Tour de France Stage 9 shortened amid ‘an exceptionally intense heatwave’
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Stage 8 winner Tim Merlier of Belgium backed Tour de France organisers’ decision to shorten Stage 9 on July 12, 2026, due to intense heat.
PHOTO: EPA
Bergerac – The Tour de France organisers for the first time in the race’s history have decided to shorten a stage due to intense heat.
Just minutes after the 33-year-old Belgian Tim Merlier had surged to victory in the 180km Stage 8 run from Perigueux to Bergerac with a stunning dash for the line on July 11, Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) announced that Stage 9 on July 12 would be changed because of a red alert in the central Correze region.
Meteo-France, the country’s weather authority, had declared a red alert “due to an exceptionally intense heatwave” in Correze, ASO said in a statement.
It has shaved 30km off the 185.5km stage from Malemort to Ussel, cutting out a hilly loop at the beginning of the stage.
“This decision has been made necessary by the exceptional weather conditions,” said ASO.
“It aims to ensure that the race can take place under conditions compatible with the red heatwave alert.”
Tour director Christian Prudhomme insisted that the shortened route would “not change the sporting aspect” of the stage, which remains “remarkable and fearsome”.
The stage remains hilly with four categorised climbs, the longest being 4.8km and the steepest with an average gradient of 7.7 per cent.
“We’re responsible organisers, we do this with the authorities who are very busy elsewhere, beyond the Tour de France,” said Prudhomme.
It is not the first time that the organisers have made changes to a stage, even at the 2026 race. But this is the first time that it has been done because of the heat.
Back in May, ASO had decided to shorten the Tour’s second stage in Spain by 13.5km due to an outbreak of swine flu detected on a hill included in the original route.
Then last weekend, fans were told to keep away from the finish area of the July 6 third stage ending in the Pyrenees due to a raging wildfire 70km away in south-west France.
The 19th stage in 2025 was also shortened due to an outbreak of lumpy skin disease in a herd of cattle on the Col des Saisies, which was duly cut from that stage.
Merlier was quick to praise ASO for adapting to the challenging heat.
“We are now one week of racing, it was always above 35 deg C,” he said. “It’s definitely a fight to have water, ice and drinks between the (support) cars.”
He added: “So for me, it’s a good idea to shorten the stage.”
Reigning champion and current race leader Tadej Pogacar had resigned himself to just battling on regardless of the weather conditions.
“We cannot expect anything less than around 35 to 40 degrees again,” the UAE Team Emirates-XRG team leader said of Stage 9, ahead of the July 13 rest day.
“We have to be ready as a team, and I think we are. We keep the same motto, go day by day, keep cooling the body and trying to survive each stage.” AFP
