Funny he should mention it: The Tour de France is in progress.
Yesterday, "Retrogrouch" said he is "barely" following this year's race. I could say the same thing. In fact, other cyclists I know who've followed Tours (and Giros and Vueltas) past say that they're paying little or no attention to the latest editions of these contests.
It got me to wondering why this is so, and whether it's just an American phenomenon. Could Europeans' interest in those races also be waning?
Now, to be fair, the Euro football (soccer) championship ended three days ago. It's held every four years, like the Olympics, and this year's version was held in France. As it happens, les bleus made it to the championship game, which they lost to the Portuguese side.
Then again, the tournament was held in France in 1984 and 2000, both of which the French won. This year's final matchup brought Cristiano Ronaldo-- who some regard as the world's best player-- and Antoine Greizmann--who could become his successor, according to some experts--onto the pitch as opponents. So, even those football fans who aren't French or Portuguese (or simply fans of those teams) could find something interesting to watch. Also, there was the "feel good" story about the Icelandic squad, which made it all the way to the quarterfinals against France (and, along the way, beat England). This is especially shocking when you realize that more people live on Staten Island than in Iceland, where there are no professional leagues!
Stories like those keep casual fans interested in major sporting events. Such drama seems to be lacking in this year's Tour. There are favorites and "dark horses", to be sure. But there aren't the sort of compelling rivalries, in part there is no rider-of-his-generation like Bernard Hinault and, thus, no one who's in a position to ascend to the throne, if you will. There is also not a "feel good" story like the pre-fall-from-grace Lance Armstrong's (though, even in his heyday, there were whispers that he was doping).
And, let's face it, there's nationalism in sports. It's no longer startling to see British riders dominate the race, just it was no longer a shock to see Americans win after Greg LeMond. While there are some very good riders from the former Soviet Bloc countries, none of them yet poses a challenge to the established order. One reason, I think, is that those riders tend to dominate in sprints, often at the expense of other events, just as the best British riders--until about fifteen years ago--were time trialists. Even Peter Sagan doesn't look ready to make the "breakthrough", and even if it did, it wouldn't excite fans in the US or the major cycling nations of Western Europe.
Finally, I think some people have given up, or are giving up, on cycling because of the widespread doping. While football and other sports have their share of "juicers", the problem doesn't seem anywhere near as rampant. At least, that's how fans seem to see it.
Anyway, if you want to read about a really exciting Tour, Retrogrouch wrote a very nice account of the 1986 version, which had everything this year's edition seems to lack.
Yesterday, "Retrogrouch" said he is "barely" following this year's race. I could say the same thing. In fact, other cyclists I know who've followed Tours (and Giros and Vueltas) past say that they're paying little or no attention to the latest editions of these contests.
It got me to wondering why this is so, and whether it's just an American phenomenon. Could Europeans' interest in those races also be waning?
Now, to be fair, the Euro football (soccer) championship ended three days ago. It's held every four years, like the Olympics, and this year's version was held in France. As it happens, les bleus made it to the championship game, which they lost to the Portuguese side.
Then again, the tournament was held in France in 1984 and 2000, both of which the French won. This year's final matchup brought Cristiano Ronaldo-- who some regard as the world's best player-- and Antoine Greizmann--who could become his successor, according to some experts--onto the pitch as opponents. So, even those football fans who aren't French or Portuguese (or simply fans of those teams) could find something interesting to watch. Also, there was the "feel good" story about the Icelandic squad, which made it all the way to the quarterfinals against France (and, along the way, beat England). This is especially shocking when you realize that more people live on Staten Island than in Iceland, where there are no professional leagues!
Stories like those keep casual fans interested in major sporting events. Such drama seems to be lacking in this year's Tour. There are favorites and "dark horses", to be sure. But there aren't the sort of compelling rivalries, in part there is no rider-of-his-generation like Bernard Hinault and, thus, no one who's in a position to ascend to the throne, if you will. There is also not a "feel good" story like the pre-fall-from-grace Lance Armstrong's (though, even in his heyday, there were whispers that he was doping).
And, let's face it, there's nationalism in sports. It's no longer startling to see British riders dominate the race, just it was no longer a shock to see Americans win after Greg LeMond. While there are some very good riders from the former Soviet Bloc countries, none of them yet poses a challenge to the established order. One reason, I think, is that those riders tend to dominate in sprints, often at the expense of other events, just as the best British riders--until about fifteen years ago--were time trialists. Even Peter Sagan doesn't look ready to make the "breakthrough", and even if it did, it wouldn't excite fans in the US or the major cycling nations of Western Europe.
Finally, I think some people have given up, or are giving up, on cycling because of the widespread doping. While football and other sports have their share of "juicers", the problem doesn't seem anywhere near as rampant. At least, that's how fans seem to see it.
Anyway, if you want to read about a really exciting Tour, Retrogrouch wrote a very nice account of the 1986 version, which had everything this year's edition seems to lack.
