# TdF2021 - ALLEZ! **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** bicycling-cycling\ **Created:** [June 22, 2021, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tdf2021-allez/944839 "2021-06-22T14:42:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 15
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2021, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tdf2021-allez/944839/281 "2021-07-20T19:54:27Z")
I have a couple other questions before this thread dies. The final stage ends with eight loops around the Arc de Triomphe, down to the Place de la Concorde, and back. Didn’t they used to alternate, clockwise one year and counterclockwise the next? Why did that change; do they figure it makes a better, or safer, finish if the riders are going uphill at the line? Who sponsors the Israel Start-Up Nation, UAE, and Bahrain teams? Are they actually sponsored by the governments of those countries, is it done through some sort of tourism board to promote visitors, or something else? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2021, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tdf2021-allez/944839/282 "2021-07-20T20:31:26Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Didn’t they used to alternate, clockwise one year and counterclockwise the next? I’m trying to remember a tour in which they went in the opposite direction. I can’t recall a time that was the case. Doesn’t mean it didn’t happen, but my memory only pictures the one way around. This year they moved the finish to be a few hundred meters beyond the previous tour finishes. I think sponsorship varies. Recall when USPS sponsored the US Postal Cycling Team. [Astana](http://www.astanaconti.com/) is another one of those teams that represents a country (Kazakhstan) and is sponsored by government run conglomerates. Bahrain Victorious main sponsor is a [Bahrain Prince](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasser_bin_Hamad_Al_Khalifa) connected with human rights abuses and torture. [UAE](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UAE_Team_Emirates) is sponsored by Emirati banks and airline. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2021, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tdf2021-allez/944839/283 "2021-07-21T00:00:03Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > I’m trying to remember a tour in which they went in the opposite direction. I can’t recall a time that was the case. Doesn’t mean it didn’t happen, but my memory only pictures the one way around. This year they moved the finish to be a few hundred meters beyond the previous tour finishes. I have a vague memory of watching the final stage, and the riders who had broken away from the peleton would hug the left side of the road coming downhill because it was slightly smoother there. I’ve been googling and haven’t been able to confirm it, yet. ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2021, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tdf2021-allez/944839/284 "2021-07-21T05:27:09Z")
I have zero recollection of the Paris circuit being ridden clockwise. The course has changed a bit over the years. They used to do a U-turn just before reaching the Arc de Triomphe instead of going around the traffic circle, for example, and it’s only recently that they started entering the circuit through the Louvre. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tdf2021-allez/944839.md?page=14)