The 2012 Tour de France continues early on Monday morning with Stage 9. Bradley Wiggins will enter the stage as the holder of the yellow jersey as the leader of general classification. Defending champion Cadel Evans sits in second place as Monday's ride gets underway.
Stage 9 is a time trial, a mostly flat 41.5km sprint from Arc-et-Senans to Besancon. Following Monday's ride, there will be a much-needed rest day on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the true madness of the Tour de France will begin with the first mountain climb, a preview of which you can see in the video below. Stage 10 will feature the riders ascending a mountain without classification; one which has never been a part of the Tour before. Riders will break and Wednesday's stage will separate the true leaders from the rest of the pack.
Riders should enjoy Stage 9 while they can. While still arduous and meant for elite riders, it won't get this easy again for some time.
Monday's stage will be televised on NBC Sports Network beginning at 5 a.m. PT.
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