‘It can bring a lot of danger’ – Robbie McEwen questions fan behaviour at Tour de France 2022

Robbie McEwen has questioned fan behaviour at the Tour de France and says some of their actions seriously endanger the riders’ safety. McEwen highlighted a number of incidents from this year’s Tour, including those involving Jonas Vingegaard and Yves Lampaert as examples of fan interaction going too far.

Ad/> The three-time Tour de France points classification winner also referenced the cardboard sign incident in 2021, which saw German cyclist Tony Martin take a tumble after crashing into a cardboard sign held out by a fan and caused a mass pile-up. Tour de FranceFuglsang exits the Tour with fractured rib after crash2 HOURS AGO There was also a protest during Stage 15 on Sunday, as protestors lay in the road and set off flares, as riders negotiated the route between Rodez and Carcassone.

He told Eurosport: “It is wonderful to see crowds back roadside after the Covid years when they were absent – it brings a lot of atmosphere, but it can bring a lot of danger as well when people flat out do the wrong thing. “We've seen people running alongside the riders trying to get too up close and personal, carrying a flag on the end of a big stick which could risk going in the wheels, as we saw with Vingegaard.

We sometimes see dogs inadvertently getting in on the action as well, just ask Yves Lampaert. “It happens every year, the messages go out every year, riders on social media say: ‘please respect the riders, give us room to race.’ “But there always appears to be something.