Cycling. Reduced race, misting systems, new schedule: French championships disrupted by heatwave
Initially scheduled to last 233 kilometers, the road race of the French men's championships in Les Herbiers has been reduced by one lap and will now only be 214.5 km long... due to the heatwave.
The French Championships are taking place in Les Herbiers until Sunday. Photo by Le DL/JM
As a result of the high temperatures currently affecting France, particularly the Vendée region, the men's professional road race at the French championships will be reduced on Sunday.
Initially planned to be 14 laps of a 16.5 kilometer circuit (a total of 231 kilometers), the race will only take the loop around Les Herbiers 13 times for a total distance of 214.5 kilometers.
This is not the only measure taken by the organization (in accordance with the International Cycling Union protocol) as 36 degrees are expected in Vendée this Sunday.
An additional refreshment area has been added 500 meters after the finish line at the summit of Mont des Alouettes, and misters and a swimming pool are available in the finish area (a measure already taken for the women's professional elite race this Saturday).
Furthermore, the race start time has been changed to 12 noon instead of 11:35 am, due to the TV broadcast.
Le Dauphiné libéré
