Stage 20, the last racing day of the 2019 Tour de France, has been shortened from 130km to just 59km due to what the race's organiser described as 'difficult weather conditions'.
After leaving Albertville, the route was supposed to head up the Category 1 Cormet de Roseland followed by the Category 2 Cote de Longefoy before taking on the 33km Hors Categorie climb to the ski station at Val Thorens.
Instead, the organier explained that 'due to the difficult weather conditions expected on Stage 20 and landslides noticed, the course has been modified.'
This now means that following the start in Albertville, the race will use the N90 motorway to head directly to Moutiers where the peloton will rejoin the planned route at the N90-D915 roundabout 36km from the summit finish.
The stage will be start in Albertville at 14:30CEST (13:30BST) and cover a total distance of 59km. The KOM prize at the finish in Val Thorens remains so this could see riders in that competition such as Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale) vying for the stage.
The shortening of Stage 20 should also act as a coronation for Egan Bernal (Team Ineos) who leads the race after crossing the summit of the Col d'Iseran first on Stage 19 - which was later announced as the finish line following the cancellation of the stage.
Stage 20 revised profile
As a result of the change to today's stage, groups such as the InternationElles and those who rode last Sunday's Etape du Tour will have covered a far more gruelling stage parcours than the pros.
Although Val Thorens is the hardest climb of the three in the original route, the accumulated fatigue and opportunities to attack as a result of the combination of climbs would have made for a much more entertaining race. This, of course, cannot be helped and is out of anyone's control.