The Col d'Izoard is
frequently on the route of the Tour de France and is of
course classified as a "Hors Category"-climb with its
challenging 2.360 metres. The climb from
Briançon at the
north is 19,1 kilometres in length and has an average
gradient of 6,0 percent.
You pass forbidding and barren scree slopes with
protruding pinnacles of weathered rock, just after the
summit. Known as the Casse Desert this area has
formed a dramatic backdrop to some key moments in the
Tour de France, and often feature in iconic 1950s black
and white photos of the race.
Several of the Tour de France's more memorable moments
have occurred on the Col d'Izoard, particularly the
exploits of Fausto Coppi, Bernard Thevenet and Louison
Bobet. You can have a break at the small cycling museum
at the summit, or at the memorial to Coppi. |
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