It belongs to the Tour de France like wine belongs to France: the finale of the most important cycling tour ends in the capital Paris. Traditionally not with the fight for the yellow jersey, but with the final duel of the sprinters. But in two years there will be big changes.
The 2024 Tour de France breaks with some traditions, mainly because of the Olympic Games in Paris. The 111th edition of the world's most famous cycling tour ends five days before the start of the Summer Games on July 21 in Nice and thus for the first time since 1905 not on the Champs-Elysees in the French capital.
According to the organizers, the last stage in Nice will be held as an individual time trial. In contrast to the usual "Tour d'Honneur" to Paris, the final section could once again be decisive for the outcome of the tour. The Tour of France, which was brought forward by a week due to the Olympics, begins on June 29 in Florence and thus for the first time in the history of the Tour in Italy.
The temporary farewell to Paris has dimensions of sporting history. Only at the first two events of the tour in 1903 and 1904 did the "Grand Boucle" end in Ville d'Avray and only then always in the Seine metropolis. In Paris, the finish line was in the Prinzenpark Stadium until 1968, then in the Cipale Velodrome and since 1975 on the Champs-Elysees.
The tour decision was last made in a time trial in 1989. In a legendary final, the American Greg LeMond turned a 50-second deficit on the French overall leader Laurent Fignon into an eight-second advantage in a fight against the clock. In the Olympic year, a "mountain-oriented" stage with Nice as the starting point is also to take place as a prelude to the final weekend on the day before the final.
Nice has been a stage of the tour 37 times so far. In 1981 and 2020, the noble place on the French Riviera was already the scene of the "Grand Depart" at the start of the tour. The tour is set to return to Paris in 2025. With a view to the 50th anniversary of the arrival on the Champs-Elysees, the organizers have already indicated special campaigns.
