Built on the slopes of a rocky outcrop that’s classified as a “Grand Site d’Occitanie”, the home town of painter Pierre Soulages has always provided favourable finishes for puncheuses and puncheurs. The Dutch rider Henneke Lieverse and the late PierreHenri Menthéour won in the 1984 Tour Féminin and Tour de France, respectively, just beneath the cathedral. Exceptionally good form will be required to take victory beyond the Côte Saint-Pierre, where Greg Van Avermaet (2015) and Michael Matthews (2017) won Tour stages.
- Prefecture of Aveyron (12)
- Population: 24,500 (Ruthénois and Ruthénoises), 55,900 within the 8 communes comprising the Greater Rodez municipality; 279,600 in Aveyron