The Tour de France: The World's Biggest Sporting Event

Photo: Instagram/wimbledon

Overview - The Tour de France is the world's biggest annual sporting event, with 3.5B television viewers and over 12M spectators annually. It starts on July 1 and runs through July 23. It covers over 2,115 miles and features 22 teams of eight riders. There are 21 stages (i.e., mountain or flat) that make up the race. Out of the 23 days of the Tour, the riders only have two days of rest.

1. Until the 1960s, it was common for participants to drink alcohol to hydrate and numb the pain. Despite its 'healing power,' alcohol was later banned because it's a stimulant. BRAKE FOR BOOZE

2. It's not all about the benjamins. After enduring three weeks of grueling terrain through France after starting in Spain, the many winners of the stages and the race divide up $2.5M in prize money. (For comparison's sake, the Wimbledon men’s and women’s champions each take home $2.9M). The man to beat for the cash prize is defending champion Jonas Vingegaard of Denmark and two-time champion Tadej Pogacar.  CASHING IN

3. While you may fly solo while spinning away on your Peloton at home, in the Tour, a big group of riders is called the peloton, or French for "group." Other terms you might enjoy dropping into conversation include a musket bag, a shoulder bag containing food and water handed to riders at feeding stations. Then there's a SAG wagon. You and I might know it as an Uber, but it's a vehicle that follows cyclists and picks them up when they can no longer ride, whether from fatigue, injury, equipment failure, etc. OUI

4. There are two American teams in this year’s race (out of 22 teams). Their riders are vying for the yellow jersey. Why the different colored jerseys? The overall leader in the Tour wears a yellow jersey, the points leader wears a green jersey, and the red polka dot jersey goes to the best hill climber. SO FASHION-FORWARD

5. When Le Tour is over, the excitement doesn't stop. It’s the second year of the Tour de France Femmes, the new stage race for pro-women, which runs from Jul 23 - 30. the eight-stage race packs in 594 miles across central and southwestern France. LET’S GO, GIRLS

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Tour de France

If you’re looking for motivation to jump on the Peloton this weekend, turn on the Tour De France, which starts on Saturday. Here's a fun fact about the tour. Until the 1960s, it was common for participants to drink alcohol to numb the pain. Despite its 'healing power,' alcohol was later banned because it's a stimulant. This 21-day race with only two days of rest will make your 30-minute HIIT class looks like a breeze. SADDLE UP

Overtime

This week, retired Chicago Cubs (MLB - Major League Baseball) player and former World Series MVP Ben Zobrist filed a lawsuit against Byron Yawn, his former pastor who was allegedly having an affair with Zobrist’s wife, Julianna. Yawn provided the couple with marital counseling and worked with Zobrist on his depression and anxiety while carrying on the alleged affair. Unbeknownst to Zobrist, he hired Yawn to be the executive director of his foundation, which is where the lawsuit comes into play. There won’t be a happy ending for anyone, but this story is far from over. SO MANY SECRETS

Sideline stat

Manchester United (European soccer) star Marcus Rashford spent the pandemic concerned with how the children in his country would eat. He rallied Parliament to provide support for children who received free lunch. After failing the first time, he raised millions of dollars for the cause and then on his second try, he successfully secured a $556 million grant to provide meals into 2021, impacting the lives of 1.7 million children in the UK. Rashford will receive the Pat Tillman Award for Service at the 2021 ESPYS on July 10. Rashford was also recently named to Time's Top 100 List for his advocacy work on homelessness and child hunger. GOOD GUY ALERT

Coaches’ corner

It’s been a day or two since Ted Lasso (aka Jason Sudekis) and Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt) announced the Olympic roster for the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team. But if you need a smile this Friday morning, it’s worth checking out. EXPERT OPINION

Worth Celebrating

Congratulations! You’ve made it to Friday.

Go forth and celebrate like it’s 1969,

The Last Night’s Game Team

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MLB (Major League Baseball)

The Houston Astros are going all out to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s walk on the moon. The Astros will replace their logo on their caps the with the official emblem of Apollo 11, fans will be able to take photos with Neil Armstrong’s spacesuit and the Astros faithful can also pick up an Orbit Moon-Landing bobblehead. HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PARTY

Overtime

Move over Swimsuit Edition, there’s a new boss in town. Serena Williams is looking fierce as she graces the cover of Sports Illustrated’s “Fashionable 50.” Other athletes who made the cut include the NBA’s (National Basketball Association) Russell Westbrook and Dwyane Wade, tennis’ Maria Sharapova, driver Lewis Hamilton (F1 - Formula One Racing) and soccer’s Cristiano Ronaldo. THE WORLD IS THEIR RED CARPET

Sideline stat

Manny Pacquiao, 40, went from being one of the best in boxing, to a politician in his home country of the Philippines and will return to the ring to fight Keith Thurman on Saturday. Thurman, who is 10 years younger than Pacquiao, is undefeated but most experts are picking the “old guy” for his experience, speed and technique. LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE

Coaches’ corner

In a strange move, Australian rider Rohan Dennis quit the Tour de France mid-race and then went missing for a few hours. The World time-trial champion finally showed up at the team bus, said his peace and left. Rumor has it he’s tired of playing second fiddle on his team, but no one is saying anything about his abrupt exit. FIND ME AT THE VINEYARDS

Need more Tour? Check out our five things you need to know.

What to watch

The blustery weather of Northern Ireland certainly got the best of former British Open (aka The Open - golf) champ David Duvall. His play yesterday was a comedy of errors that led to "a very unique, awful situation" (his words not ours) as he recorded a score so high that mortals could actually achieve it. (Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and others struggled yesterday too, but not quite as badly).

Channel the chilly conditions while sitting under a fan as you attempt to cool off from this weekend’s heat wave. The Open runs until Sunday. HERE’S HOW TO WATCH