Above all COVID-19 has wreaked havoc over the entire sports landscape. No matter how big the event there was no hiding from the coronavirus. That included the biggest annual event in all of the cycling betting. The Tour de France is appointment television for millions of fans and gamblers each July. Owing to its tradition and picturesque courses is the Tour the ultimate cycling event. Fortunately, the Tour de France has announced that it is on for 2020. Competition begins August 29 and will run through September 30. In sum, a total of 21 stages comprise the event.
Tour de France History
From 116 years the Tour de France has been held. Only World War I and World War II prevented the event from being held. Since 1947 the Tour de France has been held annually without interruption. The 2020 Tour de France will be the 107th edition of this competition. Namely, Geraint Thomas was the 2019 sportsbook winner. As much as the Tour de France is revered in the cycling community it has had tremendous controversies. At the top of that strife has been the winners themselves.
Doping Winners That Became Losers
Sadly, the dark cloud that continues to hover over the Tour de France is performance-enhancing drugs. PED cheaters have been stripped of their Tour de France titles in disturbing numbers. To illustrate, since 1961 there are a total of 68% of the Tour de France winners that were caught doping.
Of course, the most famous cheater of all was the disgraced Lance Armstrong. In summary, his level of fraud is among the worst in the history of sports. Armstrong “won” the Tour de France every year from 1999 through 2005. As a result, he became a worldwide brand and marketing force. The United States Postal Service became his main sponsor. Armstrong was sold as a man that beat cancer and went on to win seven consecutive Tour de France titles. On the whole, his fall was among the most dramatic of any athlete in history.
Tarnished Legacy has Lingered for Tour
In view of Armstrong’s humiliation, some believed that cycling would be cleaned up going forward. Yet since 2007 two cycling Betting winners of the Tour were stripped of their wins. And two more barely escaped having their titles removed. Most recently Chris Froome won three straight tours from 2015 through 2017. Yet he has had mixed test results for PEDs. Froome did not have any titles removed but carries the stigma of being a cheater. Along the same lines, the entire sport has gone through a phase of guilt by association.
Two Top 2020 Contenders
Nairo Quintana
So far Nairo Quintana has impressive momentum heading into the Tour de France. Quintana is 30 years old and from Colombia and has major stage wins in the Tour de France, Giro d’ Italia, and Vuelta a Espana. So too has he fished second at the Tour de France in 2013 and 2015.
Adam Yates
In a similar way, Adam Yates is on the move especially in terms of climbing performance. The 27-year-old from England has the best finish of fourth at the Tour de France in 2014.
Status of Froome
Four-time winner Froome has been battling injuries form a bad crash last year. He is 34 years old and determined to fight for a title.