French health restrictions force removal of Col de Tourmalet from Vuelta a España stage 6
Oct 23 2020 05:05 am CET
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The Vuelta a España has announced the change in the route for the sixth stage in the wake of the new health restrictions in France.
Just like it happened with the Giro d'Italia, the Spanish grand tour was also forced to change the route of the 6th stage to avoid entering French territory. This changes -which were taken in a joint decision with the Prefects of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques and the Hautes-Pyrénées- mean that the stage won't have its summit finish in the Col de Tourmalet on the 25th of October.
"Stage 6 of La Vuelta 20 will start from Biescas, as planned - but the route from then on is completely different," said Unipublic -organisation of the Vuelta- through a statement. "It will be a 146,4-kilometre stage, with 3040 meters of vertical elevation. The peloton will face two categorised climbs, the Alto de Petralba (Cat 3) and the Alto de Cotefablo (Cat 2), before a new passage through Biescas (where there will be an Intermediate Sprint) that will lead to the final climb to the ski station of Aramón Formigal.
"The climb to Aramón Formigal is one of the most iconic ascents of the Aragón Pyrenees. Its slopes are gentle, never going beyond 10% at its steepest, with an average of 4,6% on its final 14,6 kilometres. What is really demanding is the length of the effort, as climbing from Biescas means 27 kilometres of continuous ascent, without any rest. Aramón Formigal hosted one of the most remarkable cycling races of the decade: the 15th stage of La Vuelta 16. That day, Alberto Contador launched an early attack that ended up costing Chris Froome his chances of overall victory and helping Nairo Quintana’s prospects of triumphing in Madrid. Aramón Formigal has been summit finish of La Vuelta in another four occasions, with victory corresponding to José Manuel ‘Tarangu’ Fuente (1972), Agustín Tamames (1975), Pedro Torres (1977) and Warren Barguil (2013)."
As with the rest of the climbs of the 2020 edition of the Vuelta a España, the access to the final climb is forbidden for spectators.
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