Tour de France organizers got everything they wanted from a Stage 2 ride from Utrecht down to Zeeland. High winds across unprotected shoreline forced the peloton to splinter during the last quarter of the race and cause a rift among the favorites. Tejay van Garderen, Chris Froome and Alberto Contador now hold strong positioning over Vincenzo Nibali and Nairo Quintana for the final podium in Paris.
Tour de France 2015, Stage 3: Route, TV schedule and more
Stage 3 will feature the first climbs of the Tour de France, and a good opportunity for struggling general classification contenders to make up some ground.
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Nibali and Quintana can begin making up a more-than two-minute deficit to the front beginning Monday, and Stage 3 will certainly be to their liking. The 159.5-kilometer trek from Anvers to the top of the Mur de Huy will feature some steep climbs, if a bit short. The chances of another time gap like Sunday’s are low, but Nibali and Quintana can at least get the bad tastes out of their mouths.
Mur de Huy should be a fantastic site for a finish. The 1.3-kilometer climb carries an average gradient of 9.6 percent, and is used in the Flèche Wallonne classic in April. The masters of that race will be gunning for the stage win. Alejandro Valverde has won Flèche Wallonne three times including the last two iterations, and Joaquim Rodriguez won in 2012. They’ll be favorites, along with other strong all-around racers. Froome or Contador are certainly capable of asserting their dominance here.
The green jersey currently resides with Stage 2 winner Andre Greipel, but he could struggle with the undulations. Peter Sagan will have a great shot at becoming the new points leader when the Tour enters France on Tuesday.
The overall impact of Stage 3 may be small, but an incredible finish will make it well worth your time. NBCSN remains your destination, with coverage beginning at 7 a.m. ET for a race set to start at 7:10. There is no free option to watch online. Those with mobile devices can download the NBC Sports Live Extra app and watch the Tour if they have an appropriate cable subscription. If not, they may need to pay up for NBC's Tour de France web package.
Stage 3 route
Coverage
Coverage begins at 7 a.m. ET. on NBCSN.
Announcers: Phil Liggett, Paul Sherwen.
Mobile: NBC Sports Live Extra app if they have the appropriate cable subscription.
Computer: NBC's Tour de France web package is available for a fee.
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