The Decline of the Tour de France

As a preface, I must admit a huge bias. I am a fan of the Tour de France and I have had the fortune to see three races. Or, more accurately, it was just segments of races in three years. The Tour is a unique event in terms of the number of days it takes to complete and in terms of how close the observers can be to the racers. The race can happen within arms’ length of the people who line the roadways. Some fans follow the race from location to location. It is a thrilling spectacle, although it has minimal interest for North Americans. The Tour de France generates even less interest, when there is not an American challenging for the lead.

Unfortunately, interest in the Tour is waning. There have been scandals and allegations of chemical assistance for some racers. There have been admissions of chemically enhanced performances. Doping scandals have plagued the race and, as the competition is taking place now, public sentiment appears to have turned against the Tour:

“PARIS (Reuters) - French media mourned the Tour de France on Thursday after the expulsion of race leader Michael Rasmussen but President Nicolas Sarkozy said organisers were finally tackling the scourge of doping.

“The death of the Tour,” Liberation daily said in a front page headline, adding: “Stop this circus!”"

link: Sarkozy backs Tour as media mourns

The fan base is eroding. Some of the people have had enough. There is a weariness of drug allegations and cheating. People tire of chemically enhanced performances and tainted achievements. People will cheer the athleticism of the racers, the determination to speed up and down mountains and the endurance to sustain a performance that wends its way to Paris. People do not want to see which racer has the best chemically enhanced Tour. Some supporters are turning away.

Catherine