There are men who direct an event. And then there are men who end up embodying it. Christian Prudhomme undoubtedly belongs to the second category. For twenty years he has been the face of the Tour de France, the director who every July opens the race with the traditional waving of the flag, but above all the man who continues to be moved by the magic of the Grande Boucle as if it were the first day. He is the man who, perfectly, has united tradition with modernity, without one taking precedence over the other, continuing to make this race grow, so much so as to make it the third most-watched sporting event in the world, positioning itself behind the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup, but unlike those, it takes place every year rather than every four.

At 65 years old, Prudhomme is about to experience his twentieth Tour de France as general director, a milestone that places him in the history of the race alongside two giants such as Henri Desgrange and Jacques Goddet, who led the Tour for thirty-five and fifty years respectively.

A former radio and television journalist, Prudhomme has never lost the curiosity and sensitivity that accompanied him in his early career years. Those who meet him at the Tour know they will find a person who shakes hands with everyone, who never denies a smile, and who can still be moved when speaking about the most important race in the world.

For him the Tour is not merely a sporting competition. It is a national heritage, a tradition that belongs to the French and that crosses generations. He loves to recall that every French person, at least once in their lifetime, has seen the Tour pass in front of their home, and he considers it an absolute privilege for cities and territories to be able to host a stage start or finish.

Behind every edition there is immense work. Prudhomme is the director of the Grande Boucle: together with technicians he studies the routes, evaluates starts and finishes, seeks the right balance between spectacle, safety and territorial enhancement. Nothing is left to chance, because every stage must tell a part of France and, when the Tour departs from abroad, also of Europe.

Twenty years of Tour are many, but there are memories that have never left him. Among the many moments experienced in cycling, there is one that continues to accompany him after more than thirty years. It was the 1995 Tour and Prudhomme was following the race as a journalist when Fabio Casartelli lost his life during the descent of the Col de Portet d'Aspet.

«It was the first Tour I followed as a journalist and those images will remain imprinted on me forever - he recounted - His body, the blood and the look of doctor Gérard Porte, who had already understood that there was nothing more to be done. My father was a doctor and I saw the same look in his eyes when he intervened in a car accident during my childhood».

These are memories that explain how much the Tour, for Prudhomme, is first and foremost a human affair. In twenty years of directing, there have been no shortage of complex moments. He faced the hardest years of doping scandals, he guided the race during the Covid pandemic, he had to make delicate decisions when his private life was marked by the loss of his sister, who passed away from cancer.

These are experiences that have made his bond with the Tour even deeper and with the people who are part of it. Among these is also Bernard Hinault, with whom over time he has built a special relationship, made of mutual respect and love for a race that continues to represent the sporting identity of France.

Being director of the Tour means living twelve months a year thinking about the race. Prudhomme also loves to tell the most curious aspects of his work, such as the personal discipline he imposes on himself every winter. «From December 15th to January 15th I don't drink a drop of alcohol. Because if I drank at home as I drink at work receptions, I would become a grumpy old man».

His travels around the world often resemble those of a head of state. Wherever the Tour is presented, he is welcomed by local authorities, administrators and institutional representatives who want to experience the charm of the race for at least one day. He still recalls with a smile a regional councilor who, seated in the race director's car, enthusiastically waved to the public along the streets. Then, suddenly, she stopped waving her hand. «I asked her if she was cold - Prudhomme recounts - She answered me: "No... it's just that we've now left my electoral district"».

Perhaps the secret to Christian Prudhomme's longevity at the helm of the yellow race is precisely this: he has never stopped being a passionate fan. Every year he observes the wonder in the eyes of spectators crowded along the streets and recognizes in that gaze the same emotion he feels every time the Tour begins.

«I could never criticize the Tour de France – he confesses - I love it with all my heart.» A simple phrase that encapsulates the meaning of a life dedicated to the most famous race in the world.

For millions of fans the Tour is made of champions, legendary mountains and spectacular sprints. For those who work behind the scenes, however, the face of the Grande Boucle has the smiling features of Christian Prudhomme: a man who, after twenty years at the helm of France's most important sporting event, continues to be moved as on the first day, carefully preserving one of the most beloved traditions of world sport.