Lance Armstrong's bid for a fourth successive Tour de France will begin in Luxembourg and end with the traditional Sunday procession down the Champs-Elysees.

Organisers yesterday announced the route of the 89th Tour which will be one of the shortest in the event's history with the cyclists riding 3,300kilometres. Le Tour will begin with an individual time-trial in Luxembourg on July 6th before moving two stages later to Sarrebruck in Germany.

Crossing west across the north of France for the first 10 days, the riders will then transfer south by plane for the seven mountain stages in the Pyrenees and the Alps. They will finish in Paris on July 28th after 21 days of competition.