A change for the better? – Tour de France riders and team management uncertain of benefits of inclusion of Montmartre climb on final stage in Paris

The same, but different. Whoever emerges as the winner of the last stage of the Tour de France this year on the Champs-Elysées this Sunday will automatically enjoy the prestige of capturing a victory in one of the most memorable days of the entire race.

But this year, as everybody knows, thanks to the triple ascent of the Cat.4 Montmartre climb, whoever adds their name to the roll call of sprinters and breakaways that have raised their arms in triumph on the ‘most beautiful boulevard in the world’ will have done so in a very different way from previous years.