France · Alps
Col du Granon
A savage military road climb above Briançon where Jonas Vingegaard dethroned Tadej Pogačar in the 2022 Tour de France.
- Length
- 11.4 km
- Avg gradient
- 9.2%
- Max gradient
- 14%
- Elevation gain
- 1,047 m
- Summit
- 2,413 m
- Hairpins
- 8
Versants
- From Saint-Chaffrey — 11.4 km at 9.2% (max 14%)
History
The Col du Granon sits at 2,413 m and took international cycling fame suddenly and dramatically: in 2022, when Jonas Vingegaard attacked on it during stage 11 of the Tour de France and never came back, riding Tadej Pogačar and all other pretenders off his wheel on the rocky military road above Briançon.
The climb from Saint-Chaffrey is only 11.4 km at 9.2% average, but the road surface is rough and unfinished in places, it's exposed to wind, and the gradient includes sections steeper than 14%. It's ridden on old military road, and the lack of facilities or much traffic makes it feel like a remote mountain climb despite its nearness to Briançon.
Since the Vingegaard move, the Granon has become a cycling pilgrimage point, with riders testing themselves on the same rough slopes where the 2022 Tour turned decisively. The road is rarely used outside cycling, making it one of the Alps' most cycling-specific climbs.