Tour de France 2022: stage 17 – live updates!

There are only five racing days left in this year’s Tour de France – and if either Jonas Vingegaard or Tadej Pogacar want to make their winning move on a climb, it will have to happen today or tomorrow. The battle between the two, sparked into life a week ago in the Alps, is starting to resemble the never-ending fight scene from They Live.

After a gentle first 50km, Wednesday’s short stage then serves up four steep climbs in quick succession, ending with a summit finish at Peyragudes. With both contenders’ teams weakened on the road here, this is a chance for Pogacar to strike back, or for Vingegaard to assert his dominance. Or for Geraint Thomas to roll through the dust cloud in front of him and make this a three-way race to Paris.

Today’s stage profile doesn’t favour a breakaway, but with the GC heavyweights focused on each other, it could be a day for a late surge. Perhaps the time is right for Thibaut Pinot or Romain Bardet (who won here in 2017) to deliver France’s first home stage win this year. We’ll find out soon enough, so stick around.