Tour de France Unveils 30th L’Étape: Dubai, UAE
Tour de France Unveils the 30th L’Étape du Tour Destination: Dubai, UAE
The L’Étape du Tour is a beloved official Tour de France sportive with locations across the Americas, Europe and Southeast Asia – with the newest addition of the United Arab Emirates. We’ve invited Jozef Pukalovic of the main three-member organisational, promotional, and planning team to shed some light on what we can expect from the glamorous Dubai premiere and how it was conceived in the first place.
In the summer of 2024, L’Étape Dubai 2025, presented by Škoda officially opened its registration, becoming the 30th event to join the ranks of L’Étape du Tour since its inception in 1993. As Mr Pukalovic shared, the exciting idea was conceived in July 2023 during a Tour de France organisers’ seminar in Paris and officialised in December of the same year when the team first visited Dubai.
The accompanying programme of L’Étape Dubai 2025, presented by Škoda starts on January 28 with the Welcome Dubai social ride, which will be held daily until January 31, to set the stage and atmosphere for the two main sportives. The RIDE (50 km) and The RACE (101 km) will occur on February 2, 2025. On February 1, a group event called the Family Ride (20 km) and the Kids’ Race (1.6 km), a super short track for fledgling bikers, will precede them.
The RACE will meander around Dubai’s iconic landmarks, including Burj Khalifa, the stunning Design District, Expo Village Park, with other prime views of the city and the otherworldly surrounding desert landscapes. As the route profile is classified as flat, it’s expected to draw sprinters and time triallists from across the world, as well as those who want to pair a course without killer climbs with a bit of a seaside vacation. “Dubai’s downtown skyline is magic,” gushes Jozef, “cycling on a closed 4-6 highway will also be really special.”
As Dubai is a bustling and vibrant city with attractive events happening all year round, the main challenge, according to Jozef, was to pique the interest of the local market, closely followed by the organisation and planning of the extensive road closures. “Day by day, we try to discover the local customs. We’ve found a booming cycling universe with a lot of people, bike shops, bike rentals and also the incredible Al Qudra cycling path, which is about 150 km long,” he remarks.
As is the custom, a full spectrum of winner’s jerseys is available: the coveted yellow, the sprinter’s green, the climber’s polka dot, and white for young talent under 25. From the influx of interested contenders, Mr Pukalovic sees two main groups: international riders seeking out and understanding the L’Étape spirit, and local cyclists who want to enjoy and feel the atmosphere of the legendary Tour de France. “I am truly impressed with the high quality of local riders. Despite them being non-professionals, they’re well-trained and have a great cycling culture and a sense of fair play,” concludes Jozef.
Also, to give credit where credit’s due, the main driving forces behind the event are agencies BE COOL and Peloton Events, with the strong support of the Dubai Sports Council, Dubai Police, and RTA. The event’s organisational core consists of Jozef Pukalovic (Event Director), Fairouz Al Qazi (Race Director), Peter Pukalovic (Sponsorship) and Petra Pukalovicova and Jaroslav Slavik (Marketing and PR Leaders).
Will you be watching or even signing up for the L’Étape Dubai, presented by Škoda? Let us know!
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