It’s the most wonderful time of the year. The 2011 Tour de France begins later today at the Passage du Gois and I’m looking forward to watching another fascinating battle for yellow. Running from Saturday the 2rd to Sunday the 24th of July, the 98th Tour de France will be made up of 21 stages and will cover a total distance of 3,430.5 kilometres. Even finishing the three week event requires a big effort from each of the 198 athletes who will be at the starting line later today.
Controversial three time winner Alberto Contador is looking to take his fourth Tour de France. The Shleck brothers will be there to shake things up with Andy a big hope for the podium. Ivan Basso returns and will be giving it all he’s got. Even Bradley Wiggins has been named as a possible winner and Alexander Vinokourov is sure to throw everything at the race. Personally, I’d love to see Australia’s Cadel Evans finally step onto the podium in Paris wearing yellow. He’s in great form and has a supportive team. I’m really hoping it’s Cadel’s turn.
What do the coloured jerseys mean?
If you have only started following the Tour de France recently and you’ve heard the commentators talking about different coloured jerseys, you might be wondering what all the different colours represent and why it’s so important to be wearing a jersey other than your team jersey.
Each team wears their own uniform but there are a number of special shirts or jerseys awarded each day. While it’s considered very prestigious to wear any of these jerseys throughout the race, it’s obviously even more so to be wearing one of these jerseys after the final sprint down the Champs-Élysées in Paris on the last day of the tour.
Many people know that the Yellow Jersey or Maillot Jaune is the most coveted of all the jerseys but here’s a quick rundown of what it’s all about.
Yellow Jersey
The Yellow Jersey is worn by the leader in the general classification. That means that whoever has the lowest overall time at the end of each stage of the event will be awarded with the Yellow Jersey. It was first awarded in 1919 and its colour was chosen to match the yellow paper of l’Auto magazine, founder of the Tour de France in 1903.
Green Jersey
The Green Jersey is given to the leader in the points classification, rewarding the best sprinter. It’s sometimes called the points jersey or sprinters’ jersey. During each stage, points are allocated for several intermediary sprints and for the finish. The jersey was introduced in 1953.
Polka Dot Jersey
The Polka Dot or King of the Mountains Jersey is awarded to the rider who earns most of the points at each summit. The winner is known as the King of the Mountains. Although the award was introduced in 1933, the red and white spotted jersey was not introduced until 1975.
White Jersey
The White Jersey is given to the best rider in the general classification under 25. The jersey was abandoned in 1989 but reintroduced in 1999.
So now you know a little more than you did a short while ago. I hope this brief explanation helps in your enjoyment of this year’s tour.
Even as a young child it was obvious that he had a special connection with music. At the age of 7 he was learning the piano, at age 12 it was the guitar, and by the age of 15 he was playing drums. Combine that with a big voice and you’ve got a winning formula.
Adam Young of 
