After two hilly routes in Spanish Basque Country and Jasper Philipsen’s two sprint wins in the French Basque Country, the serious yellow jersey contenders should come to the fore over the next two days, and we might find out a little more about the destiny of this year’s Tour de France crown.
Stage five’s 163km route from Pau to Laruns is flat for the first 70km, but then comes the first hors categorie climb of this year’s race, the Col du Soudet (15.2km at 7.2%). It is a long and gruelling drag to the top, and we can expect plenty in the peloton to get dropped here as the leaders crank up the pace.
It could well present the first head-to-head between the two favourites - two-time winner Tadej Pogacar and reigning champion Jonas Vingegaard - in what promises to be an intriguing stage
Follow all the latest updates from stage five below:
