One of the last riders to tackle the hotly discussed Grand Tour triple, Carlos Sastre, shared his very first thought on the 2015 Tour de France route. As the last Spaniard to take a victory on the mighty L’Alpe d’Huez, he welcomed a glorious return of the legendary climb after its absence in this season’s edition of the race.

Sastre also pointed out, however, that while the penultimate stage will make for a great spectacle, it might not necessarily be decisive in terms of the general classification.

"I think it's great, though, it'll keep the tension high right up until the end, and that's something that matters for the Tour. A scenario like the Alpe d'Huez, at the very least, keeps people talking and interested until the last moment possible."

"However, if I was racing, I wouldn't be so sure this was the point where the Tour is decided. The Tour's had very well-balanced routes in the last few years, so it's not so simple as that. But in terms of the race overall, it's like a stage through the Ardennes of Liege or over the cobbles last year: it's always going to matter."

Saying this, Sastre backed an idea of keeping three-week long events open until the very final stages of competition.

"The second last Tour I did" - in 2009 - "we went up the Ventoux on the second last stage and it worked out very well. There was still a battle going on for the podium, if I remember rightly, between Lance Armstrong and the Schleck brothers [and Bradley Wiggins - Ed.], so the interest was there."

"Keeping the race open is what keeps the fans on the edge of their suits, and it means it remains more newsworthy that it would be if it was all decided with a week to go."

The 39-year old Spaniard won on L’Alpe d’Huez on his way to the Tour de France title back in 2008, and has refused to tackle the legendary climb since then not to spoil his memories.

"I did the lower slopes in a cyclo-sportif, but then climbed off at the first curve [of the 21] because I didn't want anything to ruin the memory of how I won there. Going up there by car, which I did do," he says with a smile, "isn't exactly the same!"