Tour de France 2019 – Stage 18: Profile, prediction, standings, time and TV stream

Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe kept the Tour de France’s overall lead on Wednesday and said he was ‘ready for the Alps’ after the 200km run to Gap on stage 17, won by Italian Matteo Trentin.

Alaphilippe has four riders within two minutes 02sec of his advantage as the Tour goes into three huge Alpine stages with defending champion Geraint Thomas at 1min 35 sec behind him in one of the most open races in years.

In his yellow jersey for a 13th day, the world number one looked relaxed after the balmy run from the Camargue into the town of Gap, surrounded by the daunting mountain peaks which lie in wait for the peloton.

Also read:

• Tour de France 2019: Route map, stage profiles, dates and distance
• Why Mark Cavendish won’t be riding the 2019 Tour de France
• Yellow Jersey centenary – a unique jersey for every stage
• Tour de France 2019: Latest classification standings
• Rider bunny hops to avoid crash
• The 2019 riders ranked from youngest to oldest

Tour de France 2019: Stage 18

Distance: 208km
Profile: We’re up, up and away with some serious Alpine altitude.

Prediction

After two brutal days, the altitude might come as light relief if the temperatures drop. That said, as far as predictions go, we’ve given up trying. Expect the climbers to come to the fore, but even the favourites in that category haven’t been at full tilt this year.

How to watch and start time

The action will be live on SuperSport 5 from 11:00 and should finish at around 17:30. If you don’t have a Dstv subscription, you can follow Le Tour’s YouTube channel for all the highlights.

Or follow our updates for key events below.