Did you know that Le Tour de France finished yesterday?

I am sure that if you are French or British, you do know!! What a splendid win by Bradley Wiggins, le vainqueur du Tour ( the winner) who wore le maillot jaune ( yellow jersey) for 14 étapes ( stages) and a fantastic display by his team right through Le Tour, without forgetting the great sprinter Mark Cavendish and the young, very promising cycliste Chris Froome! And of course, there was Thomas Voeckler, le Français meilleur grimpeur ( king of the mountain) who won le maillot à pois rouges (white jersey with dots).


Le Tour de France is also called La grande boucle ( the big circle) at it covers most of France in vingt étapes for a total, this year, of 3496,9 km.
Some étapes are sur le plat ( on the flat) some are dans les montagnes ( in the mountains) and some are les étapes contre la montre ( time trials).
With each stage there are les échappées ( this is the group of riders that get to the front of the race) ahead of le peloton which is the main group of cyclists.
La voiture balai is for those who can't keep up or have given up so they get picked up by the big minibus which follows the race.
If you wish to find out more about this fantastic event, go to TV5 website. For more info...
Next year, le Tour will start en Corse (in Corsica), so book your holiday early!!!
If you would like to find out more about French culture and French regions as well as improve your French, why not join one of our French tuition classes starting in September. For more info...