The Tour de France kicks off in Denmark on Friday 1st July, and the President of the Danish Cycling Federation Henrik Jess Jensen has put out a warning:
“It will be possible to lose the Tour in Denmark already before getting to France,” he says gleefully.
Tour de France proceedings begin with a 13.2km time trial in the capital Copenhagen and Mr. Jess Jensen predicts that things could get complicated from the next day. On paper it is a flat 202.5km stage from Roskilde to Nyborg. On paper there is no wind.
“If it’s windy, and the wind comes from the west or north-west, it will be a sidewind and it will be very hard. Like going over cobblestones in the rain at the start of the Tour de France.”
The Federation President is proud that his country is hosting this year’s Grand Depart. It is 10 years since Denmark saw the Giro on its way (in 2012), the year after hosting the 2011 UCI Road World Championships.
Denmark currently boasts some of the world’s great road cyclists – Jakob Fuglsang, Mads Pedersen, Jonas Vingegaard, Kasper Asgreen…. the list is non-exhaustive and also includes top women Amalie Dideriksen, Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig and Emma Norsgaard Bjerg.
Twenty-four Danes are riding the UCI WorldTour this year, which according to the Federation President places Denmark second only to Belgium when it comes to percentage of the population. But despite its less-than-six million citizens, Denmark has a rich history in the sport.
Deep-seated tradition
Dansk Bicycle Club, based in Ballerup Super Arena, was founded on 7 May 1881, and with more than 800 members is among the largest in Denmark in terms of membership and the oldest cycle club in the world. Denmark also has the third oldest bike race in the world that still exists: H. A. Gregersen won the first edition of Fyen Rundt in 1894, while last month victory in the 2022 edition went to none other than Mads Pedersen, who has the distinction of being the first Dane ever to win the Men Elite title at the UCI Road World Championships.
Pedersen was crowned UCI World Champion in 2019, three years after Amalie Dideriksen won the rainbow jersey for Denmark in the Women Elite road race.
Dideriksen, who rides for UCI Women’s WorldTeam Trek-Segafredo, is also an accomplished track cyclist and won Olympic silver in the Madison in Tokyo last year. Henrik Jess Jensen hopes to see her and the likes of Uttrup Ludwig - 5th in last year’s UCI Women’s WorldTour ranking - shine on the roads of the new UCI Women’s WorldTour event, the Tour of Scandinavia. A continuation of the former Ladies Tour of Norway, the first edition will be held 9-16 August, starting in Copenhagen then crossing Sweden to Norway.
“This is part of our work to give more visibility to women in Scandinavia and it will show that there are some real superstars in Denmark and all Nordic countries,” he says.
There is no doubt that the Danes have impressive role models to look up to, and not only in road cycling.
Denmark has a strong track programme, with 1000 riders registered across the country. Focus is mainly on endurance, in particular the Olympic disciplines of the Madison, Omnium and team pursuit. It would appear to work, as Denmark came away from Tokyo with gold in the Men’s Madison and silver in the men’s team pursuit and women’s Madison. The Ballerup Arena will host the UCI Track World Championships in 2024 – shortly after the Paris 2024 Olympic Games – and Henrik Jess Jensen is already savouring the occasion: “We will use it to encourage our younger riders to either enter or stay in track cycling. It will showcase our superstars and expose the dream of the rainbow jersey.”
It’s #gold for the #DEN team in the #CyclingTrack men’s madison, which returns to the #Olympics after a 13 year hiatus!#StrongerTogether | #Tokyo2020 | @UCI_Track pic.twitter.com/9H1yQpFV4N
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) August 7, 2021
In BMX Racing, Women Under 23 athlete Malene KejlstrupSørensen and Men Under 23 rider Magnus Dyhre are no strangers to podiums at European and UCI World Cup level. Denmark has some 25 BMX tracks – three with the Elite 8-metre start ramp – and a host of talent coming up who benefit from the national programme of “Powerhouses” where riders are followed not just for their competence on the bike but also nutrition, rest, and mental strength.
As for mountain bike: “You will see them on the podium in Paris (2024 Olympics - ed)”, boldly declares Henrik Jess Jensen, proud of the young generation coming up behind Annika Langvad (2016 UCI World Champion in cross-country Olympic and five-time cross-country Marathon UCI World Champion). Malene Degn (25) and Caroline Bohe (22) finished 12th and 13th at the Tokyo Olympics last year and according to the Federation President, the talent pool has never been larger. Two national coaches gather 120 to 130 riders together every year, and Youth Championships are organised for youngsters in the pre-Junior categories.
The cycling way of life
Even for the non-competitors, cycling is a way of life in Denmark. Nine out of ten Danes own a bicycle and the country has around 12,000km of cycle tracks and lanes. In Henrik Jess Jensen’s municipality Aalborg, there are 700km of cycles paths for 2000km of road: “We are a biking nation. It has been part of our culture since the second world war. Kids bike to school and to their leisure activities. Adults bike to work. The infrastructure is built for biking.”
Indeed, both Copenhagen and Fyn have been awarded the UCI Bike City label, recognising regions and cities which not only host major UCI cycling events but also invest in developing community cycling and related infrastructure and programmes.
The Danes’ passion for cycling was demonstrated on 11 June when 16,000 adults and children participated in a mass participation ride – Tour de Storebaelt - to celebrate the upcoming Grand Depart. The hardiest tackled the same route (199km) that the pros will ride on the second stage of the Tour de France, while two other routes of 100km and 25km enabled all participants to cross the spectacular 18km Storebaelt bridge linking Sealand with Funen. Registrations for the ride were sold out in days.
Henrik Jess Jensen says that the excitement is mounting.
“The Danes are very fond of cycling, and everyone will follow the three stages of the Tour de France. I think the Danish will go mad and we have a lot of expectations. Interest in cycling has ever been bigger.
“A lot of people have worked for many years to bring the Grand Depart to Denmark. It’s going to be a huge cycling party.”