2017 will see the Tour de France start abroad for the 22nd time. Thirty years after West Berlin's turn in 1987, the peloton of the biggest cycling race in the world will hit the road in Germany — this time from Düsseldorf. The capital of North Rhine-Westphalia, which straddles the Rhine, will be the beating heart of the world of cycling for a weekend. It is a well-deserved reward for German riders, who are an integral part of today's cycling elite, and cycling fans, very numerous in the country and, particularly, in Düsseldorf.
Based on the stage profile, Tony Martin has the best shot at wearing the legendary yellow jersey in his home country at the end of the opening day. The first stage, scheduled for July 1, 2017, will be a 13 km individual time trial through the streets of Düsseldorf. The stage will start opposite the Messe fair grounds, following which the riders will roll down the banks of the Rhine for several kilometers before crossing it twice and heading for Königsallee, the city's most iconic street. Finally, after breezing past the opera, the riders will head north-west towards the finish line, also located near Messe. The pancake-flat course will whet the appetite of power riders, notably the 2013 individual time trial world champion.
The next day, Sunday, July 2, 2017, cycling fans will again throng the streets of the center of Düsseldorf, where the second stage will begin. After a tour through the city center, the first mountain points will be up for grabs at km 6, on the Grafenberg. The peloton will then make its way back to Düsseldorf one last time before heading to a destination as yet unknown, which will be revealed at the presentation of the route of the 2017 Tour de France, on October 18, 2016.
The Düsseldorf stages of the 2017 Tour de France :
- > Saturday July 1 : Düsseldorf > Düsseldorf (CLM), 13 km
- > Sunday July 2 : Düsseldorf > …
