Tour de France: a spare wheel for small towns
Audio 01:21
The “Le Crystal” café in Lavaur, crowded for the finish of the 7th stage of the Tour de France.
Thomas de Saint-Léger / RFI
Text by: Thomas-Sean de Saint Leger Follow
5 mins
The famous city festivals and the headquarters of the Pierre-Fabre group are usually the pride of Lavaur, a town of 10,000 inhabitants, located 40km east of Toulouse, in the Tarn department.
This year, the town also welcomed the arrival of the 7th stage of the Tour de France, won in a beautiful atmosphere by the Belgian Wout Van Aert.
Here, as in other medium-sized cities, the passage of the race remains an important opportunity, even in times of Covid.
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“
Here, we like yellow
”.
The banner installed above Le Crystal bar displays the color: in Lavaur, partying is an art and the Tour is a celebration.
An opportunity, above all, to extend the celebrations at the end of August, very famous in the region, and which formerly, say the elders, welcomed Claude François and Sylvie Vartan.
Under a blazing sun, the Crystal terrace, located in front of the finish line of the stage, is crowded: “
It's a very, very big festive day: in the space of 2-3 hours the city is back,
”explains Patrick, a waiter, his voice covered by the brass bands of the bandas, these orchestras typical of the south of France.
For her sister Nathalie, owner of the establishment, it is in terms of recipes the best day of the year, "
but at the same time it was not complicated
", she specifies.
And to add: "
I had to close two and a half months because of the virus, so it's a real breath of fresh air, a real boost for finances
".
According to their calculations, the arrival of the Tour de France should bring in as much as the three days of the city's festivals.
A contrasting atmosphere
On the other side of the finish line, Gina and her volunteer friends run an ephemeral store of products linked to the arrival of the Tour de France: yellow t-shirts, gadgets and other raffle tickets should help replenish the cash registers. of the association "Lavaur - Tour de France".
The crowd is meager, "
but at least it's maintained
" consoles Gina, stressed this summer at the idea of seeing the race canceled.
“
To energize a city like ours, it is important to host this type of event.
We would like to have more people, but with the Covid, it's complicated…
”.
Also complicated for the thirty or so local producers present in the gourmet market located in the shopping street: "
I have fewer people than a classic day
", laments the garlic seller, in front of his empty stand.
“
We are lively between us,
” prefers to laugh at the brewer, who expects more activity after the finish of the race.
In the meantime, in the background, on the other side of the street, the Crystal bandas roar over the Pena Baiona, symbol of a Tower of contrast, shared between joy and sadness, hope and worry.
An ephemeral boutique in the colors of the Tour de France, in Lavaur, arrival city of the 7th stage of the 2020 edition. Thomas de Saint-Léger / RFI
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