Col du Petit Ballon
The Col du Petit Ballon is a mountain pass in the Vosges Mountains in the Haut-Rhin department of France, close to the summit of the Petit Ballon mountain.
It was crossed on 2014 [Tour de France, Stage 1 to Stage 11#Stage 10|Stage 10] of the 2014 Tour de France cycle race.
Details of climb
From the north, the climb starts in Munster from where the climb is long, gaining in altitude, at an average gradient of 6.7%. The climb proper starts at Luttenbach-près-Munster, where it leaves the D10. From here, the climb is long, at an average gradient of 8.1%.From the north-west, the climb starts at Metzeral, passing through the village of Sondernach, where the route leaves the D10. The total distance is, gaining in altitude, at an average gradient of 5.3%.
It is also possible to access the col via the D43 from Wihr-au-Val to the north-east from where the climb is long, gaining in altitude, at an average gradient of 5.3%.
Tour de France
The col was used for the first time on Stage 10 of the 2014 Tour de France, when the leader over the summit was the Spanish rider, Joaquim Rodríguez. The col was used again on Stage 20 of the 2023 Tour de France. The leader over the summit was the French rider Thibaut Pinot. During that stage, the top of the climb became known as the "virage pinot". Pinot's fans gathered at the summit to cheer the rider during the last Tour de France mountain stage of his career.| Year | Stage | Category | Start | Finish | Leader at the summit | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 10 | 1 | Mulhouse | La Planche des Belles Filles |  Joaquim Rodríguez.png" />Joaquim Rodríguez|ESPTour de France FemmesThe col was used on Stage 7 of the 2022 Tour de France Femmes, with Demi Vollering first over the summit.
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