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Hors catégorie (HC) is a French term used in stage bicycle races to designate a climb that is "beyond categorization". The term was originally used for those mountain roads where cars were not expected to be able to pass.

The HC climb is the most difficult type of climb in a race. It is more demanding than a Category 1 climb which in turn is more demanding than a Category 2 climb and so on. The easiest category is Category 4.

These five categories are defined by their steepness and length. In addition, their position on the route can play a role. For instance, a climb that would normally be a Category 1 climb can become a HC climb if it is the final climb of a stage.

The average HC climb in the Tour de France from 2012 to 2016 is 16.1 kilometers long and has a grade of 7.4%. There are around 7 HC climbs per Tour.^[1]

History

When the mountains classification in the Tour de France originated in the 1933 Tour de France, there was only one type of mountain. Points were given to the first cyclists to cross the mountains, starting with 10 points for the first cyclist, going down to 1 point for the tenth cyclist. After the Second World War, in the 1947 Tour de France, the mountains were divided into two categories, the first and the second category. The first category mountains gave 10 points to the first cyclist, similar to before 1939, and the second category mountains gave only 5 points to the first cyclist.

The division in categories was successful, and two years later, in 1949, the third category was added. These were even smaller mountains, which gave 3 points to the cyclist reaching the peak first.

In 1962, the fourth category was added. The points system was also revised: the first category now gave 15 points for the first cyclist, the second category 10 points, the third category 5 points and the fourth category 3 points. Although the fourth category disappeared in 1963, it came back again in 1964. The system with four categories kept in place until 1978, although the points distribution changed over the years.

In 1979, four categories was considered not enough, and another category was added. Instead of adding a fifth category, the Tour organisation decided to add a hors catégorie.

Tour de France

The following climbs used in the Tour de France have been ranked "Hors catégorie" at least once.

Col	Height (m.)	No. of times visited	No. of HC climbs	First time as HC climb	Most recent	Profile ^[2]	Notes
Col Agnel	2744	2	2	2008	2011	[1]	The first appearance of the climb in 2008 was not planned initially, as the stage was designed to go through the Maddalena Pass. Due to a seismic risk on the pass, the route was changed three months before the start of the race and the Col Agnel was included.^[3]
Alpe d'Huez	1860	30	26	1979	2022	[2]	In 2013, the Alpe d'Huez was visited twice on Stage 18, firstly crossing below the summit at 1765m before returning as the stage finish at the designated summit (1850m).
Andorra Arcalis	2240	3	3	1997	2016	[3]
Annecy-Semnoz	1655	2	1	2013	2013	[4]	In 1998, the Semnoz (known as Crêt de Châtillon) was part of the route and was a 1st category climb. However, during the stage, racers went on strike to protest against the excessive police measures. The stage, although fully completed, was declared void.^{[citation needed]}
Col d'Aubisque	1709	48	14	1980	2012	[5]	No. of times visited includes stage finishes at Gourette
Port de Balès	1755	6	6	2007	2020	[6]
Plateau de Beille	1780	7	7	1998	2024	[7]
Col de la Bonette	2802	5	3	1993	2024	[8]	Highest Hors Catégorie climb to date.
Chamrousse	1730	2	2	2001	2014	[9]
Col de la Croix-de-Fer	2067	19	11	1989	2022	[10]	Shares the same slopes from the col du Glandon on two sides.
Col du Galibier	2645	59	22	1979	2024	[11]	Highest stage finish in the history of the Tour de France. In 2015, the climb was scheduled to be used, but ultimately was not due to landslides. The Col de la Croix de Fer was used instead.
Col du Glandon	1924	13	5	1981	2015	[12]
Col du Grand Colombier	1501	6	4	2012	2023	[13]	In the 2016 tour, the Col du Grand Colombier was climbed twice on Stage 15. First as an HC climb of 1483 meters and then as a category 1 ascent of 893 meters.
Col du Grand Saint-Bernard	2465	5	1	2009	2009	[14]
Col du Granon	2413	2	2	1986	2022	[15]
Hautacam	1560	5	5	1994	2022	[16]
Col de l'Iseran	2770	6	3	1992	2019	[17]	In the 2019 tour, GC times were taken from the top of the Col de l'Iseran when Stage 19 was neutralized due to landslides on the descent
Isola 2000	2024	2	2	1993	2024	[18]
Col d'Izoard	2360	35	9	1986	2019	[19]
Col de Joux-Plane	1691	13	8	1981	2023	[20]
La Plagne	1980	4	4	1984	2002	[21]
Port de Larrau	1573	2	2	1996	2007	[22]
La Ruchère	1160	1	1	1984	1984	[23]	Lowest Hors Catégorie climb to date.
Col de la Lombarde	2351	1	1	2008	2008	[24]
Col de la Loze	2304	1	1	2020	2020	[25]	Steepest maximum gradient (24%) of any Hors Catégorie climb to date
Luz Ardiden	1715	9	9	1985	2021	[26]
Col de la Madeleine	1993	25	17	1980	2020	[27]
Col du Mont-Cenis	2083	5	1	1999	1999	[28]
Port de Pailhères	2001	5	4	2005	2013	[29]
Pla d'Adet	1669	11	6	1981	2024	[30]	The 1982 Tour de France finish was planned to end at another location, the Col de Portet, but was ultimately cancelled and the finish line was moved back to Pla d'Adet.^{[citation needed]}
Plateau des Glières	1390	2	2	2018	2020	[31]
Puy de Dôme	1415	13	2	1983	2023	[32]	Only climb in the Massif Central to have received the Hors Catégorie rating
Col du Soudet	1540	6	2	1987	2023	[33]
Col du Soulor	1474	22	1	1982	1982	[34]	Usually climbed while descending the col d'Aubisque from its west side.
Superbagnères	1770	6	1	1986	1986	[35]
Col du Tourmalet	2115	91	29	1980	2024	[36]	No. of times visited includes stage finishes at La Mongie.
Val Thorens	2365	2	2	1994	2019	[37]
Mont Ventoux	1909	18	8	1987	2021	[38]^{[permanent dead link‍]}	In 2021, the Ventoux was climbed twice, the first ascent started from Sault and was a 1st category climb while the second ascent started from Bédoin and was categorized HC.
Col de la Pierre St Martin	1610	1	1	2015	2015	[39]
Finhaut-Emosson	1960	1	1	2016	2016	[40]
Montée de Bisanne	1723	1	1	2016	2016	[41]
Col de la Biche	1316	1	1	2017	2017	[42]
Mont du Chat	1504	1	1	2017	2017	[43]
Col de Portet	2215	2	2	2021	2021	[44]
Col de Vars	2109	24	1	2024	2024	[45]