Chris Froome would move level with cycling greats with a fifth triumph Dutch rider Tom Dumoulin is widely tipped to be his biggest challenger The 105th Tour features a hilly 19-mile time trial through the Basque country

The race starts on July 7 - a week later than usual because of the soccer World Cup in Russia - and opens with a flat 189-kilometre (117-mile) route for sprinters from Noirmoutier-en-l'ile to Fontenay-le-Comte in the Vendee region, on the Atlantic coast.

Tour de France race director Christian Prudhomme is relishing a Froome v Dumoulin rivalry

Stage 17 is short at 65 kilometers (40 miles) but cruel, with three consecutive nasty climbs, ending with an attack up Col de Portet.

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