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Luz Ardiden
Luz Ardiden.jpg
Luz Ardiden is located in Occitanie
Luz Ardiden
Luz Ardiden
Location in Occitanie
Luz Ardiden is located in France
Luz Ardiden
Luz Ardiden
Location in France
Luz Ardiden is located in Pyrenees
Luz Ardiden
Luz Ardiden
Location in Pyrenees
Location Luz-Saint-Sauveur, Hautes-Pyrénées, Occitanie, France
Coordinates 42°53′8″N 0°3′41″W / 42.88556°N 0.06139°W / 42.88556; -0.06139
Top elevation 2500
Base elevation 1680
Runs 26
Lift system 15
Website http://www.luz.org/

Luz Ardiden is a popular ski resort located high up in the Pyrenees mountains. You can find it in the Hautes-Pyrénées area, which is part of the Occitanie Region in France. The resort sits at an elevation of 1,720 meters (about 5,643 feet) and first opened its slopes on January 16, 1975. Besides being a great place to ski, the road leading to Luz Ardiden is also famous. It has often been the finish line for exciting cycling races like the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España.

Climbing to Luz Ardiden

The road that goes up to Luz Ardiden is a challenging climb, especially for cyclists. If you start from the town of Luz-Saint-Sauveur, which is at 710 meters (about 2,329 feet) above sea level, the climb to Luz Ardiden (1,720 meters) is 14.7 kilometers (about 9.1 miles) long. Along this distance, you gain 1,010 meters (about 3,314 feet) in height. This means the road goes up quite steeply, with an average slope of 6.9%. At its steepest, the road reaches a 10% incline, which is very challenging!

Cycling Challenges at Luz Ardiden

LuzArdidien2003
The winding road leading up to Luz Ardiden, a famous cycling climb.

Luz Ardiden is well-known in the world of professional cycling. It has been the finish line for several stages of two major bike races: the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España. These races bring top cyclists from around the world to tackle the tough mountain climb.

Tour de France Stage Finishes

The Tour de France is one of the most famous cycling races. Luz Ardiden has hosted the end of a stage many times. Here are some of the years it was a finish line:

Year Stage Number Difficulty Category Stage Start Location Distance (km) Stage Winner Yellow Jersey Leader
2021 18 HC Pau 129.7 Tadej Pogačar Tadej Pogačar
2011 12 HC Cugnaux 211.0 Samuel Sánchez Thomas Voeckler
2003 15 HC Bagnères de Bigorre 159.5 Lance Armstrong Lance Armstrong
2001 14 HC Tarbes 144 Roberto Laiseka Lance Armstrong
1994 12 HC Lourdes 204.5 Richard Virenque Miguel Indurain
1990 16 HC Blagnac 215 Miguel Indurain Claudio Chiappucci
1988 15 HC Saint-Girons 187.5 Laudelino Cubino Gonzalez Pedro Delgado
1987 14 HC Pau 166 Dag Otto Lauritzen Charly Mottet
1985 17 HC Toulouse 209.5 Pedro Delgado Bernard Hinault

Famous Moments in Tour de France History

Luz Ardiden has been part of some memorable moments in the Tour de France.

In the 1985 Tour de France, during stage 17, a famous event happened. Two riders, Greg LeMond and Stephen Roche, were far ahead of the main group. LeMond's team boss and coach told him to slow down, saying that his teammate Bernard Hinault was only 45 seconds behind. LeMond waited, but when he reached the finish line, he realized Hinault was actually more than three minutes behind! Hinault went on to win that year's Tour. LeMond was promised Hinault's support the next year for his help.

During the 1990 Tour de France, Claudio Chiappucci was surprisingly leading the race by over two minutes as they headed into stage 16, which finished on Luz Ardiden. Near the end of the stage, Fabio Parra attacked, and only LeMond and Miguel Induráin could keep up. LeMond and Induráin then rode away from Parra, with LeMond setting a fast pace up the final climb. By the time they reached the top, LeMond had almost secured his third Tour de France win. Induráin won the stage. This strong performance by LeMond on Luz Ardiden made his overall victory very likely.

In the 2003 Tour de France, Lance Armstrong had an unexpected fall at the start of the climb to Luz Ardiden. He crashed when his bike's handlebar got caught on a spectator's bag strap, and another rider, Iban Mayo, also fell. Jan Ulrich, who was riding right behind them, managed to avoid the crash. In a kind gesture, he slowed down to wait for the fallen riders to get back up. Armstrong eventually went on to win the Tour that year by his smallest winning difference ever.

Vuelta a España Stage Finishes

The Vuelta a España is another major cycling race, held in Spain. Luz Ardiden has also been a finish line for some of its stages:

Year Stage Number Difficulty Category Stage Start Location Distance (km) Stage Winner GC Leader
1995 17 HC Salardú 179 Laurent Jalabert Laurent Jalabert
1992 9 HC Vielha 144 Laudelino Cubino Jesus Montoya

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Luz-Ardiden para niños

  • List of highest paved roads in Europe
  • List of mountain passes
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