The Grand Départ: Tour de France begins Jul 7, 2018

The Grand Départ: Tour de France begins

All eyes are on France today as 22 teams begin the 105th Tour de France, the prestigious cycling race that takes competitors more than 2,000 miles through the countryside. Our image show the peloton (the main pack of riders) racing down a tree-lined road from Montélimar to the Parc des Oiseaux in Villars-les-Dombes during Stage 14 of the Tour de France in 2016. If you’re new to the competition, here’s what you need to know: The race includes 21 stages that span 22 days. Competitors will climb at grades of up to 11 percent through the Alps and Pyrenees, and pedal over miles of cobblestone and dirt roads, country lanes and highways, at last coming to a finish at the Champs-Élysées in Paris. When you see the peloton, keep an eye out for the yellow jersey–at each stage it’s worn by the cyclist with the overall leading time and is ultimately awarded to the winner. Bonne chance, riders!

© Michael Steele/Getty Images Sport

palette

Today in History

Jul 7, 2019Traffic jam on the caribou highway
Jul 7, 2020Mercury in retrograde
Jul 7, 2021Back on the rise
Jul 7, 2022Heceta Head Light, Florence, Oregon
Jul 7, 2023World Chocolate Day
Jul 7, 2024Rice terraces of Mù Cang Chải, Yên Bái province, Vietnam
Jul 7, 2025Northern gannets, Shetland Islands, Scotland

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Jul 7, 2018The Grand Départ: Tour de France begins
Nov 24, 2025Gwalior Fort, Madhya Pradesh, India
Mar 22, 2021Honoring some real heroes of World War II
Dec 10, 2020What does the fox dream?
Jul 10, 2023A field of English lavender
Nov 30, 2018In the Highlands for Saint Andrew s Day
Dec 12, 2022Poinsettia Day
May 25, 2019Traveling warblers
Apr 4, 2021A yearly sign that spring has sprung
Jun 26, 2023Château de Villandry, France
Jul 9, 2021A center of antiquity on the Mediterranean
Oct 18, 2022The Guggenheim Bilbao turns 25
Dec 8, 2020A fortress in the sky
Sep 6, 2025National Hummingbird Day
Aug 16, 2019Shining like Klondike gold
Aug 17, 2022Freshwater plants in Aquário Natural, Brazil
Jan 12, 2019Sailing across the ice
Sep 1, 2025Labor Day parade in 1915 Chicago
Jun 12, 2023Big Bend National Parks birthday
Dec 28, 2022Maloja, Switzerland
Aug 24, 2021Surf s always up in Paia
Sep 24, 2023World Rivers Day
Apr 28, 2022Fox kits
Oct 26, 2019 FOR FOREST by Klaus Littmann
Oct 1, 2020A lunar lantern celebration
Jun 7, 2020A hermitage with a view
Jul 21, 2021An octagonal architectural treasure
Jan 23, 2024Atolls in the Maldives
Oct 3, 2022World Architecture Day
Nov 10, 202547 years of Badlands National Park