cycling

Tour de France on the Champs Elysee

The French are great cycling enthusiasts. The Tour de France is a bicycle race which is held every summer, and is the biggest annual sporting event in the world. It was started by Henri Desgranges in 1903. About 200 cyclists from around the world take part, though the tour is so gruelling that by the end 50 or more cyclists may have dropped out. The Tour lasts 22 days and takes the cyclists 4,000 kilometres around France – through towns and villages, over high mountains, and often into neighbouring countries such as Spain and Italy. Each day a different stage of the race is held, and the person who is winning overall at that point wears a yellow jersey. The person who goes fastest overall in the mountain stages is called King of the Mountains, and wears a polka dot jersey. Before the race begins, people paint the names of their favourite cyclists on the road, and then turn out in their thousands to cheer the competitors on.

Photo courtesy of Channel 4

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