At the arrival of the 18th stage in the Pyrenees, Emmanuel Macron spoke on the antennas of France Télévisions. The President of the Republic was questioned about the stage he followed aboard Christian Prudhomme’s car in the heart of the Tour routes, but also about the success of the Grande Boucle and the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
“We had an extraordinary stage, and very lively with a lot of attacks. I experienced this with the adrenaline of the stage, and especially the public who came in large numbers along the roads,” says Emmanuel Macron. The native of Amiens sang the praises of the yellow jersey Jonas Vingegaard, winner as a soloist of his 2nd stage. “We saw who was the boss of this Tour. He held on the whole way and he was brave. This young Dane won this stage and did an extraordinary lap. He is in the process of achieving feats, ”explains the President of the Republic.
“The Tour de France is French heritage”
Emmanuel Macron said he was pleasantly surprised by the enthusiasm visible along the roads of the stage, with an ever-growing public, weaned from cycling during the Covid. This success he explains by a certain culture. “The Tour de France is the French historical, sporting and landscape heritage. There is an attachment around the Grande Boucle because it’s a ritual, it’s an event not to be missed, for some a way of spending the holidays. »
The French president prides himself on experiencing a cycling event of such magnitude on our territory: “All the landscapes of France traversed are a source of pride. It is a journey through our history. Compatriots follow the Tour to rediscover our country. It is a moment of influence for France throughout the world. »
If Emmanuel Macron could not hail a Tricolor stage victory as was the case in 2019 in the Col du Tourmalet with the triumph of Thibaut Pinot accompanied by the yellow jersey of Julian Alaphilippe, he nevertheless exchanged with the French present in the peloton, like the AG2R rider Benoît Cosnefroy, impressed: “It’s really incredible to meet the President, it warms my heart. Talking to the President, I did not expect it at all, so it is with great joy. It’s impressive the simplicity he can have with the people present here. »
Make France a sports nation
Two years before hosting the Olympic Games in Paris, Emmanuel Macron assumes his “achievable ambition” to make France a nation of sport: “I fought to obtain these Games. They must be made exemplary in terms of inclusion and the environment. The Olympics will be a moment of jubilation, pride and emotion. It is a moment that we must prepare for. Being a sporting nation also means preparing the whole nation for sport, in particular by registering more and more licensees in the clubs. »
Emmanuel Macron explained a preparation in three stages; the construction of 5,000 sports facilities throughout the territory “so that the practice spreads”, support for access to sport for the most modest with the Sport Pass, and the generalization of the mandatory half-hour of daily sport in the school.
The President of the Republic finally highlighted “the chance to have an extraordinary leisure activity with free access”, on the antennas of France Télévisions, thanking the public channels on many occasions even though the debate around the abolition of the license fee for public broadcasting is in full swing.
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