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Stage 20 - Marcoussis to Paris Champs-Élysées (146km)
Start: 1:40 p.m. (7:40 a.m. U.S. EST) - Estimated Finish: 5:26 p.m. (11:26 a.m. U.S. EST)
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COURSE: The eight laps of the traditional finishing circuit around the Champs-Élysées is preceded by a 90km loop through the southern suburbs of the French capital.
Let’s hope it’s not significant that the intermediate sprint after 74km is in the town of Châtenay-Malabry, where the infamous French anti-doping lab is located
HISTORY: Every Tour has finished in the Paris area: at Ville d’Avray in the suburbs in 1903; at the now defunct Parc des Princes velodrome (1904-67); the Municipal Velodrome at Vincennes (1968-74); and, since 1975, on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.
Only three times in the past 20 years has the finale not produced a mass sprint — in 2006, when stage winner Vinokourov broke clear with Brad McGee in the final kilometer; in 1994, when a small break succeeded and Frenchman Eddy Seigneur took it by three seconds from American Frankie Andreu; and in 1987, when another American, Jeff Pierce, brought home a breakaway group to win by a second ahead of Canadian Steve Bauer. FAVORITES: A sprint match-up between former Champs-Élysées stage winners Hushovd (2006) and Boonen (2004) would be a perfect finish to the Tour, but don’t rule out veterans Erik Zabel (Milram), Robert Förster (Gerolsteiner) or Robbie Hunter (Barloworld).
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