The build up to the Tour de France begins in earnest at the start of June with the Critérium du Dauphiné giving the climbers a chance to test their legs before battling for the maillot jaune the following month.

This year’s edition of the Dauphiné  is certainly not one for the faint hearted, beginning with four back-to-back summit finishes packed into the second half of the race.

Before then the riders face an opening prologue in Valence which is followed by two lumpy days on stages one and two. There will then be a flat 35km team time trial on stage three which will act as a dress rehearsal for the third stage of the Tour de France.

From there it’s into the mountains with a really tough end to the week that should see the likes of Vincenzo Nibali, Geraint Thomas, Romain Bardet, and Adam Yates fighting it out for the overall victory.

As usual, each stage will be shown live on Eurosport 2, with a couple of daily highlights shows each evening to recap on the day’s action.

Critérium du Dauphiné website and social media

Twitter: @dauphine

Website: www.letour.fr/criterium-du-dauphine

Sunday 3 June

1230-1400 LIVE prologue on Eurosport 2
2100-2200 Stage highlights on Eurosport 2

Monday 4 June

1415-1545 LIVE stage one on Eurosport 2
2200-2305 Stage highlights on Eurosport 2

Tuesday 5 June

1415-1545 LIVE stage two on Eurosport 2
2000-2100 Stage highlights on Eurosport 2

Wednesday 6 June

1415-1545 LIVE stage three on Eurosport 2
1930-2100 Stage highlights on Eurosport 2

Thursday 7 June

1415-1545 LIVE stage four on Eurosport 2
1830-1900 Stage highlights on Eurosport 2

Friday 8 June

1415-1550 LIVE stage five on Eurosport 2
1930-2030 Stage highlights on Eurosport 2

Saturday 9 June

1415-1545 LIVE stage six on Eurosport 2
1730-1830 Stage highlights on Eurosport 2

Sunday 11 June

1415-1550 LIVE stage seven on Eurosport 2
1930-2030 Stage highlights on Eurosport 2