Tour De France

[bednobs]

i have been watching this year (mainly because of that goegeous peter sagen bloke) BBC inofrms me tht froome hs won, because the last leg is uncontested - why is that, and is it just rradition? What would haooen if omeone decided to just go for it nd beat him? Would they be a cycling pariah? Is there a womens TDF?

[bednobs]

also, it was pretty amazing tht blokey gave his bike up when froome fell off - or was it? Is tht what they are expected to do - sacrafice for the greater good?

[Cloverjo]

It is etiquette that the leader at that point is uncontested. The sprinters will still be going for the stage win, but the leader now is the winner unless he falls off his bike and can't get back on, or something. He has a big margin of lead so it's unlikely any of the contenders could close the gap on his time anyway. Cyclists are very big on etiquette!

[Cloverjo]

Yes, the domestiques are expected to do whatever is necessary for their main man.

[bednobs]

it seems rather unfair - wheat if you are second best in the team and wnt to get up the rankings?

[Cloverjo]

Good point. He'd have to wait for a chance to show he deserves to be top dog. I don't really know how that would happen. Wasn't there some bitterness between Bradley Wiggins and Froome for that reason some time ago?

[bednobs]

i don't know - i havent watched it previously, and like i say i'm only interested for sagan!

[Fitzer]

Indeed, Froome was Wiggo's number 2 when Wiggo won the TDF, it was reported the following year that Sky (their team) was going to push for Froome to be the lead man and as a consequence Wiggo dropped out. If you get to be number two in a team you normally have a couple of choices, you might get offered number one in a lesser team or your number one might jump ship to another team for more money or might even retire so you soldier on until either of those things happens. There is almost no chance of anyone challenging Froome for first place tomorrow (not in the stage, as Cloverjo said the sprinters will contest that), partly because of tradition and partly because their teams wouldn't allow it, what you do this year they might do next year. And yes there is a women's TDF

[trt]

I have never understood, how people can stand in the sun or rain to watch a load of blokes going past on bikes for a few minutes, bit like watching the London marathon.

[ichkeria]

Froome didn't win because the last leg is uncontested. The last leg IS contested! Very much so. But it's contested as a sprint effectively: multiple high speed laps of the centre of Paris, after - usually - a more leisurely preamble from the race start elsewhere.
Froome was 4 minutes ahead, and that is a margin that would simply be impossible for anyone else to make up on a flat last stage. And even if the lead was a lot less the chances of him being caught would still be remote. The Tour is won in the mountains, and on time trials, where the big time gaps can be opened up. That's why sprinters like Sean Kelly in the past and Mark Cavendish these days, can win points contests or multiple sprint finishes and never has a remote chance of winning overall. And they don't expect to.