Tour de France live stayed on the road in Stage 2, but stage three was pushed into a Sunday decision as fire in the Eastern Pyrenees threatened the route. Riders were still due to start in Granollers in Spain and finish in Les Angles late Monday afternoon, even as the situation around the next stage tightened.
Pierre Regnault de la Mothe said the call on stage three would be taken by the end of the day after discussion in the afternoon. The fire had already swept across approximately 1,500 hectares and mobilised some 700 firefighters, with the blaze about 70 kilometres from Les Angles.
Granollers and Les Angles
The main road that provides access to the route of Monday’s stage was closed, including access notably from the coast. That leaves the start in Granollers and the finish in Les Angles tied to the same fire response: the route can still be assessed, but the access corridor is already restricted.
Vingegaard, who wore a face mask while talking to TNT Sports cameras, said there was already some sickness in the bunch. He added, “I’ve been sick in the last two Tours de France, I want to stay healthy.”
Jonas Vingegaard and TNT Sports
The Tour de France leader also said he was “extremely happy to be in the yellow jersey” and described stage two as having “a very tough climb and a very tough final.” He added, “It’s going to be a very tough climb, a very tough final so we have to be ready for anything.”
Stage two itself ran for 168.5km from Tarragona to Barcelona, and the live racing continued normally even while officials dealt with the fire threat to the next day’s stage. That split-screen reality is the complication here: the race kept moving, but the access road to Monday’s route was already shut.
Eastern Pyrenees fire
Regnault de la Mothe said, “The fire has flared up again – all resources are being mobilised to contain it.” With 1,500 hectares burned, 700 firefighters deployed and the road closure in place, the decision due by the end of Sunday is the line separating a normal start from a changed Monday.
For riders and teams, the immediate issue is not abstract. The route from Granollers to Les Angles depends on whether the fire can be contained enough to keep the stage workable, and the answer was due before the day ended.
