300 words from the Tour: Cars full of ice and water bottles and modified rules. The Tour de France experienced another hell – Denník N

Before the 15th stage, the organizers of the Tour de France flashed a red light. The heat wave sweeping through Europe did not miss France either, and forty-degree temperatures awaited the riders. Before the 205-kilometer stage from Rodez to Carcassonne, organizers met with the CPA (Cyclistes Professionnels Associés) riders’ association, sports directors and UCI judges to discuss the start conditions. Professional cycling respects the protocol for extreme weather. Finally, they decided on the start, but with adjustments: food and water supplies were possible from the start up to 10 kilometers before the finish line, riders could throw away their bottles throughout the stage, but they had to pay attention to safety, the time limit was extended to 20% of the stage time, which was finally 55 minutes. The riders started in 38-degree heat, which was reflected in the most boring stage so far. Both team and neutral vehicles were filled with water bottles, ice and were constantly close to the riders. A funny moment was provided by the Latvian Toms Skujiņš, who during one intake of water stuffed about ten water bottles under his jersey, which he then distributed to his colleagues. 😉 @Tomashuuns playing the “Let’s see how many bottles can fit in this jersey” game. 😉 @Tomashuuns testant les capaciés de stockage de son maillot.#TDF2022 pic.twitter.com/jQYx4yZEm4 — Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 17, 2022 Riders were losing their guard, leading to several crashes. In one of them, the currently yellow driver Jonas Vingegaard and his colleague Steven Kruijswijk ended up on the ground, who probably broke his collarbone and was taken from the asphalt by an ambulance. Even considering that Primož Roglič withdrew due to health problems before the stage, it may hurt Vingegaard in the Pyrenees. American Sepp Kuss remained the only suitable helper for the mountain stages. Just before the fall of the Jumbo-Vism riders, the organizers had to This article is exclusive content for Denník N subscribers.Are you a subscriber?Log in