THE Tour de France’s 13th stage got underway under tightened security on Friday after riders had observed a minute’s silence in tribute to the scores of victims of the Nice attacks.
A gunman at the wheel of a heavy truck ploughed into a crowd celebrating Bastille Day in Nice late last night, killing at least 84 people and injuring scores more.
President Francois Hollande branded the incident an act of terrorism.
The stage began this morning, later than scheduled after race organisers debated whether it should be cancelled.
The stage is a 23.5-mile time trial from Bourg-saint-Andeol to Vallon Pont-d’Arc in the Ardeche rejoin some three hours’ drive northwest of Nice.
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Race director Christian Prudhomme said: "We had a crisis meeting with the prefect of the Ardeche department and the gendarmerie. The stage is on.
"We want this day to be a day of dignity as a tribute to the victims. We asked ourselves (whether the stage should be cancelled) but we think, after agreeing with authorities, that the race must continue."
The prefecture of the Ardeche department said security was being reinforced along Friday's route.
Leader Chris Froome will be the last man on the road, and another minute's silence will be held at the finishing line, Prudhomme said.
The publicity caravan, which precedes the riders on the stage route everyday handing out free gifts and souvenirs and blasting loud music, rode silently Friday.
Security had already been reinforced at the Tour this year, with France in a state of emergency since the Paris attacks.
The three-week race is protected by an unprecedented force of 23,000 police officers, including SWAT-like intervention squads, while security guards perform bag checks and pat downs at the start and finish of every stage.
Bauke Mollema, who was involved in a crash with Froome inside the last kilometre of Thursday's Stage 12 at Mont Ventoux when a TV motorbike was forced to stop on the road because of fans congestion, said his "thoughts are with the people in Nice."
I couldn't sleep yet and now read about something more important than the Tour. My thoughts are with the people of Nice. F*ing crazy world
— Bauke Mollema (@BaukeMollema) July 14, 2016
Froome was awarded the same time as Mollema after he was forced to wait for a replacement bike following the incident, a decision that left Mollema unhappy. But the Dutch rider put his rivalry with Froome aside.
"I couldn't sleep yet and now read about something more important than the Tour," Mollema wrote on Twitter. " ... crazy world."
French climber Romain Bardet also expressed sadness over the attack.
"Being French, gathering, celebrating, loving each other," he posted on social media. "And never giving up. I'm thinking about Nice."
Nice is a very popular place to live among cyclists - dozens taking part in the Tour live in the city, which is surrounded by beautiful hills and testing climbs.
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