The Tour de France will have a more traditional appearance in 2025.

After a rare arrival outside Paris last July, the biggest cycling race is getting back to basics with the route unveiled on Tuesday. A rather flat first week is followed by numerous climbs in the last 10 stages which will pave the way for another duel between reigning champion Tadej Pogacar and his rival Jonas Vingegaard.

After three consecutive departures from abroad, the 2025 Tour will be 100% French since the riders will not make any excursions beyond French borders.

The race starts from the city of Lille on July 5 and stays in cycling-loving northern France for three stages. The peloton will then head south, via Brittany and the Massif Central.

Riders will tackle a second individual time trial in the Pyrenees, and the final week of the race will include three summit finishes at Mont Ventoux, Col de la Loze – the highest point of the race at 2,304 meters – and the ski resort of La Plagne in the Alps.

Last year’s final leg took place outside Paris for the first time since 1905 due to a conflict with the Olympics, and took place in Nice.

For security and logistical reasons, the French capital did not have its traditional Tour finish on the Champs-Élysées. The famous avenue returns to the program and will host the final stage for the 50th time at the end of the 3,320 kilometer odyssey.

According to the organizers, “the milestone of 50 years constitutes a central theme”, because the 2025 edition also marks the 50th anniversary of the polka dot jersey for the classification of the best climber and the best young rider.

The women’s race will begin on July 26 from the Breton town of Vannes. Comprised of nine stages for a total of 1,165 kilometers (724 miles), the fourth edition of the race will cross the Massif Central and finish in the Alps as the peloton climbs blockbuster mountains like the Col de Joux-Plane and the Col de la Madeleine.

Among the highlights of the men’s route, three Pyrenean stages including the time trial to Peyragudes during stage 13 and a return to Luchon-Superbagnères.

The ascent of Mont Ventoux, the grueling climb on which British rider Tom Simpson died in 1967, promises to test tired legs on stage 16. Ventoux is a huge lunar landscape of Provencal rocks with little shade or grass.

The Alps will then probably decide the winner.