NSN Team Director, resident of Catalonia, updates us on the Tour de France stages after the team time trial
CyclingSaturday, 04 July 2026 at 08:10
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Follow us on GoogleIn the run-up to the Tour de France, there’s always a lot of talk about the opening stage. In this case, it’s a team time trial, but what can we expect from the relatively tough stages that await the peloton afterward? Sam Bewley, team director at NSN Cycling and a longtime resident of Catalonia, provides an insider's view to IDL Pro Cycling.
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"It's quite an interesting start. The team time trial speaks for itself, of course," said the New Zealander. "Then there's the stage around Montjuïc, which is basically suitable for both the general classification contenders and the punchers." In recent days, comparisons have often been drawn to the final stage of the Tour of Catalonia, but that comparison doesn’t quite hold up.
Whereas in that stage we climb Montjuic via a 2.5-kilometer stretch with a 4.6 percent gradient, on Sunday we’ll take a route that’s 1.6 kilometers long with a 9.3 percent gradient. This happens three times, with each section also including a short uphill stretch toward the Olympic Stadium that is 700 meters long at an 8 percent gradient. Additionally, the stretch to the finish line is 2.5 kilometers long, whereas in Catalonia it is 5 kilometers.
Read more below the photo!
Montjuïc takes center stage during the first weekend of the Tour!
'Stage 2 of the Tour de France is different from the final stage of the Tour of Catalonia'
Bewley also points out that a second stage in the world’s biggest race is completely different from the final stage of the Tour of Catalonia. “Of course, it’s always a little different in the Tour, but it’s still pretty safe. The roads are wide enough and the course flows well, but it’s still a city circuit, of course.” And he should know: this year, Australian Brady Gilmore, riding for NSN, won the final stage of the Tour of Catalonia on Montjuïc.
"I do think it’s going to be chaotic. There’s no doubt about that. The local circuit is quite technical, and it’s still the Tour de France. No race is as intense as the Tour. The risk of crashes is high, but unfortunately that’s just part of cycling. In any case, it will immediately set the tone for the rest of the race,” predicts the NSN team director.
"Bewley is focusing more on the general classification contenders than on Van der Poel’s category for this stage, which will also set the tone for the stages that follow." "As soon as we leave Barcelona or Spain in Stage 3, there will already be an initial shakeout in the general classification. I think that will help determine the definitive shape of the race early on in the Tour."
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Read more below the photo!
Brady Gilmore won this year on behalf of NSN at Montjuic.
Bewley is looking ahead to Stages 3, 4, and especially 5
The third stage heads to Les Angles and has 3,850 meters of elevation gain, but it doesn’t get really tough at any point. “That’s another unique stage; it really looks like the kind of stage where a breakaway could succeed. But then again, you never know, because there are always riders who’ll go all out for a finish like that. So there’s already a lot going to happen in the first three or four days.”
Stage four is more of the same: 2,700 meters of elevation gain between Carcassonne and Foix, but not tough enough for the pure climbers and too tough for the pure sprinters. “Stages like these—including Stage 3—are well-suited for riders like Marco Frigo. Of course, we have Bini here, but there are going to be a lot of stages that could potentially be won by a breakaway group.”
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"Riders like Marco really excel in stages like that. He’ll be a key player for us in this Tour, and we’re definitely going to play that card," explains Bewley, who emphasizes that the focus is primarily on Biniam Girmay. “Stage 5 is our first real opportunity for Bini. That doesn’t mean, by the way, that we don’t want to be in the mix before then. The stages around Barcelona generally don’t suit our team very well, but it’s still important for us to be part of the race with NSN. So we’ll definitely make our presence felt, even in the early days.”
"If you line up here with just a sprinter and no other ambitions, it’s a very long road to Stage 5," says the man from Rotorua. “It’s important that we have riders who give us options in those first few days, so we can be in contention right from the start. That actually applies to the entire Tour, especially in the final week when there are no more sprinter stages.”
"Then you really have to be in the right position to maintain the momentum," concludes Bewley, who is a fan of this setup. “I do like a tough start like that leading up to the first sprint. First of all, I think it’s a lot safer. And besides, for a sprinter like Bini—who’s fit and strong—it’s an advantage; it just suits him well.”
Read more below the photo!
Girmay: Team Leader for NSN in the Tour.
NSN see big benefits for Girmay
In the long run, NSN is also aiming for the green jersey with Girmay, but how will they go about it—with Girmay and the changed points system—against the Merliers, Philipsens, and Kooijs of this world? “Unfortunately, you can’t shake those guys off in the flat sprints.” So our initial focus is purely on those stages and trying to execute the plan well, after which we can see where we can best showcase our strengths.”
"I think 'speed' is a relative concept in the Tour de France. Of course, there are sprinters who are faster than Bini on a straight stretch if they get a perfect lead-out. But the Tour is different. The sprints are chaotic and start from a long way out. And as you just said, there are a few tough stages in this Tour right before the sprints,” explains the team manager.
"So it's less about being super-super fast, and more about how fit you are and whether you can still pull off your top sprint after a tough stage or a string of tough days. We’re confident that Bini is in good shape in that regard. We think that’s the best way to approach this year’s Tour,” concludes the Kiwi.
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Tom van der Salm (27) comes from the charming town of Zeilberg (Deurne) in the Netherlands and has been working as editor-in-chief & journalist at IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, In de Leiderstrui, since 2019. He travels with the peloton from the Tour de France to the AlUla Tour and from the World Championships in Rwanda or Canada to the Zilvermeercross in Mol. In his spare time he enjoys playing football, mountain biking, running, walking with his Labrador/Stabyhoun, investing, holidays, (specialty) beers, reading, cooking and watching sports & documentaries!
Contact: [email protected]
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