Stage 3
Le Perreux → Le Perreux
Stage 3 is a 28.4km team time trial around a Le Perreux loop — the only TTT of the race and a direct dress rehearsal for the opening TTT of the 2026 Tour de France in Barcelona. Teams that have honed their TTT cohesion through training camps come into this with a meaningful advantage; GC contenders without strong TT teammates risk losing the race here before the mountains begin.
Watch this stage
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What the stage looks like
Stage 3 is a 28.4km team time trial around a Le Perreux loop — the only TTT of the race and a direct dress rehearsal for the opening TTT of the 2026 Tour de France in Barcelona. Teams that have honed their TTT cohesion through training camps come into this with a meaningful advantage; GC contenders without strong TT teammates risk losing the race here before the mountains begin.
What to follow
- Tour de France warm-up: with the 2026 TdF opening on a TTT in Barcelona three weeks later, this is the rehearsal — every WT team treats stage 3 as a test run.
- Aero choreography: small mistakes by lead riders or unbalanced rotations can cost a leader 30 seconds.
- GC-leader teams without TT depth can lose the race here before the mountains decide it.
When to tune in
The TTT loop is flat-to-rolling; watch the team formations through the technical sections and how leaders rotate through their domestiques.