Tour de France 2020 Route stage 10: Île dOléron

Tour de France 2020 Route stage 10: Île d’Oléron - Île de Ré

Tuesday 7 July - The 10th stage presents a first on the Tour de France. Two islands linked with a start and finish, it has never been seen before on La Grande Boucle. At 170 kilometres, the race crosses the marshlands near the Atlantic coast, swept by wind and surrounded by impressive fortifications. The riders head from Île d'Oléron to Île de Ré.

Oléron is an island off the Atlantic coast of France – in fact it is the second largest island of France after Corsica groter. Fort Boyard is an eye-catcher, located in the strait between Île-d’Aix and Île d’Oléron it featured in serval films an tv-shows.

The riders click into their pedals in Le Château d’Oléron and cross over to the main land on a bridge with a length of 2,862 metres, which was constructed in 1966. The race heads south to move through Royan before heading back north towards Rochefort and La Rochelle. The connecting theme of these three cities is Vauban, a military architect who constructed numerous fortifications throughout France during the reign of King Louis XIV.

No rider will be bothered, though. They don’t fight fortifications, their may concern is likely to be the strong winds in this Atlantic jaunt. After crossing the 2.9 kilometres Île de Ré bridge, completed in 1988, the finale leads to the village of Saint-Martin-de-Ré. Again, the fortifications of Vauban are to form the picturesque backdrop to a likely sprint finish.