Tour de France riders encountered an unexpected roadblock on Tuesday after a group of eco-activists blocked the race course and set off smoke bombs.
The incident caused the race to be temporarily shut down.
Cycling News reports that the group known as Derniere Renovation claimed responsibility for the protest. The group is seeking to force government action on a range of issues before the cataclysmic environmental disaster the group predicts will occur in 989 days.
“The reality is that the world to which the politicians are sending us is a world in which the Tour de France will no longer be able to exist,” said a protester identified as Alice. “In this world, we will be busy fighting to feed ourselves and to save our families. Under these conditions we will face mass wars and famines. We must act and enter into civil resistance today to save what remains to be saved.”
French gendarmes remove environmental activists from the race route as their protest action temporarily immobilized the pack of riders during the 10th stage of the 109th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 148,1 km between Morzine and Megeve, in the French Alps, on July 12, 2022. (MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP via Getty Images)
Some racers swerved and successfully avoided the protesters; others came to a complete stop.
A general view of the peloton stopped due to activists in defending the “Mont Blanc environment” blocking the route during the 109th Tour de France 2022, Stage 10, a 148,1km stage from Morzine to Megève 1435m / #TDF2022 / #WorldTour / on July 12, 2022, in Megeve, France. Michael Steele/Getty Images)
But most riders were forced to wait while French police cleared the demonstrators.
French gendarmes remove environmental activists from the race route as their protest action temporarily immobilized the pack of riders during the 10th stage of the 109th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 148,1 km between Morzine and Megeve, in the French Alps, on July 12, 2022. (MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP via Getty Images)
The protest occurred during the 10th leg of the race, which marks the halfway point of the Tour de France. Danish racer Magnus Cort Nielsen finished at the head of the group after racing resumed.
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