CYCLING NEWS - Tom Dumoulin should be Chris Froome's main rival as the Briton targets a record-equalling fifth title in the 2018 Tour de France, the route for which was unveiled on Tuesday.
Dutchman Dumoulin won the Giro d'Italia this year before Froome claimed a fourth Tour triumph, both relying mainly on their time-trialling qualities.

Next year's Tour will feature a 35km team time trial in Cholet and could be decided in a hilly 31km individual effort against the clock on the penultimate day in the Basque country.

"A contest between Chris Froome and Tom Dumoulin, two riders with similar qualities, wouldn’t displease me," said Tour director Christian Prudhomme. "It would force one of the two to try something different in order to surprise the other.

“We’re looking at a new generation that wants to entertain. I think that if Christopher Froome is up against Tom Dumoulin they will want to do that. They will be more or less equal in the time trials. That’s something very exciting.”

There will be many challenges on the course, however, with 21.7 kilometres on cobbles on the ninth stage to Roubaix, where the Queen of the Classics, also known as the "Hell of the North" finishes each year.

That will be followed by a rest day before the riders tackle three punishing stages in the Alps with a summit finish at top of the iconic Alpe d'Huez.

"That's a special challenge for the riders as they will need to switch from flat-stage mode to mountain-stage mode," Tour competitions director Thierry Gouvenou told Reuters.

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