To use the words of Big Chris: It’s been emotional. The Tour has finished its three-day sojourn in England—and what a fabulous three days it has been. Stage 3 ended with the first rain shower of the whole period and an exciting chase: Jan Barta and Jean-Marc Bideau were out on their own from the start, Barta right up to the last 8 km with Bideau, and Bideau on his own to the last 6 km, when the merciless peloton finally caught him. Then in a tightly-contested sprint up The Mall, Marcel Kittel won out, his second stage win in three days. Bravo!

The Tour passes through Finghingfield, Essex. Amazing crowds! Photo by PA.

Another view of  the Tour passing through Finchingfield. Photo: Tour de France.

During the race, ITV had a brief interview with Danny Boyle, who was in London to watch, and he made the point that the feeling of communities joining in the spirit of the Tour throughout its route is reminiscent of the way the country responded to the Olympic Torch Relay two years ago. He’s so right! The flame passed quite near to us, along the A30 and into Shaftesbury. I didn’t get to to witness it in person, but watched on the live coverage from the BBC vehicle right behind the torch bearer. There were flags and balloons and masses of bunting, and people were really getting into the spirit of it, just as they have over the last three days.

Then a little while after that interview, the Tour passed by the Olympic Park and the Olympic Stadium, which of course reminded me of the fantastic opening ceremony directed by Danny Boyle. He mentioned during the interview that Stephen Frears had just made a film about the Tour, and a quick bit of google-fu tells me it’s an as-yet unnamed biopic of disgraced Tour drugs cheat Lance Armstrong.

Merci beaucoup, Tour de France, et revenir bientôt! Photo by PA.

So au revoir to Le Tour, and merci beaucoup. I can’t say enough what a thrill it has been and how proud it has made me to see the Tour de France over the last three days in England. The sun shone, the crowds were massive and the scenery beautiful, all providing a great backdrop to the biggest and best cycle race in the world—and the largest annual sporting event in the world. (I’m not sure how this is calculated—number of participants, duration, number of spectators, number of people who watch it on tv, or a combination of some or all of these?)  Christian Prudhomme, the Tour Director, has called the last three days ‘the grandest Grand Départ ever’: what a compliment. I hope the Tour will be back on British shores before too long. We’ve loved having you!