After suffering for two days in the Pyrenees, the sprinters should look forward to another shot, at victory at the Tour de France as the race heads away from the coast to Nîmes. The wind will probably be of major importance in the final 40 kilometres which are very exposed and see numerous changes of direction.
In all reality, stage 16 should be the final stage for the sprinters to go for glory. Their teams will want to control the race but it won’t be that easy, as it’s the day after a rest day, following two brutal days in the Pyrenean mountains. The sprinters and their teammates had to battle to make the time cut on Sunday, where both Mark Cavendish (Astana Qazaqstan) and Arnaud Démare (Arkea-B&B Hotels) made it across the line with less than two minutes to spare.
