The Tour de France for Dummies

The biggest cycling event of the year; if you’ve only heard of one race, it’s this one. Three weeks zig-zagging France. From the barren plains of Bordeaux to the asphyxiating altitude of The Alps - Across the Ardèche and through the jagged Jura mountains - The Tour de France is the ultimate test of endurance, tactics, and teamwork; it’s the one race everyone dreams of winning.

But how does this spectacle work? Why is The Tour de France starting in Denmark?! And why has Mark Cavendish never won the race, despite being ‘the fastest man on two wheels’? In this piece, I’ve strived to answer some of the most common questions around this most peculiar sporting spectacle.

Q. What is The Tour de France?

The Tour de France is a 3353-kilometre, three-week long bike race held predominately (although not entirely) in France, from the 1st to the 24th of July. These 3353 kilometres are split into 21 stages, that range from 13, to 220 kilometres long. Sounds tough, right? The organisers are generous enough to include three rest days, one on each Monday - so don’t tune in then, there will be nothing on!

Q. How do you win The Tour de France?

This isn’t as simple as it may first seem. Unlike, say Formula One, which is held over a similar number of ‘stages’ albeit across the year, you do not win by collecting the most points. Instead, you want the lowest time possible for each stage. Finish first in every stage and then lose an hour on the final day? You won’t be winning the overall. The rider with the lowest combined time across all 21 stages will win the coveted Yellow Jersey.

Q. Why is The Tour de France starting in Denmark?

Cycling is nothing if not inconsistent. Every year, The Tour hosts a ‘Grand Depart’ (literally ‘great departure’), complete with dignitaries and the accompanying pomp. There’s lots of flag waving and pretty, panoramic helicopter shots of the area.

Through this extended coverage, comes extended exposure, and, being a race broadcast around the world, a ‘Grand Depart’ can act as one massive tourism campaign. As such, tourism boards spend millions of pounds on the rights to host these three stages. This year, the three Danish stages have cost a reported 12 million Euros.

Q. Why hasn’t Mark Cavendish won The Tour de France?

Mark Cavendish is undoubtedly the greatest sprinter of all time. He’s won 34 stages of The Tour across nine editions. And yet his highest finish in this race is 130th, in 2011. Why?

Very broadly, there are two types of riders in The Tour; climbers, and sprinters. Sprinters train for very short efforts in the last few hundred meters of a stage to cross the line first. The gaps between riders after these efforts is negligible. Climbers, on the other hand, train for very long efforts - often over an hour - up some of France’s steepest ascents. The very nature of these efforts means any differences between riders is exacerbated. Cavendish, being a sprinter, wins sprints, but not by enough to offset time lost on long mountain efforts.

Q. Why is it a team sport? There’s only one winner?

Cycling, on the face of it, appears to be a solo endeavour. Only one rider can cross the finish line first, and only one can wear the Yellow Jersey on the Podium. But teammates provide valuable assistance in the race to Paris. ‘Domestiques’ (literally servants) block the wind and create a slipstream effect for the riders behind, allowing the team leaders to save valuable energy for later on in the stage, or race. Just one rider in front of you can save you thirty percent of your energy!

Domestiques also perform a plethora of day to day roles: from ferrying water to and from the team cars, to being the first on hand should a puncture or crash occur, and even attacking off the front themselves to ease the pressure on their leaders.

Q. Why do some riders have different coloured jerseys?

There’s four main jerseys up for grabs in The Tour de France. The most famous and sought after is the Yellow Jersey for race leader. The Yellow Jersey is awarded to the rider who has completed the race in the shortest possible time, and can change every single day. The Green Jersey is the ‘points’ jersey. This works like a condensed season of Formula 1, with each stage awarding points for 1st, down to minor positions. Most points at the end wins the jersey.

The Polka Dot Jersey is for the ‘King of the Mountains’. Points are awarded at the top of each mountain in the race, for the first few over them. Most points wins. Finally, The White Jersey is for the best young rider in the race. This follows the same rules as the Yellow Jersey, but I reserved for those under 25.

You may also see some other ‘non standard’ jerseys about, these are national, continental, or even world champions who get to denote their status with special coloured kit.

Q. What is a peloton?

Whilst watching the Tour de France, you’ll encounter a plethora of new, weird, words and phrases associated with bike racing. Here’s a few of them and their meanings:

Peloton - literally ‘pack’. The name given to the largest group of riders on the road.

Breakaway - a group of riders in front of the main peloton. Cycling is all about getting your sponsors on television, and this is a sure fire way to do just that. The riders in the breakaway rarely win, but victory is not the only motivation.

Lanterne Rouge - the rider who is last in the standings for the Yellow Jersey. The phrase comes from the red lights present at the back of trains in France.

Flamme Rouge - a flag that denotes the riders have entered the final kilometre of the race.

Col/Alp/Mur/Côte - a climb. The French have numerous words for ‘climb’ depending on where they are in France amongst other factors, but they all mean the same thing.

Q. Is there a women’s Tour de France?

Yes! After much pressure from the cycling community at large, the ‘Tour de France Femmes’ has finally been revived for 2022 after a 13 year hiatus. The race runs right after the men’s race concludes, from the 24th to 31st of July.

So, there you have it. Hopefully I’ve managed to clear up some of the questions you may have in regards to The Tour de France, and bike racing more generally. There’s a whole world of tactics, superstition, and spectacle to any bike race - but The Tour de France is a good starting point for those new to the sport.