Cycling in Yorkshire & Beyond
Cycling in Yorkshire & Beyond
Stage 9 of the Tour de France 2024 is a 199km hilly stage starting and finishing in Troyes.
It features fourteen sectors of the 'white roads' of Champagne - gravel and dust roads like those of Strade Bianche and Paris-Tours. Here, they go through Champagne vineyards, providing a picturesque backdrop to the racing.
The sectors of gravel roads amount to a total of 32.2km.
There are also four categorised climbs.
This is an exciting stage that breaks up a run of flat/sprint stages in the 2024 Tour de France.
These are video highlights of Stage 9.
This is the Stage 9 blog/race report.
Race Details | Poll | Map & Profile | Timings | Videos | Food & Drink | Route Notes | Favourites
| Date | Sunday 7th July 2024 |
|---|---|
| Stage classification | Hilly |
| Distance | 199km |
| Intermediate sprint | Fontette |
| Climbs | Côte de Bergères (Cat. 4) Côte de Baroville (Cat. 4) Côte de Val Frion (Cat. 4) Côte de Chacenay (Cat. 4) |
| White roads (chemins blancs) | Bligny to Bergères (14) Baroville (13) Hautes Forêts (12) Polisy to Celles-sur-Ource (11) Loches-sur-Ource to Chacenay (10) Plateau de la Côte des Bar (9) Thieffrain to Magnant (8) Briel-sur-Barse (7) Rue de Paradis (6) Fresnoy-le-Château to Clérey (5) Les Verrières (4) Daudes (3) Montaulin (2) Saint-Parres-aux-Tertres (1) |
| Total climbing | 2,000m |
Vote for one of the main contenders to win Stage 9.
This is a map of the route of Stage 9, Tour de France 2024.
This is a zoom-able map of the route of Stage 9 of the 2024 Tour de France.
Note: this routemap was produced a long time in advance of the race, and could be subject to changes.
This is the profile of Stage 9 Tour de France 2024.
| Caravan | Fast Schedule | Slow Schedule | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start Time (départ fictif) | 1115 |
1315 |
1315 |
| Start Time (départ réel) | 1135 |
1335 |
1335 |
| Intermediate Sprint Fontette | 1331 |
1522 |
1531 |
| Côte de Chacenay Climb | 1424 |
1610 |
1624 |
| Finish Line (199km) | 1613 |
1749 |
1813 |
This is a video of the route of Stage 9 Tour de France 2024.
White roads feature in Paris-Tours. The highlights of the 2023 edition give a good idea of what is involved.
Thierry Gouvenu, who designs the Tour de France route, has been thinking about including white roads since 2016. In this video, he explains that the 2024 Tour is on the plains for a long time, not in the mountains, and he wanted to break up the run of flat stages with something different.
One local speciality is andouilette de Troyes - a sort of sausage made from pig's intestines. It is unlikely to be particularly enticing to non-French people.
Foods that might be of more interest include Chaource cheese and Champagne truffles.
Troyes is in Champagne country, with one Champagne vineyard just 10km away from the town, on the Côte de Champagne where there is chalky soil. These are propitious conditions for growing Chardonnay grapes, to turn into Champagne.
Champagne is therefore the right tipple to accompany Stage 9.
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The stage starts in Troyes (départ fictif).
Troyes is a town of about 62,000 people on the river Seine.
It's the capital of the Aube département, within the Champagne region. The name Champagne arose in the C5th at the time of King Clovis; it is derived from campania, meaning countryside.
Troyes gets its name from the Gallic tribe who lived here, the Tricasses. Under the Romans the town was known as Augustobona Tricassium, and it stood on the Via Agrippa.
A famous battle took place near Troyes in 451, in which Attila the Hun was defeated, ending his ambitions of conquering Roman Gaul.
Champagne became part of France in 1285.
Many of the older buildings in Troyes date from the 1500s, after the great fire of 1524. They include colourful half-timbered houses.
Troyes was not badly bombed or otherwise damaged in the two World Wars, so retains its historic city centre. The Cathedral there is dedicated to St Peter and St Paul.
Traditionally, Troyes' economy was based on textiles, including stockings and knitwear. Today, there are still some factories, and the town has many factory outlet shops which offer discounts of 30 to 70%.
Lacoste has its headquarters in Troyes.
Troyes is twinned with Tournai (Belgium), Chesterfield (UK), and Brescia (Italy).
The départ réel is to the east of Troyes, between Belley and Thennelières.
The riders head past a jolly nice windmill at Dosches - a reconstruction of an C18th windmill rather than the real deal.
They go east to the Forêt d'Orient, passing between the Lac d'Orient and the Lac d'Auzon Temple.
The Parc Naturel Régional de la Forêt d'Orient is an area of 70,000 hectares with three man-made lakes in it. It was created in 1970.
The lakes were built to regulate the flow of the river Seine and
prevent floods downstream. Birds migrating south to Africa often stop
here. Humans enjoy watersports on the lakes.
The route continues to Vendeuvre-sur-Barse, known for making tractors and for its château.
Bligny is a little further along. It has a château which is home to two champagne houses.
Since this is election day in France, it is relevant to note that far right politician Jean-Marie Le Pen was a former owner of the Château de Bligny.
The first white road sector begins after 47.3km raced, Sector 14 from Bligny to Bergères. It is 2,000m long and is rated 1 star difficulty.
The sectors count down from 14 to 1.
The chemins blancs (white roads), also called chemins de vignes, on Stage 9 of the 2024 Tour de France will pose a new kind of problem for the riders to solve.
This short video made by the race organisers gives a good idea of what is involved - gravelly roads through vineyards. Because chalk dominates the local geology, these roads are white.
They feature in Paris Tours - see for example these video highlights of Paris Tours 2023.
The white roads could be compared to Paris Roubaix-style cobbled sectors which have featured in Tour de France stages in past editions.
It makes for exciting viewing, and some riders are more suited to the challenge than others.
The main concern for GC contenders is that if they suffer a puncture or other mechanical, they could lose several minutes and effectively drop out of contention for the yellow jersey.
Bryan Adams sang She's Only Happy When She's Dancing, but sometimes it seems that Remco Evenepoel is only happy when he's complaining.
He is not a fan of white roads in the Tour de France.
'There are specific events and championships for gravel racing. Why do they need to add such stages to a Grand Tour? I don't think that's necessary'.
Evenepoel lost over 2 minutes on gravel roads to Montalcino in the 2021 Giro d'Italia, so perhaps it is unsuprising that he's not keen on repeating the experience in the Tour de France.
Sector 14 is followed by the Côte de Bergères climb, which is 1.7km at 5.2%, and reaches a height of 335m at the top after 51.7km raced.
Then there's a descent to Bar-sur-Aube.
Now the route wiggles its way to Baroville.
Baroville has fifty winegrowers in a series of six valleys, growing grapes for Champagne - Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay.
White road Sector 13, the Chemin de Baroville, starts here.
Sector 13 the Chemin de Baroville begins after 67km raced. It is 1,200m long and is rated 3 star difficulty.
The Côte de Baroville climb is 2.8km at an average 4.8%. It reaches a height of 363m after 69.6km raced.
The riders go through Champignol-lez-Mondeville, then Fontette.
The intermediate sprint takes place at Fontette after 83.5km raced.
Next Stage 9 goes through Essoyes. Renoir's wife Aline was born in Essoyes, and Renoir and his family are buried in the cemetery here.
Next the race reaches Loches-sur-Ource. Loches is the start and finish of a loop, so spectators there will see the race pass twice.
There's a little uncategorised climb after Loches-sur-Ource, followed by Sector 12, the Chemin des Hautes Forêts.
Sector 12 Chemin des Hautes Forêts starts after 96.8km raced and lasts for 1,500m. It is rated 2 star difficulty.
The race goes through Neuville-sur-Seine, which has a 23m statue of Notre-Dame des Vignes. Then comes Sector 11, the Chemin de Polisy à Celles-sur-Ource. It starts after 105.2km raced, is 3,400m long, and is rated 3 star difficulty.
This sector includes the Côte de Val Frion, a climb of 2.2km at an average 5% towards the Aérodrome de Bar-sur-Seine. The top is at a height of 280m, after 107.5km raced.
The descent is to Celles-sur-Ource.
There's a valley road (in the Ource valley) from Celles-sur-Ource to Landreville and back to Loches-sur-Ource.
Now comes Sector 10, the Chemin de Loches-sur-Ource à Chacenay.
It starts after 118.6km raced, and it's 4,200m long, and rated 3 star difficulty.
Sector 10 includes the Côte de Chacenay, 3km at 4.3%. The height at the top is 314m after 121.2km raced.
The route continues to Eguilly-sous-Bois. Soon after is Sector 9, the Chemin du Plateau de la Côte des Bar.
Stage 9 starts after 131.9km raced and lasts for 2,200m. It's rated 1 star difficulty.
It crosses the A5 autoroute to Beurey and continues to Thieffrain. Here Sector 8 begins, the Chemin de Thieffrain à Magnant.
Sector 8 from Thieffrain to Magnant start after 140.8km raced and is 3,900m long. It is rated 3 star difficulty.
Next on the route is Villy-en-Trodes, and after Villy-en-Trodes the race nears Briel-sur-Barse. Here the riders tackle Sector 7, the Chemin de Briel-sur-Barse.
Sector 7, the Chemin de Briel-sur-Barse, starts after 151.9km raced and is 2,200m long. It is rated 1 star difficulty.
The parcours then runs alongside the railway line to Montiéramey, site of an influential Benedictine abbey.
There's more respite on metalled roads through Montreuil-sur-Barse and past a non-dangerous waste storage centre (!) to the Château du Plessis.
Then Sector 6 begins, the Chemin du Ru de Paradis.
Sector 6, the Chemin du Ru de Paradis, starts after 165.7km and is 1,200m and 1 star difficulty. It ends at Renault, just before Fresnoy-le-Château.
Then it's straight into Sector 5, the Chemin de Fresnoy-le-Château à Clérey.
Sector 5, the Chemin de Fresnoy-le-Château to Clérey, starts after 169km raced. It is 1,800m long and rated 1 star difficulty.
The race passes through Clérey, home village of bike racer Hubert Linard who won Bordeaux-Paris in 1984.
The route passes close to the Château de Saint-Aventine, then it hits the next white road, Sector 4, the Chemin des Verrières.
Sector 4, the Chemin des Verrières, starts after 175km raced. It lasts 1,500m and is rated 1 star difficulty.
Hot on Sector 4's heels is Sector 3, the Chemin de Daudes alongside the autoroute.
Sector 3, the Chemin de Daudes, starts after 178km raced. It is 1,900m long and rated 1 star difficulty.
Not to be outdone, Sector 2, the Chemin de Montaulin à Rouilly-Saint-Loup, runs alongside the railway.
It starts after 182.3km raced and is 2,20m long. It is rated 2 star difficulty.
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Finally, Sector 1 is the Chemin de Saint-Parres-aux-Tertres by the Canal de Baires.
A canal towpath on the Tour de France at last! Or nearly. That will satisfy the people who complain that leisure cyclists constantly "think they're on the Tour de France".
Sector 1 starts after 189.4km raced. It is 3,000m long and is rated 2 star.
The race arrives at Saint-Parres-aux-Tertres, where Saint-Parres was martyred in 275AD.
Stage 1 now makes its way towards Troyes on the Avenue Henri Barbusse.
There's a left turn off Avenue Henri Barbusse onto the Avenue du 1er Mai, then a sharper left turn to join the Boulevard Henri Barbusse by the river Seine.
(Henri Barbusse was a novelist and writer. Among his works was Under Fire, a novel about World War I based on his personal experiences during that war).
After navigating a big junction by the Canal du Trévois, Stage 9 joins the Boulevard du 14 Juillet.
The Boulevard du 14 Juillet takes the riders to the finish line by the Centre des Finance Publiques - a handy opportunity for the French riders to pay any taxes they may have outstanding.
We can look towards Paris-Tours and Strade Bianche for clues as to the favourites for Stage 9.
Tom Pidcock won Strade Bianche 2023, so could be in contention to win today.
Who do you think will win Stage 9 of the 2024 Tour de France?
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