The Belgian city of Binche to kick off longest stage of Tour de France
After hosting the third stage of Tour de France in 2019, Binche will welcome the peloton again on Thursday 7 July 2022 as part of the start of the sixth stage. It will be completed between Binche and Longwy in France over a distance of 220 kilometers. It is the longest stage in the Tour 2022.
Binche is located in the south of Belgium, in the Walloon region, and it is also famous worldwide for its carnival. The local authorities clarified on Monday April 18 that the fictitious start of Tour de France's sixth stage is scheduled for 12.05 PM on the rue des Récollets, while the real start is fixed at 12.15 PM on the national road N55.
The first kilometers of the day will be covered in Merbes-Le-Château, Erquelinnes, Beaumont, Erpion-Lacs de l'Eau d'Heure (Froidchapelle), Cerfontaine, Chimay and Couvin, before entering Cul-des Sarts in France .
In honor of the start in Binche, various activities are organized including an exhibition "Binche and the Tour de France" (18/04-1/05), a "Tour of Remco" in three stages (5, 6, 7/05) , a day of "Festi Handisport" (20/05), a bike ride between Binche and Longwy (5/06), a "Feast of the Tour" in Binche (6/06), a gastronomic walk (19/06), a event "Ladies Cycling" (26/06), a relay race "Tour through the Center" for the schools and a cycling tour "Arenberg-Binche" (6/07).
Real and fictitious start
The cycling event protocol distinguishes two departures: one is "fictitious" and the other "real". The first one often takes place in a town and marks the beginning of a parade.
Then, the riders advance at a moderate pace under the encouragement of the local audience. The race starts for "real" on the outskirts of the city, where the cyclists can accelerate, break away and separate. The signal for the real start follows a code and remains the privilege of the race director.
Start in Copenhagen
For the first time, Tour de France will start in the Danish capital, Copenhagen, on 1st of July. "One of the world’s greatest cycling countries welcomes the world’s greatest bike race in the summer of 2022," the Tour features on its website.
“To Copenhageners, cycling is not just a sport, exercise, or a way of transportation to get from A to B,” explains Sophie Haestorp Andersen, the Lord Mayor of Copenhagen. “It’s a way of life.”
(THL / SS/ DCM) (VIV)
Ⓒ BELGA PHOTO (DAVID STOCKMAN) The peloton (pack of riders) pictured in action during the third stage of the 106th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, a 215 km from Binche in Belgium to Epernay in France, Monday 08 July 2019.