The sprinters should enjoy another shot at victory at the Tour de France as the peloton heads into Pau but they will have to work for it due to a rolling final 40 km of the stage.
The sprinters' teams have usually outnumbered and out powered the attackers in the 2024 Tour de France but the rolling hills near Pau will surely spark attacks and test the sprinters.
Biniam Girmay sealed his third sprint win on the previous day's stage 12 run-in to Villeneuve-sur-Lot, while also winning in Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises on stage 8 and into Torino on stage 3. He is surely a contender for a fourth win in Pau.
He also has a stronghold in the green jersey competition with 328 points. Also in contention for the green jersey is Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), who has 221 points, and Anthony Turgis (TotalEnergies), who has 141.
While Girmay will be the rider to beat on stage 13, three are a couple of riders who might be looking for redemption after being relegated from the stage 12 sprint.
Mark Cavendish (Astana Qazaqstan) and Arnaud Démare (Arkéa-B&B Hotels) were both relegated from the top five to the back of the bunch due to irregular sprinting, and while Démare would prefer to think positively and look ahead to the next opportunity, Cavendish was disappointed in the ruling and felt that it was unfair.
Whatever their respective positions on the matter, both will want to secure the win in Pau, if they can survive the late climbs.
Démare will have fond memories of sprinting in Pay, as in 2018, he took the win ahead of Christophe Laporte in Pau in a bunch sprint, delivering a French 1-2 finish at the Tour for the first time in 40 years.
Cavendish, on the other hand, has had an outstanding Tour de France, achieving a record-breaking 35th stage win at the French Grand Tour on stage 5 into Saint Vulbas. He will undoubtedly be looking for win number 36 at the Tour de France.
There are other sprinters to look out for, too; Philipsen and Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco AlUla), will be looking to add another stage win at this event, and riders like Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike), Pascal Ackermann (Israel-Premier Tech), Arnaud De Lie (Lotto Dstny), Fernando Gaviria (Movistar) and Alexander Kristoff (Uno-X Mobility) will want to turn their podium places into stage victories.
Stage 13 information
Starting in Agen, stage 13 will take the peloton in the Pyrénées with a finish in Pau. The somewhat flat terrain should deliver another bunch sprint with the sprinters’ teams closely monitoring the day’s break.
However, the hilly terrain in the final 40 kilometres, with the ascents of Côte de Blachon (1.5km at 6.9%) and Côte de Simacourbe (1.8km at 6.4%) could pose a problem for those fast men who don’t feel comfortable in the hills.
Stage 13 Sprints
- Intermediate sprint, km 88.5
Stage 13 Mountains
- Côte de Blachon (1.5km at 6.9%), cat. 4, km 127
- Côte de Simacourbe (1.8km at 6.4%), cat. 4, km 136.3
