The 2022 Tour de France will be the 109th edition. It will start in Copenhagen, Denmark on 1st July and end with the final stage at Champs-Élysées, Paris on 24 July.
The Tour de France is the world’s largest annual sporting event. It is a multi-stage cycling competition for men that takes place every year throughout France and occasionally in neighboring countries. It takes place over the course of 23 days and comprises 21 phases, which means the riders only get 2 days off to rest! The cyclists will cover around 3,500 kilometers.
So basically, it is a huge bike race around France!
What do the colored jerseys mean?
At the Tour de France, different coloured jerseys represent the leaders of each classification. Each color represents a different competition within the race.
Since 1919, the Tour de France has used special jerseys to distinguish the leader of the race. At first it was limited to just the yellow jersey. The Tour de France has since introduced three other jerseys to identify other leaders in the various classifications on offer. Here is a quick breakdown of what each special jersey signifies.
Green
The Tour de France’s points classification was first introduced in 1953 as a secondary competition. The competition awards points based on where each rider finishes in individual stages. The rider with the most points wins the green jersey. Usually Sprinters who compete in bunch sprints at the end of each stage are usually the primary recipients.
Polka dot
The tour is not only famed for its high speeds; it is also noted for its uphill battles. The riders will climb thousands of meters up Alpine Alps, with the top rider on each stage receiving a stylish red and white polka dot jersey.
White
The best young rider award is the most recent addition to the Tour de France’s individual classifications. It was established as a young rider award in 1975, the same year the polka dot jersey made its debut in the race. It has evolved over time to define “young rider” in various ways. The white jersey signifies the leader of the young rider classification at the Tour de France.
Yellow
The yellow jersey, however, is the prize that everyone desires. Riders compete fiercely just to be able to wear it for one day during the race, let alone as the overall winner. If you are wearing the Maillot Jaune (Yellow Jersey), you are the overall race leader in terms of total time since the Tour began.
What strategies should I look for?
Breakaways
Riders are very strategic, and don’t cycle as fast as they can throughout the race. They tend to cycle in a main group called a peloton, and have smaller groups break away to the front at almost every stage. The peloton will allow cyclists to stay ahead for a few minutes before rejoining them when they have lost momentum. Breakaways are a great method to use if a cyclist is not an exceptional climber or sprinter, because it gives them a chance at victory.
Attacks
Attacks frequently occur on climbs, and involve a rider abruptly breaking away from the peloton at an extremely high speed in hopes that the other riders won’t be able to keep up with them.
Sprinters
A sprinter is a cyclist that finishes a race by suddenly accelerating to a high speed, and often uses the slipstream of an individual cyclist or a group of cyclists in order to preserve energy.
Lead-out trains
This is a strategy used to set up a rider for a sprint finish. One rider on the team rides at a very high speed, and the team’s sprinter follows close behind to benefit from their slipstream. This reduces wind resistance, and enables the sprinter to achieve faster speeds without using as much energy as they normally would.
Betting on the Tour de France
There’s no doubt that this is going to be an exciting event. When it comes to placing bets, here are the most attractive options for betting on The Tour de France and a quick explanation of how each of them works.
Before the race kicks off, monitor performances in recent stage races like the Tour of Oman, the Tour de Romandie and the Critérium du Dauphiné. The last six weeks before the Tour de France are crucial, as well as the other Grand Tours, the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España.
Make sure to monitor any illness or injuries of the riders you want to place any bets on. You can do this by looking for any injury news in the build-up, and if you fancy a rider who is returning from injury or illness, make sure they have ridden to form recently.
The outright winner
Betting on the winner of the Tour de France is the most popular option. You can pick from a long list of cyclists and back any of them.
This market is usually available weeks or even months in advance so that you can place your wagers early. That can be beneficial if you think that the internet bookies are underestimating a strong contender.
The Tour de France winner option stays open throughout the race, too, so you can stay patient and bet later on when you have already watched part of the competition.
Stage winner
If you want a Tour de France betting market with a faster turnaround time, you should focus on the stage winner option. You can place wagers on every single stage of the race.
The big benefit of this betting market is that several riders can have a chance, depending on the specific traits of the stage. You could hit some insane odds if you follow the race and analyse all the little details properly.
Top finish
Most Tour de France betting sites have other futures besides the general classification winner, including the option to back a cyclist to finish in the top 3/5/10 in the final standings.
This is a great alternative, especially if you have been following a young athlete and you believe they could do great at the Tour de France.
Head-to-head finishes
Head-to-head wagers are among player favorites.
The principle is always the same; the riders are grouped in pairs and you can bet on who’s going to finish ahead.
One of the best things about this one is that you don’t really care about the entire field of hundreds of cyclists. You only have to figure out which of the two in question would perform better. Most bookies will already have riders paired up for you to bet on, saving you time in analyzing and searching yourself.
Previous Tour de France Winners
| YEAR | WINNER | TEAM | DISTANCE |
| 2020 | Tadej Pogacar | UAE Team Emirates | 3484km |
| 2019 | Egan Bernal | Team INEOS | 3480km |
| 2018 | Geraint Thomas | Team Sky | 3349km |
| 2017 | Chris Froome | Team Sky | 3540km |
| 2016 | Chris Froome | Team Sky | 3529km |
| 2015 | Chris Froome | Team Sky | 3360km |
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