Stage 20 of the 2013 Tour de France features the final trip through the mountains, and it's the final stage between leader Chris Froome and a general classification win. With the ride to Paris in Stage 21 purely ceremonial, Saturday's 125-kilometer trek from Annecy to Mont Semnoz is the last real day of competition for the yellow jersey.
Tour de France 2013, Stage 20: Route, TV schedule and more
It’s the penultimate stage of the Tour de France, and the final opportunity for challengers to make a move on leader Chris Froome.
Bryn Lennon
Saturday opens with an early Category 2 climb, followed by three Category 3s and a Category 1 roughly 78.5 km into the stage. It all wraps up after a brutal hors categorie ascent leading to the finish. While Froome’s 5-minute, 11-second lead over second-place Alberto Contador seems relatively safe, he could be in a fight for his spot atop the king of the mountain standings. Froome currently leads Pierre Rolland by one point, but Nairo Quintana, who is seven points back, and Movistar Team will likely make a push to put the young rider in the polka dot jersey.
SB Nation’s cycling blog, Podium Cafe, offered up a prediction for which rider would win the stage:
Joaquim Rodriguez. Katusha has not won a stage yet and are plenty motivated to make sure a break does not hit the climb with an insurmountable gap.
Here is a look at a map of the stage course, via Podium Cafe. NBC Sports Network will begin live coverage of Stage 20 at 7:30 a.m. ET on Saturday, July 20. The network will also stream it live on NBC Sports Live Extra for those subscribed:
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