SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
The Tour de France winds up in Paris tomorrow. And this year, instead of the largely ceremonial finish with easy laps down a flat avenue, riders will climb a steep hill into a historic Paris neighborhood. It's a controversial twist - good for TV, perhaps. But riders say it adds stress and uncertainty on the last day of a grueling three-week, 2,000-mile race. NPR's Eleanor Beardsley reports.
(CHEERING)
ELEANOR BEARDSLEY, BYLINE: Tour de France organizers were so inspired by last summer's Olympic cyclists climbing the cobbled streets of Paris' Montmartre district that they added the same route to the 23rd and final stage of the Tour de France this year.
ALASDAIR FOTHERINGHAM: Not since 1989 have we had such a radical change to the last day of the Tour de France. Traditionally, it's like a procession stage.
BEARDSLEY: That's Alasdair Fotheringham with cyclingnews.com. He says instead of a procession to the finish line by riders who've cemented their lead over the previous three weeks, the climb up Montmartre three times could turn the race on its head.
FOTHERINGHAM: It could be that there's some kind of last-minute drama involving one of the real key protagonists of the race, and what you might call three weeks of hard work suddenly disappears in a broken wheel or a mistimed curve or something.
BEARDSLEY: The Olympic cycling was a one-day event with far fewer riders. The Tour will see 150 cyclists battling for position on the narrow cobblestone climbs. Two-time champion Jonas Vingegaard, currently in second place, told reporters the new route adds stress and chaos on the last day. Cyclists are clearly not happy, but what about spectators? I head to the picturesque neighborhood to find out.
We got tired of walking, so I'm taking a train to the top of Montmartre - a little tourist train.
At the top, Elsa Noujarret (ph) is waiting tables at a cafe along the route. She was working during the Olympics last year.
ELSA NOUJARRET: The street was so full of people, and it was just amazing - lot of joy, lot of people who screams. That was a big event.
BEARDSLEY: The Tour is like a soundtrack to summer in France, playing in cafes like this across the country during the month of July.
Bonjour, madame.
BEARDSLEY: Sixty-five-year-old Nathalie Menou (ph) is smoking a cigarette in front of her ice cream shop in Montmartre. She says she's not much of a cycling fan, but she's thrilled the riders will be back this year.
NATHALIE MENOU: (Through interpreter) Last summer, the Olympic race brought so many people out. The ambience was terrific, and the streets were packed. I hope it's the same this year.
BEARDSLEY: Menou says historic Montmartre is a giant village where neighbors all know each other.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ONE HAND LOOSE")
CHARLIE FEATHERS: (Singing) Hear what I got to say. Hold a one hand only, get a-ready for a ride.
BEARDSLEY: I step into Chez Camille, a local bar off a steep side street. Bartender Lena Brutus (ph), who grew up in the neighborhood, is serving up drinks on a zinc bar that dates to 1871 - one of the oldest bar tops in Paris. She says this tight-knit neighborhood is thrilled to be on the route of the Tour de France this year.
LENA BRUTUS: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, it's cool. I mean, last year it was, like, a really great thing. It was crazy, and people were crazy (laughter). And it was, like, a great thing to follow. So, yeah, I'm happy.
BEARDSLEY: Brutus says whatever the riders may think, people here hope the Tour de France will become a new tradition in the old village of Montmartre.
Eleanor Beardsley, NPR News, Montmartre. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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