Tour de France 2009: Stage 11 preview

• Friday, 26 June 2009
• Andrew McGrath
• 0 Comments

Tour de France 2009, stage 11 preview logo

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When Wednesday July 15
Where Vatan – Saint-Fargeau
How long 192km

IMPACT ON CLASSIFICATIONS
Yellow Jersey 1/5
Green Jersey 5/5
Polka Dot Jersey 1/5

STAGE DESCRIPTION
More flat fare for the fast men to get stuck into. As the race heads into the Nièvre, there’s not much uphill to get in the way of a rampaging bunch. Expect the early break to be pegged back on the run-in, as Mark Cavendish and company have a big bunch gallop a stone’s throw away from the beautiful chateau at Saint-Fargeau.

STAGE FACTS

• Number of Tour winners to have the yellow jersey by halfway in the past ten years: four. It’s been Lance Armstrong each time: 1999, 2000, 2003 and 2005.    
• With a population of 1,800, the town of Saint-Fargeau is the smallest ville étape on the route this year. Neither it nor Vatan have been used in the Tour before.
• Louis XIV’s exiled cousin Anne Marie Louise d’Orleans lived in the chateau just by the finish. She took the title of duchesse de Saint-Fargeau, helping to build the chateau to its current magnificent state.