 10. Tom Pidcock (GB/Ineos Grenadiers) +31secs
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Wout van Aert holds the yellow jersey, after narrowly missing out on winning stages one, two and three. “It’s not funny any more,” Van Aert said on Sunday, after missing out to Dylan Groenewegen in the sprint.
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An intriguing day awaits … join me!
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Key events:
159km to go: This stage has a bit of everything today. A few climbs, some cross-winds at play from the north-west as the riders come back towards the coast in the final 25km. There are even a few cobbles to help gear the riders up for tomorrow’s stage, which includes 11 stretches of treacherous cobbles in the final 80km. Wout van Aert, a remarkable winner of mountain, time trial and sprint stages last year, is the strongest all-rounder in the world and as holder of the yellow jersey, you’d expect him to be there or thereabouts come the finish today. I’d think Pogacar will probably keep his bonce down today and try and get through the next two stages unscathed.
167km to go: Magnus Cort, custodian of the polka dot jersey after passing all six category four climbs in Denmark in first position, leads out an early breakaway with Anthony Perez. The platoon lets them go, and quite quickly there is a two-minute gap, between the main field and our new leaders.
🚩 We’re off from Dunkirk!
🚩 C’est parti!!#PTO2022 pic.twitter.com/ct4swZ0nNk
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 5, 2022
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A rest day for all the riders yesterday. Pogacar used his time off to … rap.
— Tadej Pogačar (@TamauPogi) July 4, 2022
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fictional department
The riders have rolled out from Dunkirk, with thousands of fans lining the coastal road, which heads east before darting south towards Côte de Cassel. It’s worth mentioning that there was a minute’s applause at the start line for the three victims on Sunday evening’s awful shooting in Copenhagen, which is of course where the Tour started this year.
Preamble
Welcome! After the first three stages in Denmark, the Tour arrives in France at its most northern tip, from the port city of Dunkirk, winding inland and looping back to the coast, to Calais. “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat,” a famous man once said.
From our stage-by-stage guide, here’s what today’s preview has to say.
Stage 4: Dunkirk-Calais, 171.5km
Relatively short, and with a series of short, sharp climbs inland from the Channel coast, this stage will be “nervous”, as the riders put it, although the pattern should be familiar, with an early break of riders from the smaller teams looking to scoop up points on the five ascents. However, the final 25km along exposed roads around Cap Gris Nez could split the field if the wind blows from the north-west.
Here’s how the GC standings fall, after Monday’s rest day, with the heavy favourite, Tadaj Pogacar, tucked nicely in third position.
- 1. Wout van Aert (Bel/Jumbo-Visma) 9hrs 01mins 17secs
- 2. Yves Lampaert (Bel/Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) +7secs
- 3. Tadaj Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) +14secs
- 4. Mads Pedersen (Den/Trek-Segafredo) +18secs
- 5. Mathieu van der Poel (Ned/Alpecin-Fenix) +20secs
- 6. Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Jumbo-Visma) +22secs
- 7. Primoz Roglic (Slo/Jumbo-Visma) +23secs
- 8. Adam Yates (GB/Ineos Grenadiers) +30secs
- 9. Stefan Kung (Swi/Groupama – FDJ Same time
- 10. Tom Pidcock (GB/Ineos Grenadiers) +31secs
Wout van Aert holds the yellow jersey, after narrowly missing out on winning stages one, two and three. “It’s not funny any more,” Van Aert said on Sunday, after missing out on Dylan Groenewegen in the sprint.
An intriguing day awaits … join me!
www.theguardian.com
George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism