(cycling) Tour de France 2007

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The Basics

A leisurely 3,550 km (or 2,200 mile) bike ride around France and neighbouring countries. That's roughly the distance from London to Cairo or Tel Aviv and an incredible 15m people line the route.

Some 189 riders will set off from Greenwich in 21 teams of nine, but many will have dropped out by the time the race finishes on the Champs Elysee in Paris on 29 July.

By then, the survivors will have taken part in 20 gruelling "stages" and a "prologue" through the streets of London, with only two "rest days" to nurse their aching limbs.

They will average a staggering 40km/h (25 mph) over the course, often riding much, much faster than that.

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THE STAGES

Prologue: Not classified as a full stage, this is a short (10km or less) individual time trial (see below) used to decide who has the honour of being the race leader the next day.
 

Flat: Most of the race takes place on "flat" roads. This doesn't mean they are without undulation (in fact, they often include climbs that would terrify a club cyclist). But they invariably feature most of the competitors riding together in a big "peloton" (or pack) for 200km (or 125 miles) and can end in one of two ways: with a "breakaway" victory by an individual or small group; or, typically with a hair-raising bunch sprint.
Neither of these scenarios have much of an impact on the overall standings of the race because breakaways are always chased down by the peloton if they contain serious contenders and bunch sprints result in all or most of the field being given the same time for a stage. But victory or a high place does generate small time bonuses, contribute towards other Tour awards and allow riders to pay back their sponsors with much-desired TV time.


Individual time trial: Every man against the clock. These are shorter stages of around 50 km (as opposed to 150-250 km). But lots of time is won and lost as Tour challenges flourish or falter. The last-placed rider starts first, followed two minutes later by the next highest, and this carries on until the race leader starts. Many Tours also feature a team time trial, where the clock stops on the fifth of nine riders to cross the finish line. But this is not the case in 2007.

Mountain: Most Tours are won in the mountains. And mountains come in all shapes and sizes, with climbs rated four, three, two, one or "hors" category, the latter being the most steep. Climbing from sea level to 2,000m (sometimes more than once in a day), separates the men from the boys and one bad day can cost huge chunks of lost time. So real contenders have to be able to hang with specialist climbers going up and everyone must hang on for dear life on the way down. Hill-top finishes often break apart the field most because they leave no time for anyone to catch up lost time on a descent.

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THE WINNERS' JERSEYS

The biggest prize in cycling is a yellow jersey in Paris. This signifies overall victory in the Tour de France, an honour won seven times by Lance Armstrong and five by Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain. There are also smaller awards to be won, each denoted by a different coloured jersey to help spectators spot the category leaders.

Yellow: This is the jersey everyone wants. If you are in it, you are the overall race leader on aggregate time since the start of the Tour. It often changes backs a few times, particularly during the early flat stages of a Tour. But it normally finds its final resting place after a time trial or a gruelling hill-top finish in the Alps or Pyrenees. Tour champions are often good at climbing, sprinting and time trialling.

Green: The sprinter's prize goes to the most consistent stage finisher and is normally worn by one of the big powerhouses of the field. With a sliding scale of points available to the first finishers on any day, contenders for this jersey bunch at the front of the peloton for dangerous sprints on flat stages. They just try to survive the mountains.

Polka dot (red and white): Conversely, King of the Mountains contenders live for the climbs. They tend to be slimmer in build and bounce up slopes to pick up the points on offer to the first riders over every hill.

White: This goes to the best placed under-26 rider in the general classification.

Rainbow: This is not up for grabs in the Tour, but can be seen on the back of the World Road Race champion (if he's not wearing yellow, of course). Country champions also have the right to wear national instead of team colours.
In addition, there are three related awards available, one of them of dubious distinction:


Combativity: The cyclist who is deemed to have put in the bravest show on a stage wins the right to wear a white-on-red race number (as opposed to black-on-white).

Lanterne Rouge: This is the mocking moniker for the last-placed man in the overall classification, named after the red light shown on trains to mark the rearmost carriage. This man is often found towards the tail of the field, which is a risky spot. On any day, if a rider falls too far off the pace, he can be swept up by the "Broom wagon" and out of the Tour.

Team: There are 21 teams of nine cyclists. After every stage, the times of the first three riders across the line from each team are added up and counted. The team with the lowest aggregate time in Paris wins the award.