Tour de France riders brace for scorching conditions as heatwave sweeps in

LES ANGLES, France, July 6 : Tour de France riders are set to face scorching conditions as a new heatwave sweeps through the country, with temperatures around Carcassonne, where Tuesday's fourth stage begins, forecast to reach 41 degrees Celsius (106 Fahrenheit).

The demanding conditions are nothing new to the peloton, with extreme heat a frequent adversary in the Tour in July and in the Vuelta a Espana in August.

"We race the Tour de France in July, so it has always been hot and it always will be," French rider Hugo Page told reporters. "With global warming, things might just get worse and worse."

High temperatures could affect riders' health and safety, according to France's Benjamin Thomas of Cofidis.

"It can take its toll and really affect the riders’ health. Once the perceived temperature goes above 40 C, it really starts to get dangerous," he said.

Teams have introduced protocols to cool riders down before, during and after the stage, with ice vests, ice socks, ice cubes around the neck and ice slush being employed to lower core body temperatures.

"During the race, we use cold bottles," Cofidis head of performance Mattia Michelusi told Reuters, adding that his team also use special wristbands to help cool the body.

Netcompany-Ineos riders could be seen dipping their forearms into a basin of cold water on Saturday, imitating an aerodynamic position as they did so.

Groupama-FDJ United's medical director Mathieu Le Strat said the riders had heightened heat tolerance due to their targeted training.

"You can’t compare them to the general population, given the intensive heat training they’ve undergone," he said.

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The objective of this training method is to help riders adapt to the heat.

"The first step is to