As the Tour reaches its final few days, the riders face one of the toughest challenges on the entire route. There are 143.2km between Lourdes and Hautacam, meaning it's far from the longest stage of the race, but with a Category 1 ascent sandwiched between two punishing HC climbs it presents a monstrous challenge to the remaining competitors. Here's how to watch a free Stage 18 live stream from the 2022 Tour de France wherever you are, as the riders head from Lourdes to Hautacam.
Date: Thursday 21st July
FREE stream: ITV4 (UK)
Watch anywhere: Try ExpressVPN risk-free
US stream: Peacock ($4.99/month)
AUS stream: SBS (free)
CAN stream: FloBikes ($12.50/month)
After a short but strenuous mountain stage from Saint-Gaudens to Peyragudes, things get serious on this year's final high-altitude challenge.
Stage 18 begins in Lourdes – the site of the famous pilgrimage – and some riders may need help from above to reach the end. After a fairly comfortable start, an intermediate sprint at Laruns is followed almost immediately by the stage's first – and longest – HC climb: the legendary 16.4km Col d'Aubisque, which peaks at a 10 percent gradient.
There's barely any respite before the riders are faced with the Category 1 Col de Spandelles, a new addition to the Tour that should present a real challenge to the climbers, before ending with another irregular ascent to the finish at the ski resort of Hautacam. It's going to be brutal.
Defending champion Tadej Pogacar managed to get the better of Jonas Vingegaard across yesterday's four categorised climbs, but the Dane still leads the pack by two minutes and 18 seconds. Can the Slovenian eat into it today?
Make sure you know how to get a free Stage 18 live stream from wherever you are in the world and watch the 2022 Tour de France.
Watch a Stage 18 free live stream
In the UK, ITV4 will air free live coverage of the 2022 Tour de France, including Stage 18.
Travelling outside the UK right now?
Use a VPN to watch the Tour de France on ITV4 from abroad.
We recommend ExpressVPN as it comes with a risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee. Full details below.
The 2022 Tour de France also airs live and free on a handful of other broadcasters including: Australia's SBS, Italy's Rai Sport, France's France TV and Belgium's RTBF. As above, a VPN will allow you to tune into your home coverage while abroad on those services too.
Watch the 2022 Tour de France live stream from abroad using a VPN
Even if you have subscribed to the relevant 2022 Tour de France rights holders, you won't be able to access them when outside your own country. The service will know your location based on your IP address, and will automatically block your access.
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) helps you get around this obstacle. A VPN creates a private connection between your device and the internet, such that the servers and services you’re accessing aren’t aware of what you’re doing. All the information passing back and forth is entirely encrypted.
There are lots of VPN providers but some are more reliable and safe than others. As a rule, we suggest a paid-for service such as ExpressVPN which offers a 100 per cent risk-free money back guarantee. If you're not happy with the service any time within the first 30-days, then you can cancel with no penalties at all.
How to use a VPN for the 2022 Tour de France
Using a VPN to watch the 2022 Tour de France is incredibly simple:
1. Install the VPN of your choice. ExpressVPN is the one we recommend.
2. Open up the VPN app and choose the location of the service you wish to access. For ITV4, choose 'UK', for example.
3. Then head over to ITV4 on your browser or device and enjoy the free Tour de France live stream.
UK: watch the 2022 Tour de France live stream
ITV4 is showing live coverage of the whole race, plus daily highlights of each stage. TV license holders can watch or stream ITV4 for free.
Prefer to watch without the ads? Discovery+ is the place to find an ad-free live stream of the 2022 Tour de France, complete with multi-camera view. Subscription is £6.99 a month or £59.99 a year.
Die-hard cycling fans can try GCN+, which provides a live stream plus access some of the best cycling documentaries ever made. It's £39.99 a year.
US: watch the 2022 Tour de France live stream
The 109th Tour de France airs live on NBC, USA and and Peacock.
Streaming service Peacock costs just $4.99 a month ($9.99 with limited ads) and includes thousands of movies, TV shows, kids content and other live sport. New users get a free 7-day trial.
Travelling this week? Simply use a VPN to access Peacock from wherever you are in the world, without being blocked.
How to watch the 2022 Tour de France in France, Italy and Belgium
The Tour will be shown live and free on a handful of Europe's biggest broadcasters, including Rai Sport in Italy, France Sport in France, and RTBF in Belgium.
Canada: watch the 2022 Tour de France live stream
FloBikes, a platform dedicated to cycling streams, will show live Tour de France coverage in Canada. A FloBikes subscription costs from $12.50 per month or $150 for the year, and includes the Tour, Giro d'Italia and other top UCI events.
Australia: watch the 2022 Tour de France live stream
Aussies can watch every stage of the 109th Tour de France live on the SBS, or catch a free live stream through SBS On Demand.
Out of Oz at the moment? Grab a VPN and watch SBS from abroad, without being blocked.
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