Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal 2018: The Route

Sunday, 9 September 2018 - The 9th edition of the Grand Prix de Montréal amounts to 195.2 kilometres. The hilly race is played out on a 12.2 kilometres circuit that is ridden sixteen times. The route of the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal features 4,528 vertical metres.

The Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal sets off on Avenue du Parc and shortly the riders tackle the Côte Camillien-Houde. The climb in Parc du Mont-Royal is 1.8 kilometres at 8%. On winding roads the metropolis of Montreal seems very far away indeed.

After cresting the Camillien-Houde the riders plunge down a steady drop and following 1 kilometre on the flat the next climb appears. The Côte de la Polytechnique is 780 metres at 6%, while a 200 metres ramp at 11% kicks in hard. This is the steepest stretch in each round.

Following the Côte de la Polytechnique the riders turn left to drop down Chemin de la Rampe. Following a sharp turns the route arrives on the wide Boulevard Edouard-Montpetit. In recent years, the riders would continue home from this point on, but now a new climb is added to the circuit. The riders turn right on the Avenue Claude Champagne. This 800 metres section slopes at 4% and adds 54 extra vertical metres to each lap.

Over the Claude Champagne climb it is 2.9 kilometres to the line. The first 500 metres are on the flat before a flying descent leads to the famous U-turn with 560 metres left. After almost coming to a standstill, the final run-in to the finish line slopes at 4%.

Each lap features 283 vertical metres and the full route amounts to an altitude gain of 4,528 metres.

The race usually boils down to a group sprint. Last year, Diego Ulissi outsprinted Jesús Herrada, Tom-Jelte Slagter, Jan Bakelants, Bauke Mollema and Tony Gallopin.