When Tour de France came to town

IT is 50 years since the world’s most prestigious cycling race, the Tour de France, visited Plymouth.

- DANIEL CLARK

While excursions outside of France and indeed mainland Europe are now fairly common, for the first 71 years of its existence, the race did not venture too far.

This changed in 1974 when the Tour de France made its inaugural trip to England. But the stage in Plymouth is infamous for what did – or more likely – didn’t happen.

Stage 2 of the 1974 Tour de France brought the race to Britain’s Ocean City but it was not a successful venture. Riders were treated poorly upon arrival, fans didn’t flock to the streets as anticipated, and the TV coverage left much to be desired.

Out of the 111 years of the Tour de France, the Plymouth stage would rank in the top 10 for being the most uneventful. But why was Plymouth chosen to host a stage of the world’s most famous bike race, which got under way on Saturday for the 2024 edition?

The organisers decided to bring the race to England to commemorate the launch of the Plymouth to Roscoff ferry link, which began service in 1973. Perhaps more significantly, it was also a nod to Britain joining the Common Market.

A delegation of Plymouth’s top local figures, including city council leader Alderman Harold Pattinson and Lord Mayor Jack Luce, had visited Brest, Plymouth’s twin city since 1963. Brest’s Mayor Monsieur Georges Lombard revealed Brest had secured the prestigious start of the 1974 Tour de France race, and proposed that Plymouth might consider hosting one of the stages. Despite no prior experience in such matters, the council agreed to set aside £40,000 (equivalent to over £400,000 today) to cover the associated costs.

The 1974 Tour kicked off with a Prologue in Brest, won by Eddy Merckx, who later clinched the Yellow Jersey in Paris for a record-equalling fifth time. Stage 1, from Brest to Saint-Pol-de-Leon, was won by Ercole Gualazzini, completing his collection of Grand Tour stage wins after previous victories in the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a Espana.