Good question ! In cycling, when the wind blows on the route of the Tour, one or more teams may decide to speed up the pace to trap opponents. The effect of the side wind can in fact cause “breaks”. In this case, the peloton quickly finds itself scattered in several clusters, which can lead to large gaps at the finish.
And it is anything but a coincidence that an 18 km sea bridge appears just before the arrival of this second stage of the Tour 2022. “It is a clear desire on our part, assumes Thierry Gouvenou, the technical director of the event. We are looking for these edges, but it is not an exact science. »
So ? A priori, the conditions of the day would not be conducive to major maneuvers. “We were impatiently waiting for the weather. The wind is announced from the southwest, it is not the most dangerous for the edges. There will be breaks in the end, but it will be light”declared Mr. Gouvenou this morning, reports our special envoy Alexandre Pedro.
However, a special correspondent from Eurosport has just announced on the air that a strong wind is blowing from the side at the level of the first part of the bridge. So distrust…
To understand the edges, the best is still to see the demonstration of the phenomenon in images: