The Tour de France attracts interest like no other race and an unrivalled degree of coverage. If “hope dies last” then hype might be born first. Certainly the Tour can be over-promoted but the excitement is justified right now.
The Big Four of Vincenzo Nibali, Chris Froome, Alberto Contador and Nairo Quintana have been talked up all year but now the talk turns to action. All four appear in good health and ready to challenge.
Here’s the 2015 Tour de France reference guide with facts, rules, figures and a profile of every stage with a quick take on the day added. In the coming days there will be more previews including a look at the candidates for to the overall win.
During the race just visit inrng.com/tour or use the links at the top of the page (menu if you’re on a mobile device)
The UCI and Tour de France owners ASO are clashing over reforms to the sport and even the UCI has its splits after its President Brian Cookson has reportedly been overruled by his own Management Committee.
Teams are announcing their long list for the Tour de France. The Tour is the cornerstone around which many teams build the season. Riders want to race, the prestige means just starting and finishing is a big deal. But it’s never simple knowing who to pick. The big budget teams worry about who to leave out, the smaller teams find it hard to balance the chances of a stage win and a tilt at the top-10 overall.
With just over two weeks to go here’s a downloadable calendar of the Tour de France for your electronic diary or smartphone with brief details of each day’s stage.
Can Alberto Contador do the Giro d’Italia – Tour de France double? It’s the big question right now. With the Giro in our minds and in his legs, much of the talk is of managing the fatigue and peaking again in July. Surely Contador’s biggest problem isn’t the success he’s just enjoyed nor the tapering and training, it’s the challenge of trying to beat Nairo Quintana, Chris Froome, Vincenzo Nibali and others in July. Talk of “the double” implies a parity between the Giro and Tour that doesn’t exist.
The rules for the points competition in the 2015 Tour de France have changed. Since the route was unveiled last October there was an announcement to reward the sprint finish specialists. Now the new points scale can be unveiled.
It’s sprinter friendly with lots more points awarded to the winner of a flat sprint stage and fewer points to stage winners on hillier days. An anti-Sagan system?
All roads lead to Belgium. No other country embraces cycling in the same way, the fervour is extensive and comprehensive. There are billboard ads in the streets and at bus stops to promote races – including that one for the E3. The local press are full of reports for this weekend’s double of the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne and last night’s TV had reports on the route recon by teams. Gossip magazines put cyclists on the front page. There was even a live stream for the great Claude Criquelion’s funeral yesterday. The pedal revolution is televised.
There’s been talk that the Tour de France could be up for sale, various journalists have published pieces saying the Amaury family have held discussions with potential buyers, often concluding that a sale seems unlikely.
The Tour de France is a very valuable asset but not the money-spinner some might take it for. A little-known government decree prevents the owners from maxxing out on the TV rights. However the changing media landscape could see the race become more valuable as more channels hunt for an audience.
ASO have announced the wildcard invitations for Paris-Nice, the Critérium du Dauphiné and the Tour de France. No surprises: as predicted it’s Bora-Argon 18, Bretagne-Séché, Cofidis, Europcar and MTN-Qhubeka with Bora’s case strengthened by confirmation of the recent ARD broadcast deal.
In times past wildcards had an exclusive element, to invite one team was to shun another but this time there are no obvious missing names from the Tour de France.