| 2010 UCI World Ranking, race 17 of 26 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Route of the 2010 Tour de France | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Race details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dates | 3–25 July 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stages | 20 + Prologue | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Distance | 3,642 km (2,263 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Winning time | 91h 59' 27" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2010 Tour de France was the 97th edition of the Tour de France cycle race, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started on 3 July with an 8.9 km prologue time trial in Rotterdam, the first start in the Netherlands since 1996.[1] The race visited three countries: the Netherlands, Belgium and France, and finished on 25 July on the Champs-Élysées in Paris.
The total length was 3,642 kilometres (2,263 mi) including 60.9 kilometres (37.8 mi) in time-trials. Following an opening prologue time trial, the first three stages passed through the Netherlands and Belgium on routes designed to replicate some features of the spring classic cycle races. This included seven cobblestone sectors totaling 13.2 kilometres (8.2 mi), the longest distance of cobblestones in the Tour since 1983, on stage 3.[2] There were six mountain stages, three of them with mountaintop finishes, and two medium mountain stages. In the 100th anniversary year of their first inclusion on the Tour, the emphasis was on the Pyrenees, with two ascents of the Col du Tourmalet.[2]
The Tour was initially won by Alberto Contador, who was later revealed to have failed a doping test. After a series of events, the CAS finally decided in February 2012 that Contador would lose his results from 2010, declaring Andy Schleck the new winner.[3] Schleck also won the young riders' competition for the third time running. France's Anthony Charteau won the polkadot jersey as the King of the Mountains whilst the Italian sprinter Alessandro Petacchi won the green jersey for victory in the points classification.
- ^ "Rotterdam to host 2010 Tour start". BBC Sport. 20 November 2008. Archived from the original on 9 July 2009. Retrieved 22 July 2009.
- ^ a b "Tour de France 2010 – The route". Tour de France. 14 October 2009. Archived from the original on 16 October 2009. Retrieved 14 October 2009.
- ^ "CAS sanctions Contador with two-year ban in clenbutorol case". Cyclingnews. Future Publishing Limited. 6 February 2012. Archived from the original on 7 July 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2012.