Due to the lockdown decreed this weekend (March 13 and 14) on the coast of the Alpes-Maritimes, the routes of the last two stages of Paris-Nice had to be modified and relocated to the hinterland.
As for the race, Primoz Roglic, after his victory on Wednesday in Chiroubles, won the 6th stage of Paris-Nice on Friday, wearing the yellow jersey.
In a finale for punchers, Roglic outperformed the Frenchman Christophe Laporte (Cofidis) and Michael Matthews (BikeExchange). Thanks to the bonuses (ten seconds awarded to the winner), he even reinforced his position as leader ahead of Maximilian Schachmann (2nd, +00:41). On Saturday, the race will start from Le Broc and finish at La Colmiane, and on Sunday it will start from Plan du Var and end in Levens.
As planned, the seventh stage will end at the summit of La Colmiane, which was already featured in the race in 2018 (victory of Simon Yates) and in 2020 (victory of Nairo Quintana). Sunday’s stage will therefore be shortened (to 92.5 kilometers), about thirty kilometers north of Nice, and will take the form of an almost-loop.
With three ascents of the Côte de Duranus, classified as second category, the last 8.4 kilometers from the finish, according to the details provided by the organizing company ASO, also responsible for the Tour de France.
As a reminder, last year, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, then in its early stages, Paris-Nice was shortened by its last stage and concluded at the La Colmiane station, which will host the 7th stage of the 2021 edition on Saturday with a summit finish, the toughest of the race.
