Paris-Nice revives team time trial for 2023 with a new twist

Published January 5, 2023 04:26AM

Fans of the team time trial will be happy with the 2023 edition of Paris-Nice including one for the first time in 30 years.

There’s a twist. Instead of taking the time of the fourth or fifth rider across the line, as is the case of most team time trials, officials will set the time taken to the first rider.

That means teams can sacrifice more riders early, and then set up their fastest rider to sprint to the line.

The tweak will also stop a whole team sweeping the top GC standings, officials said.

It’s all part of the 90th anniversary of the “Race to the Sun,” with eight stages running from the suburbs of Paris to Nice from March 5-12.

“My objective is to design an all-round course for an all-round rider,” said race director François Lemarchand. “In the 20 years since I took over the management of Paris-Nice from Laurent Fignon, the sporting level has risen considerably. We had to find suitable playing fields for a new generation of riders.”

There’s plenty on tap for Paris-Nice, one of the calendar’s most prestigious one-week stage races.

In addition to the TTT, a mix of sprint stages and breakaway profiles dominate the race until the Col de la Couillole in stage 6. There’s no prologue or individual time trial, so the GC should remain undecided until the final weekend.

At an altitude of 1,678 m, the pass is still the highest ever climbed in Paris-Nice. Sunday’s finale over Col d’Eze will keep things tight until the final dash on the Promenade des Anglais.

Stages for the 2023 Paris-Nice:

Sunday, March 5, stage 1: La Verrière—La Verrière, 169.4km
Monday, March 6, stage 2: Bazainville to Fontainebleau, 163.7km
Tuesday, March 7, stage 3: Dampierre-en-Burly to Dampierre-en-Burly (TTT), 32.2km
Wednesday, March 8, stage 4: Saint-Amand-Montrond to La Loge des Gardes, 164.7km
Thursday, March 9, stage 5: Saint-Symphorien-sur-Coise to Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux, 212.4km
Friday, March 10, stage 6: Tourves to La-Colle-sur-Loup, 197.4km
Saturday, March 11, stage 7: Nice to Col de la Couillole, 142.9km
Sunday, March 12, stage 8: Nice-Nice, 118.4km