Cycling fans risking life and limb for Tour de France selfies

Tens of thousands of fans have turned out to cheer on cyclists during the first three days of the Tour de France, but there are concerns the enthusiastic crowd is putting riders in danger.

Br-oBRrCUAAoYuC.jpg large.jpg
 

Tour de France cyclists have slammed spectators who are putting themselves and riders in danger with selfies.

Cyclists have said spectators are wandering onto the road and getting too close to the peloton, while trying to snap themselves at the race.

Tour organisers were stunned at the estimated one million people who have turned out as the race made it's way from Leeds in northern England to London.
One man apparently caused a crash during Stage 3 of the race after he stepped too far out into the path of riders and was hit by cyclist David Lopez.

It's believed the man was trying to take photos.

The incident caused a crash further back in the peloton, taking Tour star Andy Schleck and Aussie Simon Gerrans down.

It's not the first time a spectator has been hit. On Sunday a Giant-Shimano rider clipped a fan and knocked him over.
While many riders have spoken of the amazing atmosphere and huge crowds, many have complained spectators were standing in the road and in their way, putting the safety of riders and fans alike at risk.

Both riders and organisers have pleaded with people to take more care.

Stage 3 winner Marcel Kittel said while it was great to see, people needed to be more wary of their safety.
   
"There were some moments when I thought, now we will crash because the spectators were taking pictures and didn't see that they were in the centre of the road," he said.
Reigning champion and Sky team leader Chris Froome has pleaded with fans to be more considerate.

"The crowds were well behaved but if anything I'd just ask if the crowds could give us a bit of space," he said.

Selfish 'selfies'

American rider Tejay van Garderen took to Twitter to slam spectators who were trying to take 'selfies' while the cyclists rode past.

"A dangerous mix of vanity and stupidity," he wrote.

"Standing (in) the middle of the road with you back turned while 200 cyclists come at you, just to take a selfie."
Several other riders including Australian Mark Renshaw and Team Sky's Austrian Bernhard Eisel tweeted similar messages urging fans to stay out fo the roads.

Swiss rider Fabian Cancellara asked fans to remember to keep their distance from riders.

Fraying nerves

Tour de France favourites Vincenzo Nibali, Chris Froome and Alberto Contador have admited the hectic nature of racing in Britain has been jangling their nerves.

All three have spoken about the dangers of riding on roads with over-excited fans.

Stage 2 winner Vincenzo Nibali said that, alongside some surprisingly competitive racing for such early stages, having such large numbers of spectators has been fraying nerves.

"It was very nervous at the finish because of the rain, there was a little bit of fear and there was a small crash but nothing too bad," he said.

All stages can be watched live on SBS ONE or streamed on the Cycling Central website.

Share

3 min read

Published

Updated



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world