The sports calendar continues to be in turmoil because of the outbreak of coronavirus. While the Tour de France was from Copenhagen in 2021, this won't be the case. This symbolic event has been postponed by one year to avoid a duplication of sporting events turned upside down by the Covid-19, announced the mayor of the Danish capital Monday.
" I am pleased that we have managed to ensure the departure of the Danish Tour in 2022 ", said Frank Jensen in a press release indicating an agreement with the organizer of the race, ASO, after several weeks of discussions. This report will avoid overlapping the next year with the olympic Games in Tokyo, postponed for a year because of the pandemic, and the football Euro, of which Copenhagen is one of the host cities.
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The puzzle of the calendar
" many of Us be happy to have the Tour de France to Denmark next year and we now have to unfortunately wait a little longer ", said Frank Jensen. "In return, the Danes can rejoice in view of a popular festival, yellow even more, in 2022, when the departure of the Tour will not be stuck between the Euro and the olympics, and that will, I hope, away the (risk of) coronavirus ", he added.
The situation had become inextricable when the international olympic Committee (IOC) had last month announced the retention of the cycling program of the olympic games. With the road race set to July 24, 2021, which would have corresponded to the eve of the arrival of the Tour in Paris, the best riders in the peloton would have had to choose ! Last week, the UCI, seeking to avoid overlap, therefore, advanced a week, the dates of the Tour in his publication of the calendar WorldTour. And, therefore, rendering impossible the departure of Denmark, the most northerly in the history of the Great Loop.
A departure from Britain ?
According to the organizers, the Danish, the report presents a cost of 5.8 million Danish kroner (780 000 euro) which will be supported by the Danish State and the ASO (organiser of the Tour). Additional expenses will be the responsibility of the cities of departure and arrival as the Tour will have three days of racing in Denmark. But on the horizon of two years.
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After being off from Copenhagen on the 1st of July, the Tour 2022 will remain on the land of denmark for two other stages played during the following two days. For what is editing 2021, an alternative to the place of departure may be Brittany, which the application holds the rope, according to the daily newspaper The Telegram. No confirmation is coming from ASO. But the regional Council, in charge of the operation, and the organizing company are in close contact. It remains to finalize the working hypothesis for the Tour to return to Britain, away from the path this year as 2019. The last great departure of the region, catalogued "eldest daughter" of cycling due to the popularity of this sport in the land of Armorica, was in 2008 (Brest).
