Reportage
The postcard of the Tour: from the kitchens of the Élysée to the Tour de France
Dylan Orieult in his kitchen on the Tour de France, July 11, 2022. © Alexis Bédu / RFI
Text by: Alexis Bedu Follow
2 mins
It's the resumption for the runners of the Tour this Tuesday, July 12.
They had a day to recover from their efforts of the first week.
On the menu of the day, the French Alps between the resorts of Morzine and Megève.
Close-up this Tuesday on the young cook of the Cofidis team.
Dylan Orieult was still working, not long ago, in the kitchens of the Élysée.
On this Tour, he puts his talent at the service of the riders.
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From our special correspondent on the Tour route in Morzine,
In his kitchen truck in front of the riders' hotel on this rest day in Châtel, Dylan Orieult is a discreet boy.
He carefully cuts the sweet potatoes for dinner.
“
Tonight, it will be coconut chicken, a tabbouleh as a starter, I made a cherry clafoutis for dessert… and then pasta, lots of pasta!
»
At 27, Dylan Orieult bowed to the Tour de France regime.
“
It's good that the riders have the same cook throughout the Tour.
They have their habits, I know them, and they ask me if they need anything in particular.
»
Before the Tour, he contacted all the hotels where the team will be staying during the three weeks of racing to ensure that they have quality merchandise.
Sometimes it's a little bitchy, he says.
Upon arrival in Châtel, some runners would have preferred a pizza rather than a quinoa salad.
But Dylan Orieult is staying tuned.
He comes out of six years spent as a clerk in the kitchens of the Élysée.
A radical change, he explains: “
At the Élysée, we are more about gourmet cuisine, there, the most important thing is the contributions for the athlete.
He needs a lot of protein and starches to have enough energy for the race.
But I try to make beautiful dishes, dinner remains a very important moment for them
”.
We no longer laugh with meals: the professionalization of cycling has ousted any culinary fantasy.
They are far from the 45 chops that Maurice Garin stuffed himself daily, first winner of the Tour in 1903.
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See also: previous postcards of the Tour de France
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Tour de France 2022
Postcard from the Tour de France