Tour de France 2009: Stage 4 preview

• Monday, 22 June 2009
• Andrew McGrath
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Tour de France 2009 stage 4 preview logo

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When Tuesday July 7
Where Montpellier - Montpellier
How long 39km TTT

IMPACT ON CLASSIFICATIONS
Yellow Jersey: 3/5
Green Jersey: 1/5
Polka-Dot Jersey: 0/5

STAGE DESCRIPTION
This is a flat team time-trial around the outskirts of Montpellier. At 39 kilometres, the test is long enough to open up some important gaps for the overall, but sufficiently short to avoid losing excessive time. Depending on the harmony of changeovers and formation riding, the TTT can either be like poetry in motion or a succession of awful limericks. Teams with a strong all-round backbone, like Garmin, Astana and Saxo Bank, will be favourites. As the adjusted time system used in 2005 has been scrapped, there's more at stake, as each team will be given the actual time that their fifth rider crosses the line.

STAGE FACTS

• The fastest TTT in Tour history belongs to the Discovery Channel team, who averaged 57.324 kph over a 67.5km course in 2005. This was also the last time a TTT was included in the race.
• The Tour's first team time-trial was in 1962, when Flandria-Faema won.
• The Giro d'Italia has had race opening TTTs in the last three years: the winners were Columbia, Slipstream and Liquigas.
• This is the shortest TTT to be included in the Tour since 1991, when Aristoea won.
• The last occasion the Tour visited Montpellier was 2007, when Robbie Hunter was the stage winner.