Germany's most important stage race will remain true to its motto in terms of the route in 2024: From 21 to 25 August, the race will take place over a varied course that offers good chances of victory for Classics specialists. "The Deutschland Tour 2024 will be really beautiful. It leads through many great cycling regions, from Schweinfurt to Saarbrücken. And it will also be tough again. Fabian Wegmann and his team have put together a great classics route that is really exciting," former pro Marcel Kittel told the Saarländischer Rundfunk on the occasion of the presentation.
Germany Tour 2024 in the south
This year, the tour, which Wegmann is accompanying as head of sport, will remain entirely in the southern part of the republic. It starts with a prologue through the city centre of Schweinfurt, where the riders with a pulse of 180 present themselves to the fans in a winding introductory lap against the clock. On the following days, the hilly stages take the riders over the Swabian Alb and through the Palatinate Forest to the final home straight in Saarbrücken. At 211 kilometres, the daily section from Schwäbisch Gmünd to Villingen-Schwenningen is the longest since the Tour's rebirth in 2018.
The longest climb on the 748 kilometres of the tour is the Kalmit at the start of the final stage - it is a good five kilometres uphill with an average gradient of 7.4 per cent. There are no high mountains on the course this time. New: the overall leader now wears the colour blue instead of a red jersey as before - a tribute to the new main sponsor. A total of 20 teams will be at the start, including the top German racing team Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, the small domestic Continental teams Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank and Bike Aid as well as a German national team, which will be led by Simon Geschke as captain. The supporting programme of the tour includes an extensive programme for children, races for everyone in Saarbrücken and the Newcomer Tour for young female riders.
Deutschland Tour 2024: The route - all stages at a glance
- Schweinfurt (2.9 kilometres)
- Start of the first driver: 1:48 pm
- Start of the last rider: 3:50 pm
- TV broadcast: Bayerischer Rundfunk, 14:10 - 16:00
- Live stream: ARD Mediathek (sports programme), Discovery Plus
- To the race report of the prologue
- Schweinfurt to Heilbronn (176.3 kilometres)
- Start: 12:25 pm
- Target: from 16:40 in Heilbronn, Karlsruher Straße
- TV broadcast: ZDF, 15:05 - 17:00
- Live stream: zdf.de, Discovery Plus
- To the race report of stage 1
- Heilbronn to Schwäbisch Gmünd (174.6 kilometres)
- Start: 12:20 pm in the Kirchbrunnenstraße in Heilbronn
- Target: from 16:38 in Schwäbisch Gmünd, Oberbettringer Straße
- TV broadcast: ARD, 15:10 - 17:00
- Live stream: ARD Mediathek (sports programme), Discovery Plus
- To the race report of stage 2
- Schwäbisch Gmünd to Villingen-Schwenningen (211.1 kilometres)
- Start: 11:30 a.m., Schwäbisch Gmünd market square
- Target: from 16:38 in Villingen-Schwenningen, Bertholdstraße
- TV broadcast: ZDF, 15:15 - 17:00
- Live stream: zdf.de, Discovery Plus
- To the race report of stage 3
- Annweiler am Trifels to Saarbrücken (182.7 kilometres)
- Start: 12:10 pm, main street in Annweiler am Trifels
- Target: from 16:39 in Saarbrücken, Heuduckstraße
- TV broadcast: ARD, 15:30 - 17:00
- Live stream: ARD Mediathek (sports programme), Discovery Plus
- To the race report of stage 4
Who is broadcasting the Deutschland Tour on TV and live stream?
The Deutschland Tour 2024 will take place from 21 August to 25 August. ARD, ZDF and Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR) will broadcast the tour on free-to-air TV this year (the stages can also be followed live on the ZDF and ARD media centres). Discovery Plus also offers a live stream on all days (for a fee).
Germany Tour 2024: TV broadcast times at a glance
- Prologue | Wednesday, 21 August | 14:10 - 16:00 BR
- 1st stage | Thursday, 22 August | 15:05 - 17:00 ZDF
- 2nd stage | Friday, 23 August | 15:10 - 17:00 ARD
- 3rd stage | Saturday, 24 August | 15:15 - 17:00 ZDF
- 4th stage | Sunday, 25 August | 15:30 - 17:00 ARD
