There are longer ascents but few that match the gruelling drama or history of the extinct volcano in the Massif Central
In the pantheon of the Tour de France’s most storied climbs, Sunday’s stage finish at Le Puy de Dôme stands apart for one reason: for 35 years it looked set to remain lost permanently in the mists of Tour history, the climb that would never be repeated.
It became a staple question when interviewing the Tour de France director, Christian Prudhomme: would the race return to the extinct volcano in the Massif Central? Prudhomme would always give a version of the same answer. When he had begun work at the Tour owners, ASO, in 2004, taking the race back to the Puy had been top of the to-do list on his computer, and it would happen when local politics permitted.
Continue reading...from The Guardian https://ift.tt/pOfZWya
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