Col du Télégraphe


Col du Télégraphe is a mountain pass in the French Alps situated above the Maurienne valley between the eastern end of the massif d'Arvan-Villards and the massif des Cerces.
The pass links Saint-Michel-de-Maurienne to the north and Valloire to the south, as well as forming an access point to the col du Galibier via its north face.
The route is often used during the ascent to Col du Galibier in the Tour de France, and is thus popular with cyclists.

Details of the climb

From the north, starting at Saint-Michel-de-Maurienne, the climb is long, gaining in height. The maximum gradient is 9.8% at the summit. On this side mountain pass cycling milestones are placed every kilometre. They indicate the current height, the distance to the summit, the average slope in the following kilometre, and the number of the street. As of July 2015, some milestones are missing in the middle part of the climb.
From the south, the climb starts at Valloire and is long at an average gradient of 3.4%.

The Tour de France

The Col du Télégraphe was first used in the Tour de France in 1911; the first rider over the summit was Emile Georget.
Since 1947, the Col du Télégraphe has been crossed 29 times by the Tour de France. On several of those occasions it has not been ranked for points in the King of the Mountains competition, being treated as part of the descent from the Col du Galibier, and has been ranked for points only 18 times.

Appearances in the Tour de France (since 1947)

YearStageCategoryLeader at the summit
2017171Primož Roglič
2011191Gorka Izagirre
200791Mikel Astarloza
2005111Santiago Botero
200382Pierrick Fédrigo
199991José-Luis Arrieta
1998152Rodolfo Massi
1993102Thierry Claveyrolat
1987212Thierry Claveyrolat
1979172Giovanni Battaglin
1974112Herman Van Springel
197214a3Pietro Campagnari
1969102Joaquim Galera
1967102Julio Jiménez
1966162Julio Jimenez
196482Federico Bahamontes
1957102Gastone Nencini
195582Charly Gaul
195419HCJean Dotto
194781Fermo Camellini