The sixth edition of Argentina’s Tour de San Luis starts Monday, January 23 and runs through Sunday, January 29, 2012.

The seven-stage romp in the Southern Cone offers two summit finishes, an individual time trial, a rugged downhill finale, a day for the adventurers, one for the sprinters, and a final circuit over a total of 1,051 kilometers.

The Tour de San Luis is the first race of 2012 for Alberto Contador. Joining him in the seven-man Saxo Bank squad will be two Argentinian teammates, the Haedo brothers, as well as some of the top riders in the international peloton.

Vuelta a España 2010 champion Vincenzo Nibali, Spanish Nation Time Trial sub-champion Jonathan Castroviejo, Italian champion Giovanni Visconti, French champion Sylvain Chavanel, grand tour podium finishers David Arroyo and Levi Leipheimer, and other top names will compete in San Luis for some of the first prizes of 2012.

Official website ◊ Start list

Riding for Saxo Bank (provisional): Alberto Contador, Jesús Hernández, Juan José Haedo, Lucas Sebastian Haedo, Matteo Tosatto, Troels Vinther, Christopher Juul Jensen

Stages:
Stage 1, Jan. 23: San Luis – Villa Mercedes, 189.3 km

Stage 2, Jan. 24: Fraga – Juana Koslay, 145.3 km

Stage 3, Jan. 25: Estancia Grande – Mirador del Potrero, 168.2 km (summit finish)

Stage 4, Jan. 26: San Luis – San Luis, 19.5 km (ITT)

Stage 5, Jan. 27: La Toma – Merlo (Mirador del Sol), 160.6 km (summit finish)

Stage 6, Jan. 28: Luján – Quines, 201 km

Stage 7, Jan. 29: San Luis – San Luis, 167 km

← Location of San Luis and Sierras Grandes Mountains

Stages: Intro, Region, Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3,  Stage 4, Stage 5,  Stage 6, Stage 7

San Luis is located in the Cuyo region of Argentina, about 800 miles west of Buenos Aires. The Sierras Grandes mountains (image, right), which lie to the east of the Andes, are a key element in the course for the VI Tour de San Luis.

Read more about San Luis and its surroundings at WelcomeArgentina

Tour de San Luis Official website ◊ Start list

← Stage 1

Stages: Intro, Region, Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3,  Stage 4, Stage 5, Stage 6, Stage 7

Stage 1, Jan. 23: San Luis – Villa Mercedes, 189.3 km

See the official website for more information

 Start list

← Stage 2 ◊ Region, Tour de San Luis →

Stages: Intro, Region, Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3,  Stage 4, Stage 5, Stage 6, Stage 7

Stage 2, Jan. 24: Fraga – Juana Koslay, 145.3 km

Post-stage notes (January 24): Race leader Francesco Chicchi got his second consecutive sprint stage win in Stage 2, arriving in a photo finish with teammate Tom Boonen.

Contador arrived 45th in the bunch and finished the day in 20th place overall, at 0:20 off Chicchi’s lead.

See the official website for more information

Start list

← Stage 3 ◊ Stage 1→

Stages: Intro, Region, Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3,  Stage 4, Stage 5, Stage 6, Stage 7

Stage 3, Jan. 25: Estancia Grande – Mirador del Potrero de los Funes, 168.2 km (summit finish)

Real racing starts at 13:57. The stage is expected to last between four and four-and-a-half hours.

There are three categorized climbs, all disputed for KOM points:

1. Km 26: Category 3 Alto de la Florida (only 1.2 km of ascent)

2. Km 60: Category 1 Alto de Nogoli
A 21-km climb, followed by a dangerous descent.

3. Km 168.2: Category 1 Mirador del Potrero de los Funes (summit finish)
The Mirador del Potrero is 4.8 km climb of 6.7% average gradient.

Sprint contests:
There are two sprint points in Stage 3. The town of Nogoli is at 84 km; the first sprint contest is at the Plaza Nogoli, 84.8 km. The second sprint contest occurs at 152 km, Ciudad de La Punta.

Post-stage notes, January 25: Alberto Contador attacked in the final meters of the climb to Mirador de Potrero de los Funes and won Stage 3. Levi Leipheimer finished within a bike length or so, but fell 4 seconds behind Contador when bonifications were added. The GC after Stage 3: 1 Contador, 2 Leipheimer (0:04), 3 Schumacher (0:19).

Official website ◊ Start list

← Stage 4 ◊ Stage 2 →

Stages: Intro, Region, Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3,  Stage 4, Stage 5, Stage 6, Stage 7

Stage 4, Jan. 26: San Luis – San Luis, 19.5 km (ITT)

Individual time trial, urban course. Start time for the first rider is 15:28. Riders will leave at one-minute intervals until the final 10, who will leave two minutes apart. The course will take around 16 minutes to complete.

Official website ◊ Start list

← Stage 5 ◊ Stage 3 →

Stages: Intro, Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3,  Stage 4, Stage 5, Stage 6, Stage 7

Stage 5, January 27: La Toma – Merlo (Mirador del Sol), 160.6 km

Real racing starts at 12:32. Expected finish time around 16:45.

There are two categorized climbs, both of which come in the last 20 minutes or so:

Km. 153.3: 3rd Cat. Montaña frente restaurante Flamingo, KOM point – This 1.2-km climb occurs very late, as a prelude to the final climb.

Km 160.6: 1st Cat. Mirador del Sol, summit finish, KOM point – The 6.4-km climb averages 8.75% gradient, with a ramp of 15.5% at 2.5 km from the finish, a ramp of 14.5% at about 1.5 km, then moderates to 5.5% in the final 500 meters.

Sprint contests at Km. 57.6 La Punilla and at Km. 82 Villa del Carmen

Official website ◊ Start list

← Stage 6 ◊ Stage 4 →

Stages: Intro, Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3,  Stage 4, Stage 5, Stage 6, Stage 7

Stage 6, Jan. 28: Luján – Quines, 201 km

Official website ◊ Start list

← Stage 7 ◊ Stage 5 →

Stages: Intro, Region, Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3,  Stage 4, Stage 5, Stage 6, Stage 7

Stage 7, Jan. 29: San Luis – San Luis, 167 km

Official website ◊ Start list

Stage 6 →

Stages: Intro, Region, Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3,  Stage 4, Stage 5, Stage 6, Stage 7

Stage 4, July 5: Lorient – Mûr-de-Bretagne, 172km

98th Tour de France, July 2-25, 2011

ROUTE

← Stage 3 ◊ Stage 4 profile →