Brief history of the Tour de France race

Brief history of the Tour de France race: The world’s most famous bike has been called the greatest free show on earth and is said to be watched by 3.5 billion people worldwide during its three weeks on television. Le Tour has spawned a thousand myths and legends and inspires passionate devotion and enthusiasm. As powerful a French icon as the Eiffel Tower and fresh morning croissants, this race now belongs as much to the rest of us as it does to its Gallic promoters.

How did the Tour de France begin?

France’s famous bike ride is a tale of history, drama and determination. The idea was conceived in 1902 by Geo Lefèvre, a young sports journalist, who thought it might boost the circulation of the newspaper he worked for, L’Auto, now known as L’Équipe. Henri Desgrange, the editor of L’Auto, embraced the idea, and the first Tour was launched on July 1, 1903.

The inaugural Tour was a resounding success, drawing quite a bit of public interest and achieving its goal – boosting the newspaper’s sales. The first race was won by Maurice Garin, who dominated the event and finished it in a whopping 94 hours, 33 minutes and 14 seconds. Since then, the Tour de France has grown from a simple promotional stunt for a struggling newspaper into one of the most prestigious and challenging sporting events in the world.

It’s more than a bike race, it’s a story of human triumph, technological advancements, and dramatic moments that have captivated audiences around the world – it’s a tale of passion, endurance, and the relentless pursuit of victory. It’s also a chance for those of us watching on the telly – to see lots of lovely scenes of France!

Tour de France Circus

These days, the tour is preceded by a massive and truly spectacular caravan of colourful advertising vehicles and accompanied by a noisy and fun entourage of team vehicles, media cars, motorcycle-borne TV cameramen and buzzing helicopters. They give out advertising paraphernalia, from leaflets to snacks and bottles of water, and you can buy a souvenir programme. The parade of quirky vehicles, decorated to entertain, whips up a frenzy as they pass by, they are a warm up act for what’s to follow. Which is just as well as the actual racers whizz by in just a few seconds!

It’s considered a great honour to have the tour go through your town or village. When the Tour de France went through the town of Hucqueliers near where I live, people came from miles around to watch it. Helicopters circled overhead, police outriders filed through the little winding country roads, children practiced how to do a Mexican wave, everyone waved flags, the mayor wore his chain of office, and the local brass band played loudly. The race came through and it was fabulous – the circus was enormous fun, the riders whooshed past cheered by the crowds. But what everyone here remembers most about that day is the fact that with all those extra visitors, the boulangerie ran out of bread before lunch and had to close – an unheard of disaster in the history of Hucqueliers.

Today’s ‘Grand Boucle’ (‘Big Loop’ in English, which is the nickname for the Tour de France, attracts competitors from every continent – divided into 22 teams of eight riders. The 21-stage spectacle draws a roadside audience estimated at more than 17 million, plus billions of TV viewers and radio listeners globally. The media entourage is massive, the logistics involved in keeping the whole show on the road are staggering.

What’s it like to be a Tour de France rider?

For the riders, those three weeks of pain, suffering, heartbreak, elation and high drama – with truly gruelling stages over the monumental passes of the mighty Alps and Pyrenées – reacha climax when the survivors hurtle over the bone-shaking cobbles of the Champs Elysées in Paris, the traditional end point of the final stage.

And, if you’ve ever wondered what the fuss is about the official jerseys the riders sometimes wear and reporters keep mentioning? They’re awarded at each stage of the race for categories won: White – Overall fastest and youngest rider, Green – Sprinter, Polka dots – King of the Mountains and Yellow – Overall fastest rider. It’s yellow because l’Auto newspaper the one that started all this, used to be printed on yellow paper – so it was basically about advertising.

The “Lanterne Rouge” is the unofficial title awarded to the last-placed rider. While some might see it as a bit of a dubious honour, it’s seen as symbolizing perseverance and the spirit of participation. In the early years of the Tour, riders in last place were sometimes more popular than the winners, as they really represented the struggle and perseverance needed to win. Some riders now compete for the last place instead of just being near the back!

The Tour creates massive passion in other countries too. Colombia, for instance, rarely has more than a few riders in the race but regularly sends as many as 150 journalists and broadcasters to cover their progress in the greatest show on two wheels.

It’s not just a race – it brings out the passion in the participants! The Italians are crazy for the Tour de France. In 1948 Gino Bartali’s victory was credited with rescuing his country from the brink of civil war. He was known as ‘Gino The Pious’ and was struggling to be ready for the ride when he received a desperate message from the country’s centre-right president Alcide di Gasperi, informing him that Palmiero Togliatti, the leader of the Italian Communist Party, was lying in a hospital bed, victim of an assassination attempt.

The politician knew that both side’s followers needed something to divert their attention from internal conflict – and what better to unite the nation than a glorious Tour de France victory?

Bartali duly obliged, taking three stages in a row, the yellow jersey and, eventually, overall victory (by a massive 14-minutes) – and suddenly it was bike racing and not war that dominated the nation’s headlines. Hmmm those clever politicians distracting the people eh?! A few years later, Bartali and his arch-rival Fausto Coppi refused bluntly to ride together in the Italian national squad. Italy’s national railway system promptly went on strike in protest and the Pope summoned the pair to the Vatican so that he could mediate. Incredible!

It takes a brave man to enter the race, a hard man to finish it and a superman to win. Here are few astounding facts.

The longest tour de France

The longest Tour de France was in 1926 – an incredible 5,745 km. These days its more like 3,500 km – or 2000 miles – that’s the equivalent of Manchester to Istanbul, Melbourne to Perth, or Orlando to Phoenix!

Fun facts about the Tour de France

The average Tour de France rider will burn around 124,000 calories during the course of the race. The average man needs 2,500 calories per day, the average Tour de France rider consumes 150% more than that! That’s apparently the equivalent of eating 30.975 jelly beans – per day! Or 41 slices of pizza, or 56 bananas a day!

Queen singer Freddie Mercury wrote “Bicycle Race” in 1978, inspired by the Tour de France.

The average rider will get through three bike chains during the course.

The number of pedal strokes taken per rider over the average Tour de France is estimated to be a staggering 403,200.

Since the first tour in 1903, the average speed has almost doubled! Then it was around 25 km per hour, now it’s almost 41 km per hour.

There you have it – a speedy ride through the history of the Tour de France!

You can hear this post on The Good Life France podcast!

Janine Marsh is the author of several internationally best-selling books about France. Her latest book How to be French – a celebration of the French lifestyle and art de vivre, is out now – a look at the French way of life. Find all books on her website janinemarsh.com. Join Janine on her week long Perfect Paris Tours (spring and fall) and enjoy art de vivre in the city of light!