The Cycling Podcast

This is part two of our bumper XL Tour de France Preview, with Lionel Birnie, Graham Willgoss, Rob Hatch and François Thomazeau. We pick up where we left off with François' run-through of what to expect on the road in weeks two and three of the 2025 Tour de France, interspersed with some of the more intriguing sub-plots to look forward to. There's also Whitey's Whiteboard – in which experienced sports director Matt White shares some of his tactical expertise and breaks down how a typical team goes about selecting its line-up for the Tour de France and how the daily strategy is decided and conveyed to the riders. INTRODUCING VAN RYSEL, OUR TOUR DE FRANCE SPONSORS We are very pleased to welcome Van Rysel as our sponsors for the first half of our Tour de France coverage. The Tour gets underway in Lille, the city where the company was founded and has its headquarters. The city is steeped in French cycling history and heritage, not least because the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix are on the doorstep. Van Rysel suppl