Mark Cavendish could finish the first stage of the 2013 Tour de France in the yellow jersey after the organisers unveiled the route for the Grand Départ of the race’s 100th edition.
Race director Christian Prudhomme revealed details of the opening three stages, which will take place on the Mediterranean island of Corsica before transferring back to mainland France.
The first stage will start from Porto-Vecchio in the south of the island, before the 200km ride to the northern town of Bastia. While route profiles were kept underwraps, the stage is expected to take place on mostly flat rides which should result in a bunch gallop.
Before 2013 comes the 2012 race, of course, and the first week will present the fast men with their chance to shine but that follows a 6.1km prologue in Liège, Belgium.
World champion Cavendish, who has 20 Tour de France stage wins to his name, has not had the opportunity to contest the yellow jersey to date, while only four Britons – Tom Simpson (1962), Chris Boardman (1994, 1997, 1998), Sean Yates (1994) and David Millar (2000) – have worn the maillot jaune.
Cavendish has previous worn the leader’s jerseys in the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a Espana (both 2009), with Millar the only British rider to have led all three Grand Tours.
A sprinter’s stint in yellow in 2013 is likely to be short-lived, however, with the race set to head into Corsica’s mountain roads on stage two (155km), with climbs including the Col de Bellagranajo (723m), Col de la Serra (807m) and Col de Vizzavona (1,163m) before the steep slops of the Monte Salario within the finish ten kilometres.
The final day sees the peloton tackle an undulating 145km route from Ajaccio to Calvi, tackling the Col de San Bastiano (415 m), Col de Lava (498 m), Col de Palmarella (374 m) and Col de Marsolino (443 m).
“The setting of the Island of Beauty will definitely offer a terrain and roads designed for attacks and we are already thoroughly looking forward to enjoying the magnificent scenery boasted by the sea and the mountains,” said Prudhomme.
