Lille, land of cycling, is back in the atmosphere of the Tour de France two days before the big start

In Lille, the Tour de France hasn't even started yet, but it's already well and truly underway. The starting city of the 112th edition of the Grande Boucle, which will see its first pedal strokes on Saturday, July 5, has gradually been adorned with yellow over the past few days to fine-tune preparations ahead of a 185-kilometer first stage in the North. On Thursday, July 3, the atmosphere escalated further with the presentation of the twenty-three teams and 184 riders who will be taking the start of the race.

The number of spectators present in the capital of Flanders has not yet reached the peak attendances recorded during flea market weekends, but several thousand people had gathered in the late afternoon on the Grand-Place (or Place du Général-de-Gaulle) to attend this traditional official ceremony. Earlier in the day, it was the Place de la République that was teeming with activity after the opening of the "Fan Park". For this event day, 1,400 members of the police and security forces had been deployed.

After three major foreign starts in recent years – in Copenhagen (Denmark), Bilbao (Spain) and Florence (Italy) – the organizers of the Tour de France have opted for a start in France, in a region deeply attached to cycling. "In choosing the North, there was this idea of ​​having the popular fervor of the local people, but also that of Belgium, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom," explained Christian Prudhomme, director of the Tour, to Le Monde a few days before this ceremony.

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