Paris-Nice 2021: The Route

Paris-Nice sets off on Saturday 7 March and lasts eight stages. Three opportunities for fast men, one ITT, one chance for attackers, and three races for climbers, two of which finish uphill.

The race kicks off near Paris with stage 1 from Saint-Cyr-l’Ecole to Saint-Cyr-l’Ecole. The undulating route takes in four low-category climbs, the last of which is crested with 24 kilometres remaining.

Stage 2 takes the riders south. The race is played out on flat and exposed roads, so crosswinds could cause havoc.

The first crucial outing for GC riders comes in the shape of an individual time trial. The route of the 3rd stage is 14.4 kilometres long and lightly undulating until a uphill kick at 6.3% in the last 400 metres.

Stage 4 is bound to bring spectacle. The hilly race serves more than 3,500 vertical metres, while the irregular finish climb is 7.3 kilometres long and features two kilometres at over 10%.

Stage 5 offers the sprinters the last chance to shine in the Race to the Sun. It is 203 kilometres long and almost entirely flat.

The 6th stage of Paris-Nice is a lumpy race with a punchy finale in Biot. The climb to the line is 2 kilometres long, while the average gradients sits at 6%.

The Queen Stage on the penultimate day takes in three intermediate climbs before a summit finish in ski station La Colmiane. The finish ascent is 16.3 kilometres long and slopes at 6.3%. The climb is very regular.

The last stage of Paris-Nice mirrors the final stage of the 2018 and 2019 editions. At merely 110.5 kilometres the route serves six intermediate climbs before a downhill finale into Nice.