Col d'Izoard () is a

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since mountain ranges can present formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human and animal migration t ...

in the

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

in the department of

Hautes-Alpes Hautes-Alpes (; ; ) is a Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region of Southeastern France. It is located in the heart of the French Alps, after which it is named. Hautes-Alpes had a population ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It is accessible in summer via the D902 road, connecting

Briançon Briançon (, ) is the sole Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Hautes-Alpes Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region in Southeastern France. It is the highest city in France at an a ...

on the north and the valley of the

Guil The Guil () is a long river in the Hautes-Alpes '' département'', southeastern France. Its drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows ...

Queyras The Queyras (; ) is a valley located in the French Hautes-Alpes, of which the geographical extent is the basin of the river Guil, a tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem' ...

, which ends at Guillestre in the south. There are forbidding and barren scree slopes with protruding pinnacles of weathered rock on the upper south side. Known as the Casse Déserte, this area has formed a dramatic backdrop to some key moments in the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

and at times in the

Giro d'Italia The Giro d'Italia (; ), also known simply as the Giro, is an annual stage race, multiple-stage bicycle racing, bicycle race primarily held in Italy, while also starting in, or passing through, other countries. The first race was organized in 19 ...

, and often featured in iconic 1950s black-and-white photos of the race.

Cycle racing

Details of the climb

From the south, the climb starts at Guillestre from where it is in length, at an average gradient of 4.8%. The climb proper starts at the junction with the D947, near Chateau Queyras from where the ascent is long. Over this distance, the climb gains at an average of 6.9% and a maximum sustained gradient of 10%. The climb from Briançon, to the north-west, via Cervières to the col is in length, climbing at an average gradient of 5.8% and a maximum gradient of 8.9%. On both sides

mountain pass cycling milestones Mountain pass cycling milestones are signposts that provide cyclists with information about their current position with regard to the summit of the mountain pass. They always provide information for cyclists going uphill. Sometimes the signs are two ...

are placed every kilometre. They indicate the current height, the height of the summit, the distance to the summit, as well as the average slope in the following kilometre. In general, the col is closed from October to early June.

Tour de France

The Col d'Izoard is frequently on the route of the

, where it is frequently classified as an Hors Categorie climb. Warren Barguil won the 2017 Tour de France's Stage 18, becoming the first cyclist to win a Tour de France stage that finished on the Col d'Izoard – it has been on the route 34 times previously in the Tour de France since 1922 but never before had a stage finished there. Several of the Tour de France's more memorable moments have occurred on the Col d'Izoard, particularly the exploits of

Gino Bartali Gino Bartali, (; 18 July 1914 – 5 May 2000), nicknamed Gino the Pious and (in Italy) Ginettaccio, was a champion road cyclist. He was the most renowned Italian cyclist before the Second World War, having won the Giro d'Italia twice, in ...

Fausto Coppi Angelo Fausto Coppi (; 15 September 1919 – 2 January 1960) was an Italian cyclist, the dominant international cyclist of the years after the World War II, Second World War. His successes earned him the title ''Il Campionissimo'' ("Champio ...

Louison Bobet Louis "Louison" Bobet (; 12 March 1925 – 13 March 1983) was a French professional road racing cyclist. He was the first great French rider of the post-war period and the first rider to win the Tour de France in three successive years, from 195 ...

and

Bernard Thévenet Bernard Thévenet (; born 10 January 1948) is a retired professional cyclist. His sporting career began with ACBB Paris. He is a two-time winner of the Tour de France and known for ending the reign of five-time Tour champion Eddy Merckx, though ...

. A small cycling museum is at the summit, along with a memorial to Coppi and Bobet.

Appearances in the Tour de France

Giro d'Italia

The Col d'Izoard was 7 times on the route of the

. The most famous passage over the Col was in

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2025 * January 2 – Luis ...

, when Coppi beat Bartali in the memorable stage from

Cuneo Cuneo (; ; ; ) is a city and in Piedmont, Italy, the capital of the province of Cuneo, the fourth largest of Italy’s provinces by area. It is located at 550 metres (1,804 ft) in the south-west of Piedmont, at the confluence of the ri ...

Pinerolo Pinerolo (; ; ; ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont, northwestern Italy, southwest of Turin on the river Chisone. The Lemina torrent has its source at the boundary between Pinerolo and San Pietro Val di Lemi ...

, taking the pink jersey.

Appearances in the Giro d'Italia

References

External links

Col d'Izoard on Google Maps (Tour de France classic climbs)Cycling up to the Col d'Izoard: data, profile, map, photos and description
{{DEFAULTSORT:Izoard Mountain passes of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Mountain passes of the Alps Climbs in cycle racing in France Landforms of Hautes-Alpes Transport in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur