July 11, 2023
The flat finish will likely end in a bunch sprint, but the lumpy terrain will mean the sprinters will have to keep a close eye on any breakaway artists looking to take the chance
Distance: 179.8km
Start location: Clermont-Ferrand
Finish location: Moulins
Start time: 13:05 CEST
Finish time (approx): 17:19 CEST
The strikingly black colours of many of the buildings in Clermont-Ferrand — most prominently the gothic cathedral that towers over the town — will have become a familiar sight to the riders by stage 11. Not only did they spend the rest day here, they’ve also spent the past few days riding amid the volcanic rocks that were used to build them, and give them such a distinctive look. Today, the peloton will finally depart from Clermont-Ferrand and head northwards through Bourbonnais to Moulins, which before now was the only metropolitan prefecture in mainland France never to have hosted a stage of the Tour de France.
The Tour’s history of overlooking this region of Bourbonnais emphasises just how depopulated it is, but it is of considerable historical significance as being the eponymous origin of the royal Bourbon line that ruled France from the late 16th century to the French revolution. These kings epitomised the idea of absolute monarchy that took hold in the late medieval period, as those like the Bourbon’s ‘Sun King’ Louis XIV centralised the state and exercised absolute power on the pretence that the collective was better off with a strong head of state. While there’s no room for such autocracy in modern democracy, the logic still prevails at the Tour de France, where the most successful teams are often those fully united around and working for a single leader.
Stage 11 profile sourced via ASO
The parcours is mostly flat, meaning this is likely to be the only bunch sprint of the second week, and possibly the last one until stage 18. The terrain is also quite useful for the breakaway, though, with lumpy terrain and a couple of early category four climbs giving them a chance to build a decent advantage and put the peloton under some pressure. Given the paucity of other opportunities, the sprinters’ teams must be careful to keep the race controlled early on and prevent the break from being either too big, or featuring too high calibre a rider; local riders like…