Tour de France: Unchained: Netflix release date - and which star cyclists feature in 2022 TdF documentary?

Tour de France: Unchained is an intense Netflix documentary series from the producers of Formula 1: Drive to Survive which looks at fitness and mentality needed to complete the gruelling three week cycle race.

Last year’s race was one of the toughest yet, as 176 cyclists set off on Stage 1 but only 136 remained in the race by the final stage - this was the fewest finishers in more than 20 years.

The eight part documentary follows major teams and their top cyclists as they compete in the race which takes place over thousands of miles and 24 stages.

The Tour de France is a 23-day (including two rest days) multi-stage cycling race, which has taken place since 1903. The race was interrupted by the world wars and the 2022 tour was the 109th edition of the race. 

The 2022 route began with three days of racing in Denmark, before the cyclists flew into northern France. Later stages took the cyclists into Belgium, Switzerland, and the south of France, with the final stage at the Champs-Élysées in Paris.

Which cyclists feature in Tour de France: Unchained?

The Netflix series follows several teams and professional cyclists as they took part in the 2,200 mile race. The main cyclists featured in the documentary are:

• Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma), 2022 Tour de France winner. He naturally features throughout the series including episode 2 where he requires multiple bike changes on Stage 5 of the race. He is also a focus of the final episodes.
• Yves Lampaert (Soudal-QuickStep), the winner of Stage 1 in Copenhagen, who appears in the first episode
• Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) features in episode 2 where he wins Stage 4 at Calais, and episode eight where he wins Stage 20.
• Stefan Bissegger (EF Education-EasyPost), appears across the series - he had a tough tour, crashing twice on the first day
• Fabio Jakobsen (Soudal–Quick-Step), suffered a major crash in the 2020 Tour of Poland that left him with a fractured skull. He plotted a career comeback in the 2022 race.

• Bob Jungels (Bora–Hansgrohe), features in episode 3 where he wins Stage 9 at Châtel on the Swiss border.
• Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma) appears throughout the series - he injured himself on Stage 5 and later withdrew from the race.
• Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) is seen in episode 5 where he wins Stage 12 at Alpe d'Huez on Bastille Day. 
• Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates), 2022 runner up features several times, including episode 3 where he wins Stage 7 at the Super Planche des Belles Filles, and later when he wins Stage 17 at Peyragudes
• Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers), winner of third place in the race appears in episode 7 where he competes against Vingegaard.
• David Gaudu (Groupama–FDJ) features in the final episode where he secures fourth place overall.

When is Tour de France: Unchained on Netflix?

The eight part series was released on Netflix on Thursday 8 June - all eight episodes were released in one go.

The series has arrived on Netflix less than a month before the Tour de France 2023 race begins. The race will take place from Saturday 1 July to Sunday 23 July.