Tour de France Mountains Competition Contenders

The 2026 Tour de France, beginning in July, features a mountains competition with a revised points system where all HC climbs carry equal points, removing the previous double-points rule for the highest climb. The opening week is particularly climb-heavy, including the Category 1 Collada de Toses on Stage 3 and the HC-rated Tourmalet on Stage 6, meaning the early polka dot jersey leader will have earned it legitimately. Contenders can win the competition either by actively targeting it or incidentally through GC attacks, as seen with past winners Tadej Pogačar (2020, 2021, 2025) and Jonas Vingegaard.