Cardiff’s Principality Stadium embodies the significance of rugby in the Welsh capital, which is hosting the Tour de France for the first time, although it’s already celebrated a victory in the race by one of its own. In 2018, Geraint Thomas paraded through his hometown, where his friends and supporters gathered in front of the castle just weeks after they’d flocked to Paris to cheer him on the Tour podium on the Champs-Élysées. At the end of 2025 edition of the Tour of Britain, Thomas bade farewell to his professional racing career in front of that same home crowd, a year on from his friend and compatriot Luke Rowe’s retirement. Olav Kooij won the sprint finish, while Thomas and Rowe transitioned into new careers in team management.
- First-time stage town
- Capital of Wales
- Population: 384,000
- cardiff.gov.uk
