Watch for the 2022 edition of the Tour de France to kick into high gear on Friday, July 1 as world-class bikers embark on the road to glory this year in Copenhagen, Denmark.
This year, the world's most bicycle-friendly city sets the scene for the first three stages before heading south into France for the big finish at the Champs-Elysees in Paris on Sunday, July 24, 2022.
With a traditional 21 stages over 3,600 kilometers (2,237 miles), stages can range from pleasantly flat to treacherously steep and mountainous, including an infamous muscle-burning climb through Mont Ventoux.
Coming off the mountain also puts cyclists' descending skills to the test-- so be sure to watch for spills and chills (and dust flying) as the brakes are applied on the way down!
The amazing (bike) race: The infamous muscle-burning climb up Mount Ventoux.
2022 Tour de France on TV
In the U.S. streaming service NBC Peacock and the USA Network are the official broadcasters throughout the race with additional television coverage from 'mothership' network NBC..
FloSports will provide a live streaming in Canada.
Across the pond, ITV4 usually airs live coverage in the UK from every stage of the tour.
Elsewhere in Europe, Eurosport covers the race from start to finish, while in Australia live coverage and next-day highlights are regularly featured on SBS.
Just up ahead, check out the official schedule of the 2022 Tour de France dates, stages, and routes -- along with the complete times for streaming and TV channels -- promising complete, stage-by-stage coverage throughout July. All times Eastern.
Date
Stage
Stream | TV / Time (ET)
Fri., July 1
Stage 1: Copenhagen
Peacock 6 a.m. | USA 9:30 a.m.
Sat., July 2
Stage 2: Roskilde-Nyborg
Peacock 6 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Stage 2: Roskilde-Nyborg
NBC 1 p.m. (delayed broadcast)
Sun., July 3
Stage 3: Vejle-Sønderborg
Peacock 6:30 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Tue., July 5
Stage 4: Dunkirk-Calais
Peacock 7 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Wed., July 6
Stage 5: Lille-Arenberg
Peacock 7 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Thu., July 7
Stage 6: Binche-Longwy
Peacock 6 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Fri., July 8
Stage 7: Tomblaine-Planche des Belles Filles
Peacock 6:30 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Sat., July 9
Stage 8: Dole-Lausanne
Peacock 6:30 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Sun., July 10
Stage 9: Aigle-Châtel
Peacock 6 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Tue., July 12
Stage 10: Morzine-Megève
Peacock 7 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Wed., July 13
Stage 11: Albertville-Col du Granon
Peacock 6 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Thu., July 14
Stage 12: Briançon-Alpe d’Huez
Peacock 6:30 a.m.
Stage 12: Briançon-Alpe d’Huez
USA 3 p.m. (delayed broadcast)
Fri., July 15
Stage 13: Le Bourg-d’Oisans-Saint-Étienne
Peacock 6:30 a.m.
Stage 13: Le Bourg-d’Oisans-Saint-Étienne
USA 3 p.m. (delayed broadcast)
Sat., July 16
Stage 14: Saint-Étienne-Mende
Peacock 6 a.m.| USA 8 a.m.
Sun., July 17
Stage 15: Rodez-Carcassonne
Peacock 6:30 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Tue., July 19
Stage 16: Carcassonne-Foix
Peacock 6 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Wed., July 20
Stage 17: Saint-Gaudens-Peyragudes
Peacock 7 a.m.| USA 8 a.m.
Thu., July 21
Stage 18: Lourdes-Hautacam
Peacock 7 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Fri., July 22
Stage 19: Castelnau-Magnoac-Cahors
Peacock 7 a.m. | USA 8 a.m.
Sat., July 23
Stage 20: Lacapelle-Marival-Rocamadour
Peacock 6:30 a.m. | NBC 8 a.m.
Sun., July 24
Stage 21: Paris La Défense Arena to Paris
Peacock | USA 10 a.m.
Stage 21: Paris La Défense Arena to Paris
NBC 2 p.m.(delayed broadcast)
All about the Tour de France
Maurice Garin was the winner
in the first race held in 1903.
The first Tour de France was arranged by French newspaperman Henri Desgrange as a publicity stunt for his paper, L'Auto in 1903. The race featured 60 riders covering more than a 1,000 miles. that proved highly popular among spectators along the route .The race was also a huge success for L'Auto whose circulation rose from 25,000 to 65,000 that year.
Except for two World Wars, the Tour de France has been held almost every year since.
While spectacular scandals have rocked the race of late, the Tour de France has been no stranger to poor sportsmanship over the years. In fact, during the early days rampant cheating was common, along with sporadic rioting among spectators who often favored one rider over another.
Today, almost 200 riders make up the 22 teams that participate in the world's biggest annual sporting event covering some 2,000 miles. Throughout the race's 21 stages, the strongest rider is protected by other members of the team through stretches of terrain that vary greatly from flat, to hilly, to extremely steep and mountainous.
Color-coded jerseys signify top racers during the Tour de France, including white for a young emerging star,
red polka dot for the best uphill biker, green for the fastest sprinter, and yellow for the overall leader.
Along the way, riders are rewarded with color-coded jerseys with special significance. The green jersey signifies who's the fastest sprinter. The white jersey goes to the youngest biker, usually an emerging star under 25. The red-and-white polka dot jersey is awarded to the "King of the Mountain" or best uphill climber.
Near the end of the race, the overall leader gets to wear the coveted yellow jersey and to ultimately claim victory -- and the €450,000 euro prize money -- as he crosses the finish line in Paris.
Tour
de France around the Web
Elsewhere on
the Web, get the complete picture of this year's annual Tour de France
with video presentations, photos, up-to-the-minute blog
reports, and more on Tour de France stats, records and history
...
Tour de France 2022 virtual tour
Tour de France 2022 - At the official site find the complete route map, news flashes
in real time, plus updated classifications, positions, gaps between
the riders, video and photos of the competition - in English and
French.
2022 Tour de France Live Dashboard - Check out a treasure trove of online
information on the route, stages, teams, photos and worldwide
TV schedules.
