Tour de France 2016 live stream: Time, TV schedule and route for Stage 9

Chris Froome’s descent attack on Stage 8 of the 2016 Tour de France was unlike anything we had ever seen from the British cyclist. He had never been a renowned descender, nor has he ever been much of a freelancer. On Saturday, Froome said he “felt like a kid again” as he made an unplanned attack at the top of the Col de Peyresourde while Nairo Quintana was taking a bottle.

That should be frightening to Froome’s challengers, because Stage 9 is exactly the sort of stage that would figure into Team Sky’s plan of attack. The 184.5 ride from Vielha Val d’Aran to Andorre Arcalis starts in Spain and finishes in Andorra. It starts on a Category 1 climb, and ends on a hors categorie as one of five mountain-top finishes along this year’s Tour. Froome and Team Sky have made their calling by putting the field in a stranglehold on the Tour’s early climbs. This fits the profile.

Stage 9 will begin at approximately 6:05 a.m. ET, with NBCSN once again broadcasting the race. Because the climbing starts immediately on the stage, the broadcast will begin promptly at 6 a.m. Streaming is available with a subscription to NBC Sports Gold.

Froome in yellow means that the other general classification contenders like Quintana, Romain Bardet, Daniel Martin and Fabio Aru don’t have much luxury to wait. Froome ravaged what could have been an innocuous finish and instead put his rivals on the defensive. Quintana and Bardet, in particular, have put in attacks on the climbs thus far, though none that they could commit to for long. They may be feeling pangs of desperation now.

Stage 9 is arguably one of the five or so hardest stages on this year’s Tour. It will play a big role in the final general classification. After Saturday’s stage, an old question looms as large as ever: Is there anyone better than Chris Froome?

Start time: 6:05 a.m. ET (approx.)

Route: 184.5 kilometers from Vielha Val d’Aran (Spain) to Andorre Arcalis (Andorra)

TV: NBCSN, beginning at 6 a.m.

Streaming: NBC Sports Gold (subscription required)