The Tour de France, its image badly tarnished by a doping scandal this year, will be shorter and less gruelling next summer.

But organisers of the prestigious cycling race, who unveiled the route for next year's 20-stage race yesterday, emphasised that despite this year's troubles, "the Tour's popularity remains intact".

The 3,680-kilometre (2,286-mile) race will start in Puy du Fou in central France with a short prologue on July 3rd and will end with its traditional ride up and down the Champs-Elysees on July 25th.

The Tour, which will be about 200 kilometres (124 miles) shorter than last year, will also include an extra day of rest. "Since my arrival in 1989, there has been a trend toward making the route easier," race director Jean-Marie Leblanc told reporters.

He said the fact that none of the host towns have backed out of the Tour in the wake of the scandal, was proof that France's most beloved sporting event has not lost its appeal.

The Tour de France was rocked this year by a doping scandal that saw the Festina team expelled after revelations of the systematic use of EPO, a performance-enhancing drug.