Tour de France: What Is the Buzz About?

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by Sophie She

Tour de France: What Is the Buzz About?

26 Jun 2024

Howard Bouchevereau

The Tour de France, often referred to as "Le Tour," is the pinnacle of professional road cycling. It is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, although it occasionally passes through neighbouring countries. This year’s start will be in Florence, and professional wheels will touch some French mountains.

The race, which takes place over 23 days in July (and only two days of rest included), is known for its gruelling challenges, dramatic landscapes, and fierce competition among the world's best cyclists. The modern editions of Le Tour consist of 21 day-long stages and cover approximately 3,500 kilometres in total.

Finally, why do they do it? Well, besides the prestige, a total of 2.3 million euros will be awarded to the teams and riders, including € 500,000 to the final winner of the overall individual classification.

A Glimpse into Le Tour’s History

The inaugural Tour de France took place in 1903, organised by the French newspaper L'Auto (ironic, isn’t it?) in a bid to promote itself.

The brainchild of Henri Desgrange and Géo Lefèvre, the race started with 60 participants and covered six stages, spanning a total distance of 2,428 kilometres.

Maurice Garin was the first to wear the winner's laurel. Over the decades, Le Tour has evolved, growing in scale, prestige, and complexity while still maintaining its core essence: a test of endurance, strategy, and pure cycling prowess.

Le Tour’s 2024 Edition

In 2024, the Tour de France will embark on a route that continues to showcase France's diverse and picturesque landscapes. The race will cover a total distance of approximately 3,461 kilometres, spread across 21 stages and 2 rest days. Each stage varies in difficulty, including 8 flat sprints, 7 mountainous climbs, and 2 time trials (fans call them TTs), testing the cyclists' versatility and endurance. In the latter competition, they wear hilarious outfits, which adds more fun, obviously.

As mentioned earlier, this year, the race will commence in Florence, Italy, marking a rare departure from France for the Grand Départ. The opening stage is scheduled for June 29, 2024, so you get your pants ready to wear all yellow — Le Tour’s main colour. After winding through Italy for three stages, the Tour will cross into France, with the grand finale set to occur in Paris’s Champs-Élysées (this is the grand tradition) on July 21, 2024.

The Champs-Élysées will once again provide the iconic backdrop for the final sprint, a tradition that has become synonymous with the Tour de France. But we imagine racing on those cobblestones must be painful, though the views and the feeling are definitely worth it.

Le Tour’s 2024 Edition: The Must-Knows

The Tour de France is comprised of several distinct stages:

1. Flat Stages: Ideal for sprinters, these stages are relatively flat, offering high-speed sprints towards the finish line. Champs-Élysées, by the way, is considered to be the grand finale of such sprinter contests.

2. Mountain Stages: Featuring steep climbs in the Alps and Pyrenees, these stages are where climbers shine and often decide the general classification. This author is the most fascinated by these stages, as you can imagine how yucky it is to cycle the hill, and can you imagine doing it on time?!

3. Time Trials: Individual and team time trials test the cyclists' speed and efficiency against the clock. This one is usually the most calm one and fans can at least breathe out a little. This author is absolutely in love with Wout van Aert’s style in such stages, he is really incroyable.

4. Hilly Stages: Combining elements of both flat and mountain stages, these stages are unpredictable and often shake up the general classification, which makes them super fun to watch all the way when usually only the end of the route is engaging and feisty.

The race also includes several jerseys that signify leadership and achievements:

Yellow Jersey (Maillot Jaune): Worn by the overall leader of the general classification. General classification means that this person got through all the routes faster than everyone else. Even if it’s a matter of seconds.

Green Jersey (Maillot Vert): Awarded to the points classification leader, typically a sprinter.

Polka Dot Jersey (Maillot à Pois Rouges): Given to the best climber in the mountains classification. This one is the fanciest jersey, really, look out for merch with this print.

White Jersey (Maillot Blanc): Awarded to the best young rider (under 26 years old) in the general classification, who for the past many many years is the star of the UAE Team Emirates — Tadej Pogačar.

Source: Rob Wingate

Le Tour’s 2024 Edition: Teams

The 2024 Tour de France will see participation from 176 riders who will line up at the start, divided into 22 teams, each consisting of eight riders. These teams represent the highest level of professional cycling. Some of the prominent teams expected to participate are:

1. Team Jumbo-Visma: Known for its strong general classification contenders, with Jonas Vingegaard, who is the 2022 and 2023 Tours winner.

2. UAE Team Emirates: Featuring multiple Grand Tour winners and this author’s favourite cyclist — Tadej Pogačar.

3. INEOS Grenadiers: A team with a rich history of Tour de France victories, and is one of the veterans.

4. Alpecin–Deceuninck: Famous for its sprinting prowess, starring Jasper Philipsen, who has been the best sprinter for the past 3 years (2021, 2022. 2023), and Mathieu Van Der Poel, who has god knows how many achievements outside Le Tour (wikipedia to impress) and who plays a crucial role for Philipsen to be the best sprinter (talk strategy, hugh?).

Other notable teams include Lidl-Trek, EF Education-EasyPost, Groupama-FDJ, Soudal-Quick-Step, and many more. Each brings a mix of experienced riders and emerging talents aiming for stage wins and overall glory.

Le Tour: Grand Finale

The Tour de France is one of the most popular and widely watched sporting events in the world. In terms of global viewership, it is ranked alongside the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup. Over its three-week duration, the Tour attracts an estimated 3.5 billion viewers, with fans tuning in from over 190 countries.

Each year, millions of spectators line the race route to witness the event live, while hundreds of media outlets provide extensive coverage, highlighting its immense popularity and the fervour it inspires among cycling enthusiasts and casual sports fans alike.

As the 2024 edition unfolds from the artistic heart of Florence to the historic streets of Paris, it promises to deliver another thrilling chapter in the storied history of "Le Tour."

by Sophie She