Paris–Nice 2019
The Paris-Nice 2019 begins on Sunday 10th March with an out and back stage in Saint-Germain-en-Laye and finishes on Sunday 17th March with a mountain stage in Nice. The 77th edition of the race features the famous Col d’Eze climb in the final section of the last stage, which concludes with a 15 km ascent at 7.3% to the top of the Turini Pass.
The current title holder is Marc Soler (Movistar Team), who beat Simon Yates (Team Mitchelton-Scott) and Gorka Izagirre (Astana Pro Team) to round off the podium. Soler returns this year to defend his title.
Paris-Nice 2019 stages:
Stage 1: Saint-Germain-en-Laye - Saint-Germain-en-Laye. 138.5 km, flat.
Stage 2: Les Bréviaires – Bellegarde. 163.5 km, flat.
Stage 3: Cepoy - Moulins. 200 km, flat.
Stage 4: Vichy - Pélussin. 210.5 km, hills.
Stage 5: Barbentane – Barbentane. 25.5 km, ITT.
Stage 6: Peynier – Brignoles. 176.5 km, hills.
Stage 7: Nice – Col de Turini. 181.5 km, mountains.
Stage 8: Nice – Nice. 110 km, mountains.
The route
The Paris-Nice 2019 begins with three stages for the sprinters to get some stage wins under their belt. The more testing stages begin on stage four as the race moves from Vichy to a hilly circuit around Pélussin. A 25.5 km individual time trial on stage five is likely to be a key stage in the race for the title.
Stage six favours the sprinters once more with a bunch sprint likely, or a breakaway winner. Stages seven and eight takes the peloton into the mountains. Stage seven features four intermediate climbs on the tough Turini Pass. The last stage, stage eight, is a short and explosive route with six intermediate climbs. The ultimate climb being the Col des Quatre Chemins is a tough 5.5 km climb at 5.5%, before a final 9 km descent into Nice to the finish line.