{"id":227018,"date":"2025-10-26T20:08:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-26T20:08:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/227018\/"},"modified":"2025-10-26T20:08:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-26T20:08:07","slug":"tour-de-france-route-designers-under-fire-for-controversial-2026-parcours","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/227018\/","title":{"rendered":"Tour de France route designers under fire for controversial 2026 parcours"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dutch ex-pro turned analyst Thijs Zonneveld<\/a> has never been one to hold back \u2014 and his verdict on the newly revealed 2026 Tour de France<\/a> route is as sharp as ever. The 45-year-old has accused organisers of \u201cplaying it safe\u201d and serving up a mountain week that \u201cmakes no sense\u201d, describing one Alpine stage as \u201creally a disgrace\u201d.<\/p>\n

Rather than applauding the design of the final week, Zonneveld has criticised what he sees as a cautious approach that strips the Tour of its trademark tension. \u201cLast year, every stage could go in any direction,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s been completely abandoned now.\u201d<\/p>\n

For him, the problem is not the inclusion of climbing but the way it\u2019s presented \u2014 long, steady gradients that discourage aggressive racing.<\/p>\n


\nThe \u201cmountain stage\u201d that isn\u2019t one<\/p>\n

Zonneveld\u2019s most scathing remarks were aimed at the ride to Orci\u00e8res-Merlette, officially billed as a mountain stage. He argues that the profile is far too tame to justify the label.<\/p>\n

\u201cStage 18 is, in my opinion, really a disgrace,\u201d he said. \u201cThey call it a mountain stage, but it\u2019s more like a light version of a one-climb day. Two or three percent for hours, then five, and the last climb averages maybe six. You can ride up it in the big ring at 35 kilometres per hour.\u201d<\/p>\n

He compared the layout to the 2020 edition, when Primoz Roglic<\/a> won on the same summit finish with barely any gaps behind. \u201cJumbo pulled from the bottom like it was a lead-out, and there were still about fifteen riders together at the top,\u201d he recalled. \u201cI honestly don\u2019t understand why you\u2019d add stages like this.\u201dPredictable racing, misplaced timing<\/p>\n

The Dutchman\u2019s main gripe is that such a steady profile has been placed deep in the decisive final week \u2014 precisely when, he argues, the Tour should be at its most explosive. \u201cIf it were early in the race, I\u2019d get it,\u201d he explained. \u201cThen you keep the gaps small. But now? It makes no sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

He calls the stage \u201cjust boring\u201d, lamenting that \u201cnothing happens until the final five kilometres\u201d.<\/p>\n

Even Alpe d\u2019Huez fails to inspireZonneveld also poured cold water on the hype surrounding the following day\u2019s Alpe d\u2019Huez finish. While the climb itself is legendary, he believes the run-in to it lacks bite. \u201cMaybe Marco Pantani<\/a>\u2019s record goes, but that\u2019s about the only exciting thing that might happen,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you design a stage like that, you should at least make something of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Zonneveld\u2019s eyes, the 2026 edition risks feeling too tidy, too predictable \u2014 a Tour lacking the chaos and unpredictability that made recent years must-watch television.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis feels like a race without courage,\u201d he concluded. \u201cEven the queen stages feel like missed opportunities.\u201d<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dutch ex-pro turned analyst Thijs Zonneveld has never been one to hold back \u2014 and his verdict on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":227019,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-227018","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-cycling","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227018","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=227018"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227018\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/227019"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=227018"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=227018"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=227018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}