This year, the Tour de France is starting further north than ever before. Denmark is celebrating a Grand Départ without restrictions and with correspondingly large crowds.
When Denmark celebrates something, it usually does so proudly in the national colours of red and white.
First Tour de France start in Scandinavia
Now there is suddenly a bright yellow Eiffel Tower in Copenhagen's Tivoli amusement park, and Germany's northernmost neighbour is shining in the colour of the coveted maillot jaune in many other places. The reason: for the first time in cycling history, the Tour de France is starting in Scandinavia - and the proud cycling nation of Denmark is doing everything it can to present itself in the best possible light at a huge public festival.
"The biggest cycling race in the world - the best cycling city in the world": Copenhagen invited people to the start of the Tour with this unassuming slogan. After the time trial on stage 1 through the streets of the capital on Friday, two flat stages from Roskilde to Nyborg and from Vejle to Sønderborg near the German-Danish border are planned for the weekend before the tour moves to its home country of France.
Fans celebrate Tour de France in Denmark
Hundreds of thousands of celebrating fans are expected at the roadside during the Danish stages, and corona restrictions have not been in place in the country for months. On Saturday, the peloton will start on the Stage 2 shortly before the finish, we'll rush over the huge bridge over the Great Belt - beautiful pictures from beautiful Denmark are therefore guaranteed.
"In many ways, the Tour de France is a perfect match for Denmark," said Copenhagen's Mayor Sophie Hæstorp Andersen this week in front of the yellow Eiffel Tower in Tivoli. "In Denmark and in Copenhagen, we love cycling. It's part of our DNA." Accordingly, they are expecting an exuberant public festival that will not only celebrate the Tour as such, but also cycling. "Welcome to a nation on two wheels," says a promotional video for the tour.
Copenhagen a paradise for cyclists
Copenhagen in particular is indeed a paradise for cyclists. Cycle highways, many of them as wide as car lanes, run like lifelines through the capital's traffic. More bicycles than cars travel through the city centre every day, and almost half of all journeys to work, university and school are made by bike. Every day, Copenhageners cycle more than 1.4 million kilometres. Copenhagen has long been one of the cities with the highest quality of life in the world - and part of this has to do with life on the saddle.
Riis the only Danish Tour winner
So now the Tour. Denmark has been working for years to ensure that the biggest cycling tour in the world takes place in the far north - and that has to do with a name that is rather difficult to associate with in the country today: Bjarne Riis. When he became the first and so far only Dane to win the Tour de France for Team Telekom in 1996, he sent his fellow countrymen into a cycling euphoria that Germany was to experience shortly afterwards under Jan Ullrich.
As the Danish broadcaster DR recently recalled, the bold idea of bringing the Tour to Denmark was born out of the euphoria of the time. "It was simply an idea born out of pure enthusiasm for Bjarne Riis' victory," said DR sports commentator Henrik Liniger.
Tour organisers sceptical for a long time
The Tour organiser ASO was sceptical for a long time - Denmark was too far away from France and too flat.
During the years of the doping scandal - Riis also admitted to using banned substances for many years in 2007 - the idea was put on ice. But in the end, the organisers were persuaded to change their minds by the Danes' extensive lobbying - today they are delighted with what they encounter at the Grand Départ.
High costs
Despite all the anticipation, the start of the Tour is not being viewed completely uncritically. "It is simply fantastic that it has worked out to bring the Tour de France to Denmark," wrote the leading newspaper "Politiken", but criticised the fact that the public was left completely in the dark about the true costs of the Tour. According to the newspaper, the total bill for the three stages is said to be at least 180 million crowns - the equivalent of over 24 million euros.
Then there is the Riis case. The "Eagle of Herning" is disappointed that the organisers have not officially invited him to the start of the tour. However, as TV2 Sport reported, a major sponsor is now ensuring that Riis can take part in the three Danish Tour days - if he wants to.
Gigantic atmosphere at the start of the tour
With or without Riis, the atmosphere on the Danish tarmac will be great either way, perhaps even surpassing that experienced by the Danes during last summer's European Football Championship.
"Last year, our festival was red and white," said Mayor Andersen. "This year it will be yellow."
Copyright 2022, dpa (www.dpa.de). All rights reserved
