The world’s most prestigious cycle race is back on British soil for the first time in seven years as Yorkshire plays to host to the launch of the 2014 Tour de France, live on ITV Sport and British Eurosport.
Always the marquee race in any cycling season, the 101st edition is set to be even more special for British fans as for only the second time in its history, the race will start on English soil with a Grand Depart comprising of two days in Yorkshire and a third stage from Cambridge to London.
In addition to that, defending champion Chris Froome is favourite to win the race for the second year in a row and hand Britain its third successive victory in the race,
However, the Team Sky rider is set to face stiff competition from a host of talented and decorated rivals, not least a resurgent Alberto Contador, himself a two-time Tour winner.
The county of Yorkshire has turned itself yellow as it plays host to the 2014 Grand Depart, which will take place in Leeds on July 5, and the event promises to capture the imagination of the UK sporting public even further, following two years of astonishing achievements for British cycling, with Bradley Wiggins’ Tour triumph in 2012 followed up last year by Froome.
The opening three stages in the UK will take riders on a journey from north to south, finishing in London on July 7, before returning to France thereafter, concluding in Paris on July 27.
Heading into the 101st edition of the race, the main talking point has been news that 2012 champion Wiggins has been left out of the Team Sky line-up for 2014, having long since indicated that he would not be included in a squad built around Froome, who last year succeeded him as yellow jersey winner.
In the high-profile absence of Wiggins, Froome will instead be supported by his trusted lieutenant Richie Porte in a team also featuring Wiggins’ Olympic team-mate Geraint Thomas.
With Wiggins out the picture, Froome will be aiming to become the first Briton to win multiple Tour de France titles and in the recent Criterium du Dauphine he looked to be in fine form, winning the opening two stages ahead of rivals Alberto Contador and Vincenzo Nibali.
However, a crash on stage six lead to a dramatic decline for the Kenyan-born rider, who ended up finishing outside the top 10, with Contador finishing second overall, though despite that setback, Froome can take solace from his victories at the Tour of Oman and Tour de Romandie earlier in the year.
Contador, who missed the 2012 Tour de France due to serving a doping ban, will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing Tour last year, which saw him finish outside the top three.
The Spaniard has enjoyed a good season so far, claiming convincing wins at the Tirreno-Adriatico and the Tour of the Basque Country, and the former Tour winner will be in contention again this year.
Away from the fight for the yellow jersey, Britain’s sprinting sensation Mark Cavendish has expressed his desire to don the coveted Maillot Jaune in the opening stages on home soil, with hopes of claiming a stage victory in his mother’s home town, Harrogate.
Mark Renshaw has re-joined Cavendish in the colours of Omega Pharma-Quick Step, reigniting their formidable partnership which saw the Manxman claim 16 Tour de France stages between 2009 and 2011 for HTC-Highroad.
The route for this year’s race has been changed and there have been several interesting modifications. After the opening stages, riders will take on the cobblestones of northern France, a feared route for any cyclist, in a nod to the famous Paris-Roubaix spring classic race, as well as a commemoration
The unpredictable nature of cobblestones makes stage five, which includes over 15km of pavé, a vital stage and could potentially cause an early mix-up in the general classification.
With the usual mix of Vosges, Alps and Pyrenees mountain ranges all featuring in this year’s race, the route will provide a stern test for all the climbers as they vie for the race leader’s yellow jersey.
The route is laced with climbs, a total of six mountain stages and five mountaintop finales, and just one long 54km individual time trial on the penultimate day.
The Tour de France is traditionally won by an attacking rider who makes significant gains on his rivals, but on this year’s route, avoiding losses could be even more important.
Follow all the twists and turns of world’s most famous cycle race as it unfolds with ITV Sport and British Eurosport’s extensive coverage.
LATEST STANDINGS TEAMS / RIDERS ROUTE TV SCHEDULE
ITV Sport will bring viewers extensive free-to-air coverage of the 101st Tour de France which starts in Yorkshire on Saturday, July 5.
The network will be screening almost 100 hours of output throughout the 2014 Tour, which again comprises of daily live coverage and nightly highlights programmes.
With the Tour returning to Britain for the first time since 2007, live action from the first three stages based in England will be shown live and in full on ITV, with a total 18 hours of live coverage from these three stages scheduled to be broadcast on the main ITV network, as well as simulcast on ITV4.
There will also be extended coverage of the official Tour de France Opening Ceremony staged at the First Direct Arena in Leeds as the teams make their first public appearance before the opening stage.
ITV4 will broadcast the ceremony on July 3, which hosted by Jill Douglas and Sebastien Piquet, the voice of the Tour de France, and also includes musical performances by Kimberley Walsh, Opera North and Embrace.
Daily coverage of the rest of the Tour as it makes its way across France, from Stage 4 starting in Le Touquet-Paris-Plage through to Stage 21 finishing in Paris, will continue on ITV4.
ITV’s highly experienced on-air Tour team will guide viewers through the 21-stage race, which starts outside Leeds Town Hall and ends at its traditional home, the Champs-Elysees in Paris, on Sunday, July 27.
Gary Imlach is back to anchor the network’s extensive coverage which includes at least two hours of live action from each stage during the Tour, plus regular one-hour evening highlights at 7.00pm, all presented on-location from every stage during the event.
He will be joined for expert analysis and comment in ITV’s on-site presentation area by British cycling legend Chris Boardman.
British cycling veteran David Millar will also be part of the analysis team for the opening three days of Tour while the race is the UK.
Ned Boulting provides his unique take on the race with regular reports from the road side. He will also interview the key names during the Tour alongside fellow reporter Matt Rendell.
In the commentary box, the popular duo of Phil Liggett – now working on his 42nd Tour for British television – and Paul Sherwen are paired up once again to call the action from all 21 stages during the three-week race.
Alongside ITV’s full television coverage, the channel’s dedicated Tour de France website – itv.com/tourdefrance – will feature regular news updates, reports, interviews, video highlights, stage guides, rider profiles, plus video blogs and articles from ITV’s on-air experts.
Live online streaming of ITV’s live Tour de France coverage will be made available via ITV Player online and via the app at itv.com/itvplayer/itv4.
@ITVCycling on Twitter will keep fans up-to-date with the latest developments from each stage during the event.
All of ITV’s coverage of the 2014 Tour will be screened in high-definition on ITV HD and ITV4 HD, plus each highlights show will be available to watch via ITV Player on PCs, laptops, mobiles and tablets.
Last year, ITV signed a new deal to continue screening the Tour de France, cycling’s showpiece event, on terrestrial television until 2019.
In addition to all 21 stages of the 2014 Tour, ITV4 will also be screening live coverage of the inaugural La Course, a women’s race to be held the final day of the Tour de France in Paris.
An event which being hailed as the biggest showcase for women’s cycling outside of the Olympics, La Course will be run prior to the 21st and final stage of the men’s race on Sunday, July 27.
The world’s most prestigious cycling race gets underway in Yorkshire this year and British Eurosport will have live coverage from every stage of the 101st Tour de France.
The pan-European channel will screen all 21 stages live and in high definition, with the action beginning with the Grand Depart in Yorkshire on July 5-6 and concluding with the spectacular finale on the Champs Elysees in Paris on July 27.
Ninety minute highlight programmes from the day’s stage will be broadcast every evening in prime time on British Eurosport, with various repeats the next morning.
New for this year is the involvement of cycling legend Greg LeMond, who joins Eurosport’s on-air line-up to provide live on-site analysis in an exclusive preview and review show entitled ‘LeMond on Tour’, which bookends British Eurosport’s live stage coverage, and replaces the previous UK-based studio coverage hosted by James Richardson.
LeMond won his most famous Tour de France victory exactly 25 years ago in 1989, the same year Eurosport was launched.
An outspoken and passionate supporter of the sport he loves, LeMond has not shared his racing knowledge widely on live television in the past, making his analysis a fascinating prospect for Eurosport viewers and cycling fans.
His shows will provide a unique perspective on the day’s stage ahead, as well as a flashback on the events of the day before, as well as exclusive interviews, reports and analysis direct from each stage.
British Eurosport’s main commentary team will be led by Carlton Kirby, who will be joined by four-time green jersey winner Sean Kelly.
Live online streaming of British Eurosport’s coverage can be accessed via Eurosport Player (subscription required), plus there will also be comprehensive coverage via the British Eurosport cycling website with up-to-date reports, blogs, interviews and videos.
.
Welsh-language channel S4C has claimed the rights screen extensive coverage of 2014 Tour de France, bringing the world’s greatest cycle race to the channel for the first time.
In a deal which brings some of the world’s best cycle races to S4C, the channel has announced plans to bring more coverage of the sport to Welsh-speaking audiences, featuring Le Tour and a host of other top races throughout the year.
For the first time, S4C will screen regular live afternoon Welsh-language coverage of the race and nightly highlights.
On each stage of the Tour, S4C will join the peloton live on the road for the final two hours of each stage, with Wyn Gruffydd commentating on the action and bringing viewers the latest news as the leaders break away and sprint for the finish.
S4C will also broadcast daily highlights of each stage, not before 10.00pm, as well as review and preview programmes on rest day evenings.
Due to the Llangollen International Eisteddfod (July 9-12) and the Royal Welsh Show (July 22-24), S4C’s live stage coverage on these days will instead be shown via its website – s4c.co.uk/clic.
Each evening, Rhodri Gomer Davies presents a comprehensive round up of the day’s stage. He will also join the teams on the road as they take on the British stages.
S4C is available on all major platforms in Wales and across the UK on Sky, Virgin, Freesat, and on demand via YouView, while fans can also watch live and on demand online at s4c.co.uk/clic.
CLICK HERE to view S4C’s Tour de France TV schedule
.
.
.
STAGE 14: Grenoble > Risoul – 177km / Mountain Stage LIVE: 12.00pm-4.30pm ITV4 / 12.30pm-5.00pm British Eurosport Highlights: 7.00pm-8.00pm ITV4 Sunday 20th July STAGE 15: Tallard > Nimes – 222km / Flat Stage LIVE: 2.00pm-4.30pm ITV4 / 12.30pm-5.00pm British Eurosport Highlights: 7.00pm-8.00pm ITV4 Monday 21st July REST DAY Week 2 Review: 7.00pm-8.00pm ITV4 Tuesday 22nd July STAGE 16: Carcassonne > Bagneres-de-Luchon – 237km / Mountain Stage LIVE: 2.00pm-4.30pm ITV4 / 12.30pm-5.00pm British Eurosport Highlights: 7.00pm-8.00pm ITV4 Wednesday 23rd July STAGE 17: Saint-Gaudens > Saint-Lary-Soulan Pla d’Adet – 125km / Mountain Stage LIVE: 1.00pm-4.30pm ITV4 / 12.45pm-5.00pm British Eurosport Highlights: 7.00pm-8.00pm ITV4 Thursday 24th July STAGE 18: Pau > Hautacam – 145km / Mountain Stage LIVE: 1.00pm-5.00pm ITV4 / 10.45am-5.15pm British Eurosport Highlights: 7.00pm-8.00pm ITV4 Friday 25th July STAGE 19: Maubourguet Pays du Val d’Adour > Bergerac – 208km / Flat Stage LIVE: 2.00pm-4.30pm ITV4 / 9.30am-5.15pm British Eurosport Highlights: 7.00pm-8.00pm ITV4 Saturday 26th July STAGE 20: Bergerac > Perigueux – 54km / Individual Time Trial LIVE: 2.00pm-5.00pm ITV4 / 12.00pm-5.00pm British Eurosport Highlights: 7.00pm-8.00pm ITV4 Sunday 27th July STAGE 21: Evry > Paris – 136km / Flat Stage LIVE: 3.00pm-7.00pm ITV4 / 2.30pm-6.30pm British Eurosport Highlights: 9.00pm-10.00pm ITV4