Critérium du Dauphiné – the dress rehearsal for the Tour de France

It is a milestone on the road to the Tour de France.It is the last big race, a final test before the season’s highlight.It is the beginning of June, four weeks before the Grand Depart.Let’s go for the Critérium du Dauphiné. After several weeks of high-altitude training in the Sierra Nevada, Primož Roglič and his teammates are about to start the eight-day stage race to gain crucial race kilometers. A final test of form before the Tour de France! With Aleks Vlasov and Jai Hindley, the team has some high-profile support. While Aleks is making his Dauphiné debut, Jai finished 4th overall in 2023 and underlined his Tour de France ambitions last year. A stage win and the yellow jersey followed soon after, showing that the Dauphiné is a reliable indicator of the year’s most important race. It will be a dress rehearsal worthy of the name, demanding everything from the team and testing them in every area. Nico Denz, Marco Haller, Bob Jungels and Matteo Sobrero complete the line-up. One of the toughest editions of the Dauphiné awaits the riders, covering almost 1200 kilometres through the south of France: 22,000 metres of climbing spread over a flat stage, an individual time trial, three hilly days and three consecutive mountaintop finishes. Each terrain requires a well-rehearsed team. Well-rehearsed to shine at the season’s highlight, which follows the dress rehearsal in a few weeks’ time.