Tour de France boss has no time for riders in discussion about heat, start times and proposed calendar changes

The weather in the Tour de France is changing as the second week draws to a close. After an unusually hot start to the Tour de France, the weather gods in the Vosges seem to be changing course. Nevertheless, the comments made by Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme about the heat during the first two weeks caused a storm.

So the weather in France is taking on a different character, although yellow and orange alerts are still being issued. In the Vosges during Stages 13, 14, and 15, the main concern isn’t so much the heat as it is thunderstorms. In the final stretch of the thirteenth stage heading toward Belfort, the riders could already face some heavy rain, though that will do the temperatures some good, bringing them down to around 20 degrees.

On Saturday and Sunday, Meteo Online is once again forecasting mild temperatures, with cloudy skies and a chance of showers. At the summits of the Vosges cols, temperatures could even reach 20 degrees—how nice! On Sunday, it will be slightly warmer, and the chance of rain will also decrease. Tuesday’s time trial from Evian-les-Bains to Thonon-les-Bains will be sunny, but with a high of 25 degrees, it won’t be sweltering. The same goes for Stage 17.

Although the heat during the first two weeks of the Tour de France was a hot topic, ASO and Tour director Prudhomme has no plans to make any changes. Before the start of Stage 13, he spoke with France 2 about the recent heat wave and the criticism from the peloton regarding races held in temperatures well above 40 degrees.

Prudhomme expertly dismissed ideas to have sweltering stages start earlier in the future. “I’ve heard all kinds of things: starting stages at 9:00 a.m., holding the Tour de France in a different month. Those all seem like unrealistic ideas to me. A drastic change in climate might one day force a change, but not yet.”

The riders will hear these statements too, but they certainly won’t be listened to in the coming years. “The women were right to refuse to start so early in the Flèche Wallonne and Liège–Bastogne–Liège, so are we really going to let the men start at those times now? You can’t make decisions like this in the heat of the moment. Everyone has a different take on it.”

Finally, Prudhomme brought up the issue of media attention, which he believes will decrease if the Tour makes changes to start times and dates. “I’m categorical about changing dates: that’s not possible. As for the morning start, we’ll have to find flexible solutions. But we need to keep things in perspective.”

The message is clear. How will the riders respond?