THE TOUR DE FRANCE AND TOUR DE CHAMPAGNE

The Tour de France is the biggest and most prestigious cycling competition in the world.  In 1996, Chigny-les-Roses had the honour of seeing the pack race through our village. This year, it was the Women’s Tour de France which came by on Tuesday 26 July, for the third stage from Reims to Epernay.

While these two towns may be only 30 km apart, the stage covered a distance of 133.6km. This means that the ladies crossed most of Champagne’s vineyards from top to bottom and side to side, from the Montagne de Reims to the Côte de Blancs, all the way through the Vallée de la Marne.

It was the Danish Cecilie Uttrup Ludwing who won the stage, and the legendary yellow jersey was worn by the Dutch Marianne Vos.
Congratulations to these sportswomen! While the Montagne de Reims may only rise to 300m, there are a number of very steep climbs that can wreak havoc on unwary legs.
Thanks for passing through.