2026 Tour de France
113th edition: July 4 - July 26, 2026
Teams presentation photos, stage list, start list, race description
Back to 2026 Tour de France | Start list | Tour de France sonnet by David Stanley | Organizer's route description | List of stages
2026 Tour de France riders & teams presentation ceremony photos by Fotoreporter Sirotti:
Could there be a more stunning site to present the riders than in front of Antonio Gaudi's Sagrada Familia, the tallest church in the world? Started in 1882, it reached structural completion in 2026.
Tour de France boss Christian Prudhomme
More than a few cycling fans showed up to watch the presentation.
John Degenkolb
Mexican road champion Isaac del Toro
Antonio Tiberi
Juan Ayuso
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World road champion Tadej Pogacar is going for his fifth Tour de France victory.
Two-time Tour winner Jonas Vingegaard is going to do all he can to grab this Tour victory for himself. He just won the Giro d'Italia in May.
Biniam Girmay
Richard Carapaz
Michael Matthews
Can Julian Alaphilippe find some of that old black magic?
Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz always make a race interesting.
Paul Seixas
Tom Pidcock. On any given day he is a serious threat to win a race.
Filippo Ganna
Egan Bernal
French road champion Romain Gregoire
Mathieu van der Poel
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Start list with back numbers, July 3, 2026.
| UAE Team Emirates-XRG | |
| 1 | Tadej Pogacar |
| 2 | Isaac del Toro |
| 3 | Felix Grossschartner |
| 4 | Brandon McNulty |
| 5 | Nils Politt |
| 6 | Florian Vermeersch |
| 7 | Tim Wellens |
| 8 | Adam Yates |
| Team Visma | Lease a Bike | |
| 11 | Jonas Vingegaard |
| 12 | Edoardo Affini |
| 13 | Bruno Armirail |
| 14 | Victor Campenaerts |
| 15 | Per Strand Hagenes |
| 16 | Matteo Jorgenson |
| 17 | Sepp Kuss |
| 18 | Davide Piganzoli |
| Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | |
| 21 | Remco Evenepoel |
| 22 | Mattia Cattaneo |
| 23 | Nico Denz |
| 24 | Jai Hindley |
| 25 | Florian Lipowitz |
| 26 | Jan Tratnik |
| 27 | Tim van Dijke |
| 28 | Maxim Van Gils |
| Lidl-Trek | |
| 31 | Juan Ayuso |
| 32 | Derek Gee-West |
| 33 | Mads Pedersen |
| 34 | Quinn Simmons |
| 35 | Mattias Skjelmose |
| 36 | Toms Skujins |
| 37 | Mathias Vacek |
| 38 | Carlos Verona |
| EF Education-EasyPost | |
| 41 | Richard Carapaz |
| 42 | Kasper Asgreen |
| 43 | Alex Baudin |
| 44 | Ben Healy |
| 45 | Sean Quinn |
| 46 | Georg Steinhauser |
| 47 | Michael Valgren |
| 48 | Max Walker |
| Decathlon CMA CGM Team | |
| 51 | Paul Seixas |
| 52 | Tiesj Benoot |
| 53 | Cees Bol |
| 54 | Daan Hoole |
| 55 | Olav Kooij |
| 56 | Aurélien Paret-Peintre |
| 57 | Nicolas Prodhomme |
| 58 | Matthew Riccitello |
| XDS Astana Team | |
| 61 | Sergio Higuita |
| 62 | Davide Ballerini |
| 63 | Aaron Gate |
| 64 | Max Kanter |
| 65 | Harold Tejada |
| 66 | Mike Teunissen |
| 67 | Simone Velasco |
| 68 | Nicolas Vinokurov |
| Bahrain Victorious | |
| 71 | Lenny Martinez |
| 72 | Phil Bauhaus |
| 73 | Damiano Caruso |
| 74 | Kamil Gradek |
| 75 | Matej Mohoric |
| 76 | Robert Stannard |
| 77 | Antonio Tiberi |
| 78 | Vlad Van Mechelen |
| Netcompany INEOS | |
| 81 | Egan Bernal |
| 82 | Thymen Arensman |
| 83 | Tobias Foss |
| 84 | Filippo Ganna |
| 85 | Dorian Godon |
| 86 | Michal Kwiatkowski |
| 87 | Joshua Tarling |
| 88 | Kévin Vauquelin |
| Soudal Quick-Step | |
| 91 | Tim Merlier |
| 92 | Pascal Eenkhoorn |
| 93 | Valentin Paret-Peintre |
| 94 | Jasper Stuyven |
| 95 | Dylan van Baarle |
| 96 | Bert Van Lerberghe |
| 97 | Ilan Van Wilder |
| 98 | Louis Vervaeke |
| Alpecin-Premier Tech | |
| 101 | Mathieu van der Poel |
| 102 | Ramses Debruyne |
| 103 | Silvan Dillier |
| 104 | Tim Marsman |
| 105 | Jasper Philipsen |
| 106 | Edward Planckaert |
| 107 | Jonas Rickaert |
| 108 | Emiel Verstrynge |
| Team Jayco-AlUla | |
| 111 | Ben O'Connor |
| 112 | Pascal Ackermann |
| 113 | Luke Durbridge |
| 114 | Felix Engelhardt |
| 115 | Michael Matthews |
| 116 | Kelland O'Brien |
| 117 | Luke Plapp |
| 118 | Mauro Schmid |
| Uno-X Mobility | |
| 121 | Tobias Halland Johannessen |
| 122 | Jonas Abrahamsen |
| 123 | Anthon Charmig |
| 124 | Magnus Cort |
| 125 | Anders Halland Johannessen |
| 126 | Anders Skaarseth |
| 127 | Torstein Træen |
| 128 | Søren Wærenskjold |
| NSN Cycling Team | |
| 131 | Biniam Girmay |
| 132 | Lewis Askey |
| 133 | George Bennett |
| 134 | Marco Frigo |
| 135 | Matis Louvel |
| 136 | Krists Neilands |
| 137 | Jake Stewart |
| 138 | Tom Van Asbroeck |
| Movistar Team | |
| 141 | Cian Uijtdebroeks |
| 142 | Pablo Castrillo |
| 143 | Jefferson Cepeda |
| 144 | Raúl García |
| 145 | Michel Hessmann |
| 146 | Nelson Oliveira |
| 147 | Javier Romo |
| 148 | Einer Rubio |
| Lotto-Intermarché | |
| 151 | Arnaud De Lie |
| 152 | Huub Artz |
| 153 | Jenno Berckmoes |
| 154 | Lars Craps |
| 155 | Liam Slock |
| 156 | Lennert Van Eetvelt |
| 157 | Baptiste Veistroffer |
| 158 | Georg Zimmermann |
| Cofidis | |
| 161 | Ion Izagirre |
| 162 | Piet Allegaert |
| 163 | Alex Aranburu |
| 164 | Jenthe Biermans |
| 165 | Milan Fretin |
| 166 | Alex Kirsch |
| 167 | Hugo Page |
| 168 | Benjamin Thomas |
| Pinarello-Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team | |
| 171 | Tom Pidcock |
| 172 | Xabier Azparren |
| 173 | Chris Harper |
| 174 | Quinten Hermans |
| 175 | Damien Howson |
| 176 | Xandro Meurisse |
| 177 | Brent Van Moer |
| 178 | Fred Wright |
| Groupama-FDJ United | |
| 181 | Romain Grégoire |
| 182 | Clément Berthet |
| 183 | Clément Braz Afonso |
| 184 | Ewen Costiou |
| 185 | Lorenzo Germani |
| 186 | Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet |
| 187 | Quentin Pacher |
| 188 | Clément Russo |
| Tudor Pro Cycling Team | |
| 191 | Julian Alaphilippe |
| 192 | Arvid de Kleijn |
| 193 | Marco Haller |
| 194 | Marc Hirschi |
| 195 | Rick Pluimers |
| 196 | Michael Storer |
| 197 | Matteo Trentin |
| 198 | Yannis Voisard |
| Team TotalEnergies | |
| 201 | Jordan Jegat |
| 202 | Nicolas Breuillard |
| 203 | Joris Delbove |
| 204 | Alexandre Delettre |
| 205 | Thibault Guernalec |
| 206 | Mathis Le Berre |
| 207 | Anthony Turgis |
| 208 | Mattéo Vercher |
| Team Picnic PostNL | |
| 211 | Warren Barguil |
| 212 | Frits Biesterbos |
| 213 | Pavel Bittner |
| 214 | John Degenkolb |
| 215 | Robbe Dhondt |
| 216 | Niklas Märkl |
| 217 | Julius van den Berg |
| 218 | Frank van den Broek |
| Caja Rural-Seguros RGA | |
| 221 | Fernando Gaviria |
| 222 | Abel Balderstone |
| 223 | Sebastian Berwick |
| 224 | Alex Molenaar |
| 225 | Joel Nicolau |
| 226 | Stefano Oldani |
| 227 | Jakub Otruba |
| 228 | José Félix Parra |
From Renaissance man David Stanley, a Tour de France sonnet:
From its outset in 1903, the Tour de France has been an insanely brutal test of rider and machine. That first race covered 2,428 km, spread across 19 days and comprised of only 6 stages. The early racers, on rudimentary bicycles, covered 400 km per day over unpaved backcountry roads. Founder Henri Desgrange often said that if more than 1 rider survived, his race was a failure.
Today’s Tour is equally vicious. 3,333 kilometers spread over 21 stages. In addition, there are well over 120 kms of riding through each stage’s pre-race neutral zones. Yes, one extra stage that counts for nothing. The men will climb 54,450 meters of vertical through 5 mountain ranges. That’s 6 times up Everest. This summer’s temps are projected to hit 40C/105F as a heatwave dominates the continent. Imagine, 4-6 hours each day of racing a bike full-gas in a sauna.
The bikes have changed in 123 years yet the pain of speed, climbing, and crashes is a constant companion. The dread of the mountains keeps riders up at night. The failure of one-third of the field to reach Paris on the last day haunt riders until their final sleep. The deep sense of satisfaction and contentment for those who pass this examination of the soul, this ordeal of brutality, this rolling cathedral of the will- those sensations last across generations.
Le Tour de France; toujours aussi sauvage
The Tour de France begins in just eight days.
A journey round the land and of the soul.
Three weeks, the sun will scorch them with its blaze.
Few shall reach Paris with their body whole.
Across the Alps and Pyrenees they climb.
The North Sea winds will scour off their faces.
Ventoux and Alpe d’Huez, each in their time,
Eight hour days; few endure such savage races.
Le Tour tests rider bodies and their minds.
The agony of climbing has no peer.
The tarmac, when you crash, scrapes your skin clear.
There is no quick relief from Le Tour’s grind.
Ah, at last to sprint down Champs Elysees.
Fair: the bravest of the strong reach this day.
Bill & Carol McGann's book The Story of the Tour de France, Vol 1: 1903 - 1975 is available in print, Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.
The 2026 Tour de France route was revealed October 23, 2025. Here's the organizer's description:
The challenge set for the field of the Tour de France between 4 and 26 July was unveiled before an audience of almost 3,500 at the Palais des Congrès de Paris.
Following the Grand Départ in Barcelona, the race will pay a visit to each of the five mountain ranges in France. The Pyrenees, Massif Central, Jura and Vosges will build up towards a climactic showdown in the Alps with two finishes on the Alpe d'Huez, including an unprecedented ascent from the Col de Sarenne on the eve of the finish in Paris.
Bolero may have struck its first notes in Spain, but the gradual build-up of the 2026 Tour de France brings to mind the tempo of Boléro, a masterpiece by the Parisian composer Maurice Ravel. Participants in the 113th edition will be among the first tourists to feast their eyes on the newly inaugurated tallest tower of the Sagrada Família in the course of the team presentation. In keeping with the wishes of its architect, Antoni Gaudí, the tower will not surpass the hill of Montjuïc as the highest point in Barcelona.
The beating heart of the 1992 Olympic Games, which has traditionally set the scene for the finale of the Volta a Catalunya, will be a test bed for two novel formats: a Paris–Nice style team time trial in stage 1 and a puncheur's paradise in stage 2, in which the favourites will have nowhere to hide. The Pyrenees, just a stone's throw away, are an invitation to hit the mountains straight away, but the slopes and profiles are more likely to whet the appetite of breakaway specialists than to spark a clash of titans among the top riders of the top teams, both in the first finish at the Les Angles ski resort (stage 3) and in a tougher climb leading to the heart of the Cirque de Gavarnie (stage 6). In fact, it would be no surprise for the first six days to yield six different race scenarios.
Sprinters who lose out in Pau (stage 5) will get a second chance in Bordeaux (stage 7) and even more in Dordogne (stage 8), Nevers (stage 11) and Chalon-sur-Saône (stage 12), although they will have to share the limelight with the breakaway specialists, who will definitely circle the stages to Ussel (stage 9) and Belfort (stage 13) in red. The journey north-east will take the field over the mountains in the Cantal department, with a stage finish at Le Lioran (stage 10), followed by the Jura and Vosges.
After two weeks of racing, Le Markstein will inaugurate a weekend in which anything can happen. The ascent to the ski resort will come at the end of a sufferfest featuring the brand-new Le Haag (stage 14), which could turn out to be as decisive as the Plateau de Solaison (stage 15), set to make its Tour debut right after the Col du Salève.
The only individual time trial will take place against the backdrop of Lake Geneva (stage 16) and has the potential to reshuffle the deck ahead of the climactic Alpine trilogy. The Yellow Jersey should be fine at Orcières Merlette (stage 18), but the double finish on the Alpe d'Huez (stages 19 and 20) will demand a laser-like focus and a robust defence.
In contrast with the previous stages, none of which will have exceeded an elevation gain of 5,000 metres, the one starting in Le Bourg-d'Oisans will smash past the 5,600-metre barrier, turning the screws on the riders on the Col de la Croix de Fer, the Col du Télégraphe and the Galibier before tackling the ski resort in the Isère department from the Col de Sarenne. After this vertigo-inducing challenge, the final weekend has one last thing in store for the riders and fans: the peloton will have to go over the electrifying hill of Montmartre to get to the Champs-Élysées in stage 21.
ROUTE
Grand Départ in Barcelona, then back to France until the final stage in Paris.
This will be the 27 th Grand Départ take place abroad and the 3rd in Spain.
In France, the race will visit 7 regions and 29 departments.
STAGES
There will be 21 stages: 7 flat stages, 4 hilly stages, 8 mountain stages including 5 summit finishes at Gavarnie-Gèdre, at Plateau de Solaison, Orcières-Merlette and Alpe d’Huez (twice),1 team time trial and 1 individual time trial. There will be 2 rest days.
MOUNTAINS
In route order, the Pyrenees, the Massif Central, the Vosges, the Jura and the Alps will be on the programme in this 113th edition.
The Tour’s long history in the mountains will feature several new climbs: the Côte de Begues (stage 2), Montée de Gavarnie-Gèdre (stage 6), Col de la Griffoul (stage 10), Col du Page and Col du Haag (stage 14), Plateau de Solaison (stage 15) and the Col de Sarenne via its south-eastern flank (stage 20).
The Col du Galibier (2,642m) will be the “roof” or high point of the 2026 Tour.
ELEVATION GAIN
The total vertical gain during the 2025 Tour de France will be 54,450m.
2 TIME TRIALS
The 2026 Tour will kick off with a 19km team time trial in Barcelona. It will have been 55 years since the Tour last started with a TTT, back in 1971.
Stage 16 between Évian-les-Bains and Thonon-les-Bains will be a 26km individual time trial.
TIME BONUSES
Time bonuses will be awarded at the finish of each stage, with 10, 6 and 4 seconds awarded to the first, second and third riders, respectively.
RIDERS
184 riders representing 23 teams will line up for the start on Saturday 4 July in Barcelona.
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List of stages:
| Stage 1 | 7/04, 19 km, Barcelona > Barcelona |
| Stage 2 | 7/05, 182 km, Tarragone > Barcelone |
| Stage 3 | 7/06, 196 km, Granollers > Les Angles |
| Stage 4 | 7/07 182 km, Carcassonne > Foix |
| Stage 5 | 07/08 158 km, Lannemezan > Pau |
| Stage 6 | 07/09 186 km, Pau > Gavarnie-Gèdre |
| Stage 7 | 07/10 175 km, Hagetmau > Bordeaux |
| Stage 8 | 07/11 182 km, Périgueux > Bergerac |
| Stage 9 | 07/12 185 km, Malemort > Ussel |
| Rest day 1 | 7/13 Cantal |
| Stage 10 | 7/14 167 km, Aurillac > Le Lioran |
| Stage 11 | 7/15 161 km, Vichy > Nevers |
| Stage 12 | 7/16 181 km, Circuit Nevers Magny-Cours > Chalon-sur-Saône |
| Stage 13 | 7/17 205 km, Dole > Belfort |
| Stage 14 | 7/18 155 km, Mulhouse > Le Markstein Fellering |
| Stage 15 | 7/19 184 km, Champagnole > Plateau de Solaison |
| Rest day 2 | 7/20 Haute-savoie |
| Stage 16 | 7/21 26 km, Évian-les-Bains > Thonon-les-Bains |
| Stage 17 | 7/22 175 km, Chambery > Voiron |
| Stage 18 | 7/23 185 km, Voiron > Orcières-Merlette |
| Stage 19 | 7/24 128 km, Gap > Alpe d'Huez |
| Stage 20 | 7/25 171 km, Le Bourg d'Oisans > Alpe d'Huez |
| Stage 21 | 7/26 130 km, Thoiry > Paris Champs-Élysées |