Can a sprinter, a Classics specialist or even a GC rider win the last stage of the Tour de France on Sunday? Last year's inclusion of the Butte Montmartre climb late on stage 21 sparked no end of debate, as the sprinters saw their traditional opportunity to shine on the Champs-Élysées all but evaporate, whilst others praised a radical shakeup to an ultra-predictable final day of racing.
The unprecedented introduction of the Cat.4 ascent – just 1 kilometre long but steep, cobbled and technical – in the flat finale ended with a victory for Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike). Times were also suspended for the GC riders for the last ascent of the Butte Montmartre, raising the intriguing idea that had Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) been unlucky enough to fall and not complete the stage, he could yet have been considered the overall winner. Depending on the weather, the time suspension remains an option for stage 21.
