Tour de France peloton suffer through 40º heat: 'For sure it's not healthy'

The UCI enacted their Extreme Weather Protocol on the transition stage before the second rest day

Jasper Philipsen
(Image credit: Getty)

Have you ever experience heat like this, came the question to Romain Bardet. "Not in the Tour, no," was his reply, the Frenchman draped in an ice cooling vest and drinking yet more cold fluids to rehydrate himself after one of the hottest Tour de France stages in history on Sunday.

A day before the second and final rest day, the peloton crossed the Massif Central from Rodez to Carcassonne, with the racing played out under yet another intense heatwave in what has been a scorching hot summer in mainland Europe with the mercury hitting 40º at one point. 

Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Chris Marshall-Bell

A freelance sports journalist and podcaster, you'll mostly find Chris's byline attached to new