How to Watch the Criterium Du Dauphine on TV

The Criterium du Dauphine is an important pre-Tour de France race in the Alps. It is traditionally used as a training tune-up for the Tour, with riders tackling climbs that will be part of the Tour.

Watch all eight stages live, free and in HD on SBS, starting June 5-12. The Criterium is a prestigious event that has been won by Richie Porte and Geraint Thomas.

How to watch

The Criterium du Dauphine is one of the biggest cycling events of the year, a seven-day stage race that runs through south-eastern France. It's the traditional lead-up race to the Tour de France and is considered a benchmark for riders in both the mountains and the sprints.

It's also a great opportunity for fans to see some of the world's best cyclists in action without the crowds. The 74th edition of the Criterium du Dauphine kicks off on Sunday, June 5 in La Voulte-sur-Rhone and finishes in Plateau de Solaison with a mountain top finish.

As the title suggests, it's a very competitive race and you can watch every stage of the 2022 Criterium du Dauphine live, free and in HD from SBS. You'll have access to all eight stages, from the 32km time trial to the final pedal stroke in Plateau de Solaison.

Watch the Giro d'Italia, Vuelta a Espana, Dakar Rally, Tour de France, or any other big race from anywhere in the world with SBS On Demand. Or, if you're looking to get a bit more out of your viewing experience, you can purchase the SBS subscription box, which includes access to all of SBS's major sports coverage.

During the event, you'll be able to watch live racing as well as highlights from each of the eight stages. You'll have a chance to witness a 32km time trial and two summit finishes.

You'll be able to see some impressive racing and some fantastic scenery along the way too. It's also an excellent chance to see some of the world's best climbers and general classification specialists test their mettle on some of the most challenging climbs in Europe, including the Tour de France's highest peak - Col d'Eze.

Stages

The Criterium du Dauphine is a key pre-Tour de France race that takes place in the Alps. The event is run over eight days in June and is a crucial training tune-up for Tour contenders. It is also often used as a means of testing climbers, sprinters and time triallists for the biggest race of the year in July.

The race begins in La Voulte-sur-Rhone and travels through the French Alps before finishing at the Plateau de Solaison. It is usually considered to be a hilly, demanding race but there are some flat stages that can also offer up plenty of excitement.

Day two has plenty of climbing in store for the riders, including four categorised climbs that should provide the opportunity for breakaway riders to score maximum mountain classification points. However, this stage also offers plenty of downhill opportunities for the peloton to open up their legs.

Stage three has a few short punchy climbs and is classified as a hilly stage, but there are also some downhill sections to help ease the rider's legs before a long, steep finish at Chastreix-Sancy. This will test the top riders and if the breakaway is successful, it could put them on the front of the race with just a few kilometers to go.

Another hilly stage is in store for the race on Stage 4. The categorized climbs are a little more challenging than day two, but this stage has a couple of downhill segments to make up for the harder climbs.

Ineos should be able to pull Van Aert to the stage win as they have done before but it will be interesting to see how the team goes about this. On the previous stage, they sent out a strong leadout and it appears they don't want to risk letting the race slip away from them in the final few kilometers.

Jumbo-Visma on the other hand are taking a much more cautious approach to this race and seem more likely to let the breakaway slip through their fingers rather than risk having one of the top GC contenders get caught in the lull between the climbs. They are also probably more keen to keep Primoz Roglic and Jonas Vingegaard fresh for the weekend's grueling mountain stages.

Start list

The Criterium du Dauphine is one of the most prestigious races in cycling, and it's the final major test before the Tour de France. It's an eight-day race across the French Alps, with climbers and sprinters on offer.

This year the race will take place from June 5-12, and all eight stages will be live and free on SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand. The race is an important marker in the build up to the Tour, and riders will aim for a GC win or yellow jersey in order to get their confidence up.

Stages five through to nine, all of which feature mountain climbs, are set to be a real challenge for the peloton. The first of these, stage 7, 134km between Saint-Chaffrey and Vaujany, will take in a combination of a few key climbs from the Tour de France, including the Col du Galibier and the Col de la Croix-de-Fer.

As we move closer to the end of the week, the gruelling time trial Wednesday will be a great indicator of who is serious about taking home the yellow jersey and a top GC position. The start list includes many of the biggest names in the sport, with Primoz Roglic and Chris Froome leading the pack.

The race's final stage on Sunday is also a time trial, this time around a fast and flat 31.9km course from Montbrison to La Batie d'Urfe. This will be the last chance to see how the peloton has performed in a time trial before the race's mountains come into play, so don't miss it!

Another big name to watch for is Australian Jack Haig, who will be the main man for Bahrain Victorious at this year's Dauphine. He's had a strong start to the season and will be looking to put his form on show for the Tour de France.

Jumbo-Visma have been on the end of some very dramatic stage wins at the Criterium du Dauphine, but they haven't had much success on the GC in recent years, with their only victory coming in 2021 when Primoz Roglic took out the race. This year they're taking 7/8ths of their purported Tour de France team to the Dauphine and all eyes will be on them to deliver a GC victory for the first time in a long while.

Results

The Criterium du Dauphine is a stage race that takes place in France. It is an eight-stage event that is broadcast live around the world. NBC Sports will be the main television broadcaster for the race in the United States and Canada, while Australian viewers can watch the racing on SBS or Discovery+. In the Netherlands, Dutch TV broadcaster RTW will also be showing it live.

This year’s race features an impressive 22 teams, including Jumbo-Visma and Ineos Grenadiers. Despite the absence of last year’s winner Richie Porte, it should be an exciting race with many top riders expected to take part.

Among the GC contenders are Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) and Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma). They will both look to secure stage wins in order to gain a strong advantage over their rivals in the overall.

On the opening day of the race, a five-man breakaway formed and held off a charging peloton in Brives-Charensac. Alexis Vuillermoz (TotalEnergies) won the stage, while Anders Skaarseth (Uno-X) finished second and Olivier Le Gac (Groupama-FDJ) rounded out the top three.

Stage 2 of the Criterium du Dauphine started in Vaujany and was a short but steep stage with a few climbs. It was won by Alexis Vuillermoz (TotalEnergies) who moved to the GC lead after taking the win. He now has a three-second lead over Skaarseth, who will try to maintain his overall lead as the first Grand Tour of the season starts on Thursday.

The third stage of the race featured a category 2 ascent to Chastreix-Sancy. It was won by David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ). He now leads the overall with six seconds over Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma), while Victor Lafay (Cofidis) is just behind him at 12 seconds.

The final stage of the race is set to be a tough one with two climbs, including the famous Plateau de Solaison. It will be a test for the favorites as they prepare to ride the Tour de France later in the year. The Slovenian Primoz Roglic is one of the favourites to win the race with a strong performance on this course, along with his teammate Jonas Vingegaard and Ben O’Connor of AG2R Citroen.