After a flat finish in the city of Romans-sur-Isere, the peloton will reach the famed Alps mountain range for the first time at the 104th Tour de France.
Riders will depart from the town of La Mure, near the city of Grenoble at an altitude of 846 meters, and travel a relatively calm first 25 kilometers before reaching the first of four categorized climbs on the day.
25 kilometers from the departure the field will reach the foot of the Col d'Ornon, which will be the least difficult of the categorized climbs at only a category 2 rating. While the Col d'Ornon will be the least challenging categorized climb on Stage 17, it still will separate the field inside the first 30 kilometers of the day.This ascent will involve a 6.7% average incline over 5.1 kilometers before riders reach the summit and begin their descent.
For the next 15 kilometers, riders will make a tricky descent down to the only intermediate sprint of the day in the village of Allemont.
After passing through Allemont, the peloton will begin a gradual ascent to the foot of their second categorized climb of the day.
What the climb to the summit of the Col de la Croix de Fer lacks in steepness, it more than makes up for in length.
The Hors category ascent on the Col de la Croix de Fer has the lowest average gradient of the four categorized climbs on the day at 5.2%, but is by far the longest, taking riders on a 24 kilometer slog to an altitude of over 2,000 meters above sea level.
The next 30 kilometers will involve a 1,400 meter descent from the summit of the Col de la Croix de Fer, before riders reach the beginning of the remaining two categorized climbs.
With 63 kilometers remaining, rider will begin their ascent of the day's penultimate climb on the Col du Telegraphe. This category 1 climb will be the steepest of the day, rising at an average gradient of 7.1% while covering almost 12 kilometers in distance.
Riders will get little respite after reaching the top of the Col de Telegraphe, where after a 4.5 kilometer descent, the field will reach the foot of the day's grueling final ascent on the Col du Galibier.
The climb to the summit of the Col du Galibier will be the second Hors category climb the field will face on Stage 17. Covering 17.7 kilometers at a 6.9% average incline, many riders will surely be dropped on the Col du Galibier ascent and will be a major point of final attacks for the race leader or lead group.
Once riders reach the summit of the Col du Galibier it's all downhill, as the field will descend over the last 28 kilometers before reaching the finish line in Serre-Chevalier.
Current Maillot Jaune holder Chris Froome (Team Sky) will be a focus of Stage 17, as the mountains will be the true time separator of the field in the final week at this year's Tour de France. Froome is separated from each of the next three riders, Fabio Aru (Astana), Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale), and Rigoberto Uran (Cannondale-Drapac), in the general classification by less than 30'', so the British rider is highly vulnerable to losing the yellow leader's jersey. While none of the top four riders are expected to make any major moves in the early kilometers, we will likely see a lot of gamesmanship as they reach the final climb. The long descent from the summit of the Col du Galibier to the finish in Serre-Chevalier will also be important, as the riders must take more than a couple risks in hopes of gaining valuable seconds on the overall time. We could be in for an exciting day, as big moves will likely be on tap during Stage 17 of the 104th Tour de France.
Dan Martin (Quick-Step Floors) will also be another interesting rider to watch on Stage 17. The Quick-Step Floors teams was tactically out of sync on Stage 16, and Martin lost 50'' on the leaders after falling off the pace in the final kilometers of the stage. Nasty crosswinds in the final 20 kilometers of Stage 16 ravaged the peloton, and will little support Martin was not able to keep up with the yellow jersey group that included Froome, Aru, Bardet, and Uran. Martin now sits over 2' minutes back of Froome, and must put in impressive efforts in the Alps to make up lost ground. The Irish veteran is always one to push the pace and make gutsy moves on difficult stages, and Stage 17 sets up as a must for Martin to once again gut out a tough stage and make his way back up the general classification standings after a less-than-ideal Stage 16.
BMC rider Greg van Avermaet will be a rider to watch off the front, as the Belgian has been pushing for a stage win throughout this year's Tour. Despite valiant efforts, van Avermaet has come up just shy of major stage victories on multiple occasions, narrowly finishing 2nd to Michael Matthews (Team Sunweb) on Stage 14 while also taking 4th on Stages 3 and 16. van Avermaet has shown he is in strong form at this year's Tour, and has the will to take a stage victory, but has yet to make his mark on the 104th Tour de France. van Avermaet is a rider who is not afraid to take chances, and is comfortable attacking at any point in a race. With the challenging altitude and steep mountain passes on Stage 17, watch for van Avermaet to make his move at an important point of the day and look to hold on for his first stage victory at this year's Tour.
Other riders to keep an eye on throughout Stage 17 include Warren Barguil (Team Sunweb), Primoz Roglic (Lotto NL-Jumbo), Thomas de Gendt (Lotto-Soudal), Thibault Pinot (FDJ), Brice Feillu (Fortuneo-Oscaro), Sylvain Chavanel (Direct Energie), and Guillame Martin (Wanty-Groupe Gobert).
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