The Tour de France Dictation : 5,000 pupils ready to write about “their” Tour

The project: 5,000 pupils on the route of the Tour
"Have your pens ready?" Write!” With nearly 100 days to go before the start of the 2017 Tour de France in Düsseldorf, more than 5,000 pupils from the ages of 10-12 will participate in the 1st “Tour de France dictation”. The project was announced by Tour de France Director, Christian Prudhomme during the Presentation of the 2017 Tour de France last October. The “Tour de France dictation” will take place in 19 cities and four departments that the Tour will race through this year. Even the city of the Grand Départ is getting into the act, with the participation of the Lycée Français in Düsseldorf!

To each their own text!
In its desire to bring youngsters closer to today’s cycling champions and allow them to better relate to the Tour de France, the texts that will be dictated have not been chosen at random. Thus for each city and department, an extract from an article from the Regional Daily Press was selected with the subject of the Tour de France and the current cyclists obviously, but especially the hometown of the students concerned! In addition, several personalities with links to the Tour de France will read the text to students in their hometown, like Francois Simon (former wearer of the Yellow Jersey) at Troyes, Anatole Novak (winner of a stage on the 1961 Tour) at La Mure. In Dole, it was the late Roger Pingeon, winner of the 1967 Tour de France, who was to have read the Dictation text. Jean-François Bernard, wearer of the Yellow Jersey 20 years after Pingeon, will dictate a text in his honour. And even the Tour de France Director, Christian Prudhomme, will travel to Périgueux (on March 30th) to read the texts of the Dordogne students.

The reward: experience “your” stage thoroughly!
‘’The Tour of my dreams is the Tour that passes in front my house’’. The nine best pupils from each participating city will experience this adage in the best possible way this coming July. They will have the privilege of experiencing “their stage”, this coming July in VIP style (access to the Start Village, finish line tribune, the signature podium with the riders and a chance to discover the Tour from behind the scenes …) The passage of the Tour de France in their hometown or village is always a memorable moment. The “Tour de France dictation” wishes to make it unforgettable.