Tour de France organisers say they are ready to adjust to any situation as the race moves from Spain to France and are in constant liaison with French authorities over security concerns following the fatal shooting of a teenager that has sparked mass riots across the country.
After a start in Bilbao, Spain, the Tour heads to France on Monday with visits to Bayonne, Dax, Pau and Bordeaux during the week.
Rioting across France appeared to be less intense on Saturday, but tens of thousands of police have been deployed in cities across the country after the funeral of Nahel M, a teenager of North African descent, whose shooting by police sparked nationwide unrest.
"We are in constant liaison with the State services and we are following the situation and how it has been evolving," Tour director Christian Prudhomme told reporters on Friday.
French President Emmanuel Macron held another emergency cabinet meeting through Sunday night in his latest attempt to craft a response to the violence, which is testing his authority and ability to carry out reforms.
Some 33,000 law enforcement officers are deployed throughout the three-week race, but team buses and thousand of euros in material are being guarded by a sole private security officer overnight.
A senior source with direct knowledge of the matter said that none of the officers would be pulled out of the race to be redeployed across the country for anti-rioting duty.
Foreign team members have confessed not knowing much about the situation in France, arguing they are in a "bubble" on the Tour de France. In French teams or for French riders, however, the tone is slightly different.
"Obviously we're concerned, we can't be insensitive to what's been happening but there's not much we
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