'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Paris, Oct 22 (IANS)
The Alpe d'Huez ski resort will be climbed in the penultimate stage of the 2015 Tour de France, before the final procession in Paris, it was announced here Wednesday at the unveiling of the official route for the 102nd edition of the cycling showpiece event.
With five mountain-top finishes, seven high-mountain stages in total and three short, steep uphill finishes, the tour will climb up the 21 hairpins of the Alpe d'Huez July 25, the day before riders fly to Paris for the final stage, reports Xinhua.
Only 14 km of individual time-trial have been included in the route for the July 4-26 cycling showpiece event and a 28km team time-trial course will be presented in Britanny July 12, with a challenging uphill finish.
The 3,344 km-tour will start from Utrecht and introduce two abroad courses in the Netherlands before it returns to France to cover a tricky cobbled road of 13km in Somme, Northeast France.
Riders will get a day off to rest before they attack the Pyrenees for three days and the French Alps for four days.
