As the route starts halfway up to Villars-sur-Ollon, the riders climb from the start. First false flat and the last 3.8 kilometres of the Col de la Croix go up at 8.8%. A 30 kilometres descent then takes them down to Aigle.
After 15 kilometres on the valley floor, the riders tackle the Col de la Croix again, but this time from bottom to top. This way, it’s a 17.1 kilometres long ascent with an average gradient of 7.1%.
Again, the route goes down to Aigle, and 15 kilometres later, the finishing climb kicks in. It’s the first part of the Col de la Croix, which is pepped up by a 1.3 kilometres stretch at 8.1% just before the actual climb begins. The drag up to the finish line in Villars-sur-Ollon serves up 7.9 kilometres of ascending at an average gradient of 7.7%.
Last year’s 3rd stage finished in Villars-sur-Ollon after the same approach. Mattias Skjelmose outsprinted Felix Gall for the win, while Juan Ayuso came home in third place.
Starting at kilometre 113.1, the Golden Kilometre offers two opportunities to gain time bonuses of 3, 2, and 1 seconds. The first three riders at the finish line take 10, 6, and 4 seconds.
Ride the route yourself? Download GPX 7th stage 2024 Tour de Suisse.
Another interesting read: results 7th stage 2024 Tour de Suisse.
Tour de Suisse 2024 stage 7: route, profile, more
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