Tour de France 2026 stage 18 preview

Stage 18: Voiron – Orcières-MerletteDate: July 23, 2026Distance: 185.2kmStart time: 12:35 CETFinish time: 17:25 CET

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(Image credit: ASO)(Image credit: ASO)(Image credit: ASO)

The first of the final Alpine trilogy, stage 18 should suit attacking climbers out of contention for the overall classification. The 185.2 km route from Voiron to Orcières-Merlette ends on the climb made legendary by Luis Ocaña’s imposing solo victory over Eddy Merckx in 1971.

Heading south toward the Grenoble urban area, the first categorised climb, the Côte d’Engins, arrives at kilometre 36.7, but the road continues to rise gently for another 15 kilometres before dropping into the Grenoble valley. From there, a succession of ascents awaits: the Col du Monteynard, the Côte des Terrasses and the Côte de Saint-Léger-les-Mélèzes, before the final 7km haul to the finish at Orcières-Merlette, 1,825 metres above sea level.

MountainsCôte d’Engins (cat. 1, 11.4km at 5.4%), km. 36.7Côte de Monteynard (cat. 2, 9.7km at 5%), km. 92.2Côte des Terrasses (cat. 3, 3.4km at 6.6%), km. 112.8Côte de Saint-Léger-les-Mélèzes (cat. 3, 2.5km at 6.9%), km. 166.2Orcières-Merlette (cat. 1, 7.1km at 6.7%), km. 185.2Sprints