The second of two days in the Pyrenees, Stage 15 brings the second week of 2024 Tour de France to a savage close, with 198km of distance, 4,800m of elevation gain, and–for the second day in a row–an Hors Categorie (“Beyond Category”) summit finish at the end of the stage.
- Date: Sunday, July 14
- Distance: 198km
- Start location: Loudenvielle
- Finish location: Plateau de Beille
Tour de France Results How to Watch
Starting in Loudenvielle, the stage begins at the base of the first of the day’s five categorized climbs: the Category 1 Col de Peyresourde. Riders hoping to join the day’s breakaway will be warming-up on trainers in the start village, priming their legs for the attacks that will start flying as soon as the flag drops and the race officially begins.
Among the many riders engaging in what is expected to be an intense battle make the break are riders hunting for the stage win, riders looking to score some of the 50 points available in the Tour’s King of the Mountains competition, and lastly–maybe–a rider or two from UAE Team Emirates, Visma-Lease a Bike, and Soudal-Quick Step, the teams of Slovenia’s Tadej Pogačar, Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard, and Belgium’s Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick Step), the top-3 riders on the Tour’s General Classification.
At 198km, this is the longest mountain stage of the Tour, and there are long stretches of valley roads in between several of the climbs. So don’t be surprised if the Tour’s top GC teams send a rider or two into the day’s big breakaway in the hopes of having someone to call back later in the stage, essentially planting teammates up the road to serve as reinforcements later on.
From the top of the Peyresourde, the riders will descend down into the valley and through the day’s Intermediate Sprint in Marignac. Even though he’s not a climber, Eritrea’s Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) could try and join the early move in the hopes of taking maximum points at the sprint and extending his lead in the Tour’s Points competition. He’s close to putting the green jersey out of reach, and could cement his advantage with an aggressive ride at the start of Stage 15. It’s a long shot, but not impossible.
The second set of climbs begins after the riders pass through Marignac. Both Category 1 ascent, the Col de Menté and the Col de Portet Aspet come in rather quick succession. Neither of these climbs should have an explosive impact on the breakaway or the GC group, but after two weeks of hard racing and in the middle of such a mountainous weekend, they will contribute to making Stage 15 into a true race of attrition.
Another longish trip through the valley is up next, followed by the next set of climbs. Only one of these–the Category 1 Col d’Agnes–is categorized. But the riders aren’t finished once they hit the summit as a short descent takes them downhill for a few kilometers, but then up again to the top of a nearby summit called the Port de Lers, an uncategorized ascent that adds even more elevation gain to the stage.
From the top of the Port de Lers, there are 35km to the base of the day’s final climb, the Hors Categorie climb to Plateau de Beille, a ski station high above the Ariège department of southwestern France–and not too far from the tiny principality of Andorra. It’s on this descent and the following ride through the valley that teams might benefit from having placed a rider or two in the day’s breakaway, as those riders can now drop back to offer some help heading into the final climb.
And they might need all the help they can get: the climb to Plateau de Beille is a terrible way to end the Tour’s second week–for the riders at least. It’s 15.8km long and has an average gradient of 7.9%. Last climbed by the Tour in 2015, the Plateau de Beille is a savage way to end a weekend that will have seen the riders ascend the equivalent of Mount Everest.
Riders to Watch
Slovenia’s Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) extended his lead on the Tour’s General Classification on Stage 14, and now lead’s Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) and Belgium’s Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick Step) by 1:57 and 2:22 respectively. But with everyone expecting Vingegaard to thrive when the race hits the Alps near the end of the Tour’s third and final week, the Slovenian is likely to try and add more time to his advantage at the end of Stage 15.
UAE rode a tactically perfect race on Stage 14, and if they manage their resources as effectively as they did on Stage 15, they could head into the Tour’s second Rest Day with their captain firmly in the Tour’s driver seat.
For Vingegaard and Evenepoel–who seem assured of places alongside Pogačar on the Tour’s final podium–the goal is simple: avoid losing more time and–in the event that Pogačar starts to suffer–begin chipping away at his lead.
Unfortunately, Vingegaard will likely have to do much of the work himself. Evenepoel came to the Tour shooting for a podium finish and a stage win. He’s already achieved the latter, and with a large buffer between himself and the Tour’s fourth-place rider, he’s looking good for a top-3 finish. Evenepoel therefore doesn’t need to worry about chasing Pogačar–especially with another hard week still to come.
If one of the Tour’s current GC contenders doesn’t win the stage, we’re at a point in the race when several pre-race GC contenders have lost enough time to go on the attack in search of a mountain stage win themselves. So look to see guys like Great Britain’s Simon Yates (Jayco AlUla), Ecuador’s Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost), and maybe Spain’s Enric Mas (Movistar) in the breakaway on Stage 15, perhaps alongside someone like the Netherland’s Wout Poels (Bahrain Victorious), a climber who won the mountain stage before the Tour’s second Rest Day last year.
And by the way: it’s Bastille Day, which means the breakaway should contain several French riders and teams. We’ll be rooting for Lenny Martinez (Groupama-FDJ), a 20-year-old who’s riding his first Tour de France. He’s been quiet so far, but we think it’s because he’s been saving himself for the mountains in the second half of the race. Look for the tiny climber to try and give the French someone to root for–especially since the French national soccer team won’t be playing in the Euro 2024 championship match later in the day.
How to Watch Stage 15 of the Tour de France
You can stream Stage 15 of the 2024 Tour de France on NBC’s Peacock ($5.99/month or $59.99/year). If you’re looking for ad-free coverage, you’ll need a subscription to Peacock Premium Plus, which runs $11.99 per month or $119.99 for the year.
This is a long stage with an expected finish at around 11:40 a.m. EDT. If you’re curious, you can check the riders’ progress as they crest the Port de Lers–at about 10:05 a.m. EDT. Otherwise, tune-in around 10:45 a.m. EDT–as the riders approach the base of the climb to Plateau de Beille–to watch the final hour of this brutal stage.
How to Watch Stage 15 of the Tour de France in Canada
If you live in Canada, you can catch all the action on FloBikes. An annual subscription will cost you $29.99/month or $150/year.
How to Watch Stage 15 of the Tour de France in the U.K.
UK viewers can watch the Tour de France on ITV4, Eurosport, and Discovery+.
A standard Discovery+ subscription, featuring Eurosport’s cycling coverage, costs £6.99 monthly or £59.99 annually. The premium subscription, which includes all this plus TNT Sports, is available for an extra £29.99 per month.
Since getting hooked on pro cycling while watching Lance Armstrong win the 1993 U.S. Pro Championship in Philadelphia, longtime Bicycling contributor Whit Yost has raced on Belgian cobbles, helped build a European pro team, and piloted that team from Malaysia to Mont Ventoux as an assistant director sportif. These days, he lives with his wife and son in Pennsylvania, spending his days serving as an assistant middle school principal and his nights playing Dungeons & Dragons.
