tour de gippsland

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Tour of Gippsland (NRS)

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The Mitchelton Tour of Gippsland is an iconic event on the men's and women's National Road Series calendar which showcases Australia’s best up and coming riders on the Australian cycling scene, along with the beautiful Gippsland region, to Australia and the World.

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Tour of Gippsland 2023

• 17 Aug 2023 12:09 pm AEST Date Time

The picturesque backdrop of Gippsland’s Bass Coast will again be on the map when the acclaimed Tour of Gippsland returns to local roads this August.

The Phillip Island town of Rhyll plays host again for the opening criterium and includes stages on the famous Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.

Cyclists from around the country will compete in the three-day event which forms part of AusCycling’s premier National Road Series.

The Tour of Gippsland 2023 is a unique event as not only is it free for spectators, but it’s also held on the Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit.

The Tour will consist of four stages over three days, August 25-27, and host the Men’s and Women’s National Road Series teams as well as once again being one of only three events in the country to host an U19 development category, where we will see the best of cycling’s emerging talent.

AusCycling will be running an Ausbike participation program taster session at the track on Sunday between 11pm and 1pm. This is for 5-12 year olds and is free to attend – kids just need to come down with their bikes to get involved!

Bass Coast Shire Council Mayor, Cr Michael Whelan said “Bass Coast Shire Council are excited to welcome back the Tour of Gippsland to Phillip Island. We proudly look forward to sharing our stunning home and world-class views with riders, from rolling hills to striking cliffs to powerful waves and marine parks”

“Events like the Tour of Gippsland are vital to Bass Coast, driving tourism in our off season. Winter is a perfect time to explore Rhyll, Cowes, Newhaven, San Remo, Wonthaggi and more. Our restaurants and cafes are just as delicious, our reserves and beaches just as impressive, but without the crowds.

I am thrilled to see that equal prize money is given across all stages of the competition to the winners of the events which see cyclists of all ages participating.

“I look forward to seeing guests and locals alike at the Tour of Gippsland, a brilliant challenge for all cycling lovers.”

This is an exciting event for locals and visitors to the region that will encourage further economic growth from tourism.

There will be road closures for this event affecting some areas which are highlighted online here – https://www.basscoast.vic.gov.au/road-closures

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Tour of Gippsland 2023

Extended Highlights: Day 3 - Tour of Gippsland 2023

Extended Highlights: Day 2 - Tour of Gippsland 2023

Extended Highlights: Day 1 - Tour of Gippsland 2023

Connecting Gippsland through positive storytelling.

The inaugural Tour de Gippslandia.

Jul 19, 2017

Contribute to support more positive local storytelling.

A number of Gippslandia’s team enjoy pushing pedals and lusting over opulent bicycles that their partners would never provide approval for purchasing — Bastion Cycles sleek carbon fibre frames and 3D printed aerospace grade titanium alloy lugs, make for no exception.

Whilst longing for world-class cycle gear may be a quiet passion of ours, it’s that bastion was born as a proverbial phoenix rising from the ashes of the altona toyota factory closure that made us look closer. when 1200 workers were made redundant, bastion’s three founders, benjamin schultz, james woolcock and dean mcgeary, shifted the skills they’d acquired in the declining automotive manufacturing industry to high-performance bicycle fabrication. we had to know more, so we invited them to bring their best gear to ride our best hills; and with the tour de france just weeks away, we launched the first tour de gippslandia. —.

But where to send them? — A quick conversation with lycra lover and former-Warragul sprint demon, Joel “Killer” Pearson, shared his wisdom on riding in the region:

“Gippsland is the ‘Mecca’ for cycling really. It has everything from the flat roads out past Longwarry to the steepest mountain climb in Australia. My favourite area for riding was the rolling hills between Warragul, Jindivick and Noojee. The climb from Neerim South to Jindivick was probably my most favoured route, as it stepped up (sometimes quite steeply) with great views back down towards Warragul and Drouin.

If I was up for a rush, you can’t go past riding down Red Hill (trying to nudge 100 km/h) or tackling some dirt roads over the back of Yarragon Hill in the Strzelecki’s. If you’re up for a challenge you have to head to Mt Baw Baw. It’s arguably the hardest alpine climb in Australia and some pros have said that it parallels anything in Europe for difficulty.”

That settled it. Bastion Cycles were heading up Mt Baw Baw in the inaugural Tour de Gippslandia — but not before giving us some intel on their background, technology and startup lessons...

Can you describe the ‘light bulb’ moment, when you thought that you were onto a great idea and a potential business? We were still working at Toyota and I (Ben) “pitched” the idea to James and he accused me of stealing his idea! Turns out he’d already had the same idea and while I’d been working on the business model, he had already started designing a bike. It was the moment when we realised that it could work, both technically and financially, and that we were really onto something!

As you’re likely aware, the Latrobe Valley is in a period of transition, with some traditional industries declining. We understand you were in a similar position with Toyota before you created Bastion. How difficult was it to shift your mindset? Do you have any words of advice? There’s a quote by Michael Jordan, “Don’t be afraid to fail. Be afraid not to try”. This is true if you want to take that step. You need to accept that failure may be the outcome. What helped us was realising that nothing is final. If Bastion fails, we still have the option of doing something else. I think humans tend to naturally be quite fatalistic about change and think that once you change, you can’t go back or change again, but of course, you can. That shift in mindset was key to overcoming our fears and giving it a shot.

Can you please describe the innovations that you’ve brought to bike manufacturing through Bastion? Definitely 3D printing. Within that we’re innovating too; using a variable wall thickness as thin as 0.2mm and a structural internal lattice or honeycomb. This is innovative not just for bike manufacturing, but also for the automotive and aerospace industries. We’ve developed the world’s first free online bike geometry design platform too.

How does the ride on a Bastion bike compare to other road bikes? The key feedback we get from customers is two-fold; how smooth and quiet the ride is, and how confident the handling is when descending. This is partly due to the custom fit and tailored geometry tuning of the bike, but also the torsional stiffness we achieve. The smoothness of the ride ensures the bikes hold their line, even through bumpy corners.

3D printing titanium sounds nuts! Can you please describe the process of additive manufacturing with metal to make your parts? The process starts with a bed of very fine titanium powder, similar to the texture of talcum powder. A high-powered precision laser melts a layer of the shape. The temperatures can be 1300ºC! The machine then moves the powder bed down at the distance of the thickness of a human hair and spreads another extremely thin layer of powder over the top before repeating the process thousands of times until the build is finished. When heated titanium is highly reactive with oxygen, so the process needs to be done in a vacuum that’s then purged with argon gas. Once finished the excess powder is removed and the parts are heat-treated. Despite the image that 3D printing is “plug-n-play”, it’s actually a highly technical process and careful design considerations are needed to avoid distortion and failures, maximise the performance and improve cost effectiveness.

Given the wealth of engineering knowledge Gippsland, how does the region best capitalise on this knowledge? Is employing this talent in projects related to new, innovative manufacturing a good option? As we neared the end of the automotive industry we recognised that the most feasible manufacturing in Australia is low volume, high value, niche products with global appeal and export potential – particularly sports and leisure products where “Made in Australia” carries substantial weight. One of the advantages of a high technology business is that it can be done successfully almost anywhere. Attracting talented staff can be difficult in regional areas, but it’s a big advantage if you have a local pool of technically minded and skilled operators. Our 3D printing supplier is in Tauranga, NZ (regional centre, 200km from Auckland). Traditionally a shipping port; active encouragement and local government support, has changed the area to a new technology park that’s home to some really innovative businesses.

Describe a ‘Bastion rider’? Our customers are passionate cyclists who are ready to invest in something special and unique. We’re finding that we’re many of our customer’s first custom bike purchase. We craft something just for them; they can engage with us and be a part of the design process. Compared to traditional custom bikes ours are more modern, using advanced engineering and lightweight materials to achieving really impressive performance. Approximately 75-80% of our customers are overseas.

What are your goals for Bastion? Where do you hope to see the company in 5-10 years? We’d like to be a world-renowned luxury cycling brand, building over 200 bikes per year, with a small, passionate and highly skilled team of 5-10 people. We want to stay small, agile and innovative. I also hope we will have been instrumental in helping to build an advanced engineering and manufacturing industry locally here in Victoria through our consulting work. We’re very passionate about helping others to transition and innovate as well and have been taking on some interesting side projects, not necessarily bike related.

Have you attempted to tackle the climb to the summit of Mt Baw Baw before? Actually, none of us has ridden it. We’ve heard it’s pretty epic! The weather forecast is for snow at the top, so it will be interesting!

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Tour de Great Southern Rail Trail – Self Guided E-Bike Tour

Duration: 2N/3D

Grade: Easy

From $ 799pp

Ride the historic Great Southern Rail Trail in beautiful South Gippsland.

Enjoy the best parts of this wonderful rail trail on this self guided, fully supported 2 day/2 night getaway, the perfect weekend getaway or mid-week escape. The cycling is easy, especially with your included E-Assist bikes.  With on call support, drop off transfers enable you to cycle the entire rail trail one way, you can enjoy this great ride stress free.

What is the Great Southern Rail Trail? 

The Great Southern Rail Trail is a hidden gem.  Enjoy views of the peaks of Wilsons Promontory and "Quiet Corner".  Spot wildlife throughout your ride including koalas, kangaroos,  wallabies, abundant birdlife and more, as you glide through the dense forest sections. Ride age old (refurbished) trestle bridges and admire the views down below. Laze at the many cafes in the towns along the way, or relive your riding at a classic Aussie Pub or a local restaurant. Visit quirky Fish Creek with its street art, seaside Port Welshpool with the famous long jetty and other smaller towns dotting the trail.

The Great Southern Rail Trail is also being extended, with the new section of the rail trail now starting at Nyora and running to Leongatha, adding another 16kms to this already wonderful ride.  This addition makes for a total of 108kms of fantastic cycling, scenery, charming country towns and great food.

Get away from it all, breath the clean country air and enjoy the outdoors on this fun, easy escape.

The Cycling Start: Meeniyan (self drive with plenty of parking) Total Distance: 108km riding over 2 days cycling including the new rail trail section from Nyora. Track: Compacted gravel surface

Request a detailed itinerary below or book online now.

Check out more of our favourite Victorian cycling tours here .

What We Love About this Cycling Tour on the Great Southern Rail Trail:

Riding the easy, safe Great Southern Rail Trail, hear the sounds of dense forest, ride over trestle bridges and enjoy river and ocean views

Visiting the cute rural towns along the way

Wildlife spotting including koalas and birdlife

The scenic views, clean country air and sense of escape

What's Included in your Great Southern Rail Trail package?

• 2 x nights accommodation in Meeniyan
• 2 x breakfasts (venue does vary depending on dates of travel and may be cafe or continental)
• Quality E-bikes are included in your tour booking. 
• Drop off transfers of you & bikes to Nyora (Day 1) and Port Welshpool (Day 2) with ride back to Meeniyan. 
• Marked maps and ride notes for the 2 day ride.
• Environmentally friendly cycling water bottle
• Lightweight fair-trade cycling t-shirt ideal for cycling
• On call support, purchase pick ups

Pricing and availability is up to date (and bookable online) via the calendar below.  Prices can vary depending on dates and group sizes but start at:

• Double $799 per person
• Single (own room) $1099

Self Guiding Self guided cycling tours do require participants to be adaptable and able to solve issues whilst on tour.  On call support is included in your tour, but it is expected that you will know how to repair punctures and make minor adjustments to gears, handlebars and seats if required, and if bringing your own bike then this is expected. For anything more serious, we will be able to assist with a call to our 1300 665 330 number at any time during your trip.  You should be able to read a map and follows directions, either on a device or a printed map (supplied) and that you have a good sense of direction.   Getting a little bit lost, or having to ask locals for directions is all part of choosing to travel on a self guided basis.  The maps and directions provided to you is updated regularly and tailored to your specific trip (hotels, restaurants are noted, and marked).  If this is something that makes your nervous or uncertain, or if you know for sure that you can’t fix a puncture or aren’t confident reading a map, then we do recommend our extensive range of small group fully guided tours where all the stress of navigation, bike maintenance and logistics are all done for you.  However, if comfortable with this then the freedom of a self guided cycling trip is wonderful, and once confident can be the preferred choice across our range of cycling tours. 

COVID Practices COVID Safe Practices apply to this tour, specifically:

• All guests are provided with face masks to be worn when in common areas and on any bus transfers
• All guests are provided with personal hand sanitiser for usage during the tour
• All equipment is sanitised pre and post every use including bikes and bus surfaces

Hotels We book for you comfortable hotels, mostly 3.5*, with en-suite shower/bath facilities. Where possible, we choose hotels well located to enable you the freedom to explore the local area without a vehicle. Large groups can be catered for but may require additional transport from the trail.

Meals Meals are included where indicated, and we carefully select the restaurants for cuisine and ambience. Most venues cater for specific dietary requirements.

Bikes & Support Bikes are available for hire. Choose from well-maintained hybrids, kids or ebikes, perfect for this style of cycling. Comfortable, easy to use, puncture resistant tyres, rear rack, water bottle holders and light saddle bags and comfortable seats. Or BYO bikes are welcomed.

Why Travel with Tour de Vines? Award Winning Operator Tour de Vines has been operating cycling tours in Australia for over 15 years and has been awarded the Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 & 2023 and awarded Hall of Fame status for outstanding customer service. Tour de Vines is also an ongoing contributor to World Bicycle Relief. We are an ethical, caring small business.

Trip Advisor

Tour de Vines is a member of the Australian Tourism Export Council

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High Country Accredited

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Council of Tourism Operators

VTIC Awards

"A scenic, well groomed and well signposted trail which isn't particularly difficult. It's approx 80 ks from Leongatha to Port Welshpool. The trail passes through a number of small towns and has regular toilet and drinking stations. We did it over two days and stayed at the midpoint (Fish Creek)".

Peter, Jan 2019

Itinerary at a Glance

Make your way to Meeniyan, located in Gippsland's famous dairy country and in the foothills of the Strzelecki Range.  Check in to your booked accommodation and explore this gorgeous small town.  No cycling.  Overnight. 

Enjoy breakfast included in your tour.  A transfer service is provided to Port Welshpool.  Your ride is approx 57kms back to Meeniyan for your 2nd night.  

After breakfast, another morning transfer to Nyora for you to ride back to Meeniyan (52kms). 

Celebrate having ridden the length of this fantastic Rail Trail.  

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Tour of Gippsland

Amateur, 13th -15th February 2022, Australia

GC GC Stage: 01 Stage: 02 Stage: 03

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13th -15th February 2022

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Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour review – one of them has a formidable mind, but which?

The odd couple journey through Venice, Florence and Rome in the hope of enlightenment – and mending their broken hearts in the Italian sun. Expect to have your preconceptions challenged …

I n a country where so much of society is still bisected along class lines, many have a very particular image of a clever person – and it’s roughly Stephen Fry. A grand-seeming Oxbridge-educated man with a posh accent and an interest in art and opera, who can recite passages of classic literature. Rob Rinder , the criminal barrister, broadcaster and host of Judge Rinder, fits well into this mould and loves all things “high culture” and intellectual pursuits. He is, as his co-host Rylan Clark says, “one of the cleverest blokes I know”. Meanwhile, Rinder says Clark “doesn’t know his arts from his elbow”. However, over the course of the three episodes of Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour, Clark emerges as the brilliant mind, with levels of intelligence, wit and profundity that may have been overlooked because there remains a perception of what a clever person is like.

The pair position themselves as an odd couple from different sides of the tracks, being good mates, both going through “painful divorces” who, despite their divergent interests, have decided to embark on a journey that represents a fresh start. The series follows them through the “hedonism” of Venice, the Renaissance feast that is Florence and the baroque glory of Rome, replicating a journey made by Lord Byron, 200 years after his death at just 36. But as the series reminds us, this was not just a journey that Byron made: many of the “poshos” of the era would journey to Italy as a rite of passage, a form of cultural education to establish themselves as erudite individuals who understood art, history and the ways of the world.

We first see Rinder in Venice aboard a gondola, wanting to take in the historical traditions of the city. Clark is in a glitzy speedboat and is a little intimidated by all the art and opera ahead. But while Rinder is moved and fascinated by the galleries, concerts and archaeology of this and the other two cities, his response comes across as a little more shallow than Clark’s reflections. When discussing Caravaggio, castratos or the Colosseum, Rinder always seems to give the prototypical clever-person answer, while Clark connects to his surroundings on a molecular level, seeing in ancient ruins existential questions that connect to his own mortality and desire to achieve greatness.

Clark also brings a gorgeous vulnerability to the screen. Not only is he dealing with heartbreak, but also with the lingering insecurity of having been an object of ridicule in his early career. It’s a truly remarkable journey that he has been on, having first come to public attention as the runner-up on Signed By Katie Price before being labelled a “joke act” on The X Factor and finally hitting his stride as a presenter on This Morning, Big Brother’s Bit on the Side and Ready Steady Cook. But even if he is best known for being a larger-than-life camp icon who pokes fun at himself, it has become clear over the years – and is further illuminated by this programme – that Clark is an extremely smart and talented man who should not be underestimated.

The relationship between Rinder and Clark proves surprisingly sweet and tender, too. Although they often fall back into the clever one/silly one shtick, they seem to hold each other in equally high regard. Clark has little ego around the gaps in his knowledge and soaks up what Rinder tells him about the historical significance of the places that they visit. Rinder also gazes at him adoringly when Clark interprets what the Botticellis hanging in the Uffizi or the Venetian mask worn during the carnival symbolise to him.

While Rinder and Clark seem quite transformed by their journey and time together, ending the trip with their hearts a little less broken and open to the possibility of finding love again (albeit with an iron-clad prenup), what’s most interesting about the programme is how it challenges our perception of Clark. For centuries, the Grand Tour was undertaken by those who more closely resembled Rinder, people with the right sort of class and education, unlike Clark, who was a “ginger kid from a council flat in Stepney Green”. But it is lovely to behold where that kid has ended up, see his formidable mind absorb the glories of the journey Byron once embarked on and watch his confidence bloom in the Italian sunshine.

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Mathieu van der Poel won't ride Olympic MTB event, puts full focus on road race and Tour de France

Mathieu van der Poel’s summer race schedule has been announced by Alpecin-Deceuninck, with a stage win and supporting sprinter Jasper Philipsen at the Tour de France and Paris Olympics road race set as his two key targets. 

The road World Champion won’t participate in the Olympic cross-country mountain bike event as he had originally planned, with it placing too much time pressure on his other goals.

“After careful consideration, the decision has been made. No mountain biking, but full focus on the combination Tour de France - Olympic road race,” read an Instagram post from Alpecin-Deceuninck.

The Olympic MTB men’s event takes place on Monday, July 29, just eight days after the final stage of the Tour de France in Nice and only five days before the road race in Paris.

“This is the most logical choice to be able to prepare for my goals without time pressure,” Van der Poel said. “The combination with MTB was too difficult. But who knows, maybe in LA ‘28 I can focus on mountain biking.”

At the Tour de France, Van der Poel will once again be on sprint lead-out duty for Jasper Philipsen , the most successful sprinter from the 2023 Tour with four wins, with the World Champion being key to two of those wins.

“My ambition for the Tour de France? I hope, like last year, to assist teammate Jasper Philipsen in his hunt for stage wins and a possible green jersey,” said Van der Poel.

The Dutchman also used the Tour as preparation for the 2023 World Championships in Glasgow where he took a memorable win in Scotland despite crashing on wet roads. The similar time gap between the Tour and Olympic road race in 2024 will give Van der Poel great confidence.

But it won’t just be about preparation for Paris while he’s in France as Van der Poel, a former Tour de France stage winner and yellow jersey wearer, is eager to get back in the wins.

“The goal is to also win a stage myself this year,” said Van der Poel, whose one Tour win came in emotional fashion on stage 2 of the 2021 edition when he powered twice up the Mûr-de-Bretagne and took the maillot jaune.

Van der Poel has kicked on from his best road season in 2023 and looked more dominant than ever this year, with long solo wins at the E3 Saxo Classic, Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. 

Philipsen was second to Van der Poel at Roubaix for the second successive season and also contributed to Alpecin-Deceuninck’s near-perfect Monument record in 2024 with the win at Milan-San Remo.

He was heavily aided by Van der Poel on that day to chase down Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) and all of the late attackers on the Via Roma. They’ll be hoping for more success when the Tour kicks off on June 29 in Florence.

The Belgian fast man was also announced for the Baloise Belgium Tour between June 12-16 and the Belgian national championships on June 23. 

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Taylor Swift's European Eras Tour leg kicked off in Paris with a new setlist. See which songs are in and out.

May 9, 2024 / 8:24 PM EDT / CBS/AFP

Taylor Swift fever struck Paris on Thursday as the highest-grossing tour in history finally arrived in Europe, with fans treated to the first-ever performance of songs from her latest album.

The Eras Tour began its European leg with four dates at the La Defense Arena in Paris.

"I wish I could have toured Europe more. This is a dream crowd," the 34-year-old megastar told the ecstatic audience.

There were deafening shrieks as images of typewriter sheets indicated that songs off the new album "The Tortured Poets Department" were starting late in the show.

Emerging in a lyrics-covered dress, she ran through several of the darker new tracks starting with "But Daddy I Love Him" and "Fortnight", a particularly furious rendition of "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" and an elaborate "I Can Do it with a Broken Heart," with a golden-era Hollywood dance routine.

Other "The Tortured Poets Department" songs performed included "So High School," "Down Bad" and "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived," according to ETonline .

"You were the first crowd to see songs from 'The Tortured Poets Department'," she said, before adding: "Or, as I like to call it, 'Female Rage: the Musical.'"

That was a dream come true for many in the audience.

"I've been so excited for so long, I can't believe it's actually happening," said 11-year-old Emma, who had flown in with her mother from New York.

Adding songs from "The Tortured Poets Department" wasn't the only change to the show and its 45-song setlist.

Perhaps the biggest change, according to ETonline, is the "Folklore" and "Evermore" setlists were combined, cutting four songs across the two albums: "'Tis the Damn Season," "Tolerate It," "The 1" and "The Last Great American Dynasty."

"On the Eras Tour, we have now reunited the sisters, combined them into one chapter," Swift said, according to video posted to social media. "You can call it "Folklore, Evermore" or you can call it the Sister Albums! You can call it whatever you want as long as you promise to sing 'Champagne Problems' with me."  

"The Archer" was removed from the "Lovers" portion of the show and "Long Live" was cut from the "Speak Now" era setlist, according to ETonline.

One of the secret songs was, fittingly, the "Midnights" bonus track "Paris."  

Parts of the show were also rearranged to make room for the newest era. The "Red" era was moved from the fifth to the third slot, according to ETonline, and the newest album was introduced following the "1989" set.

The venue said a fifth of the crowd were from the United States — many attracted by Europe's rules against charging huge mark-ups on resale tickets that can save Americans thousands of dollars compared with shows at home.

Georg'Ann Daly decided to celebrate her 23rd birthday with the Paris show. It meant flying from Nashville to Chicago to London and catching the Eurostar to Paris.

"I've always been obsessed with Taylor Swift," she told AFP.

A handful of superfans camped out from Tuesday in Paris to ensure they got a prime spot.

"I didn't plan to, but I came to check it out and I saw the first tents and I panicked a little," said Chris, 30.

Noah, 20, is seeing all four Paris concerts — he used 22 email addresses to get through the lottery system and secure the tickets.

After wrapping up her run in Paris, Swift will head for dates in Sweden, Portugal, Spain, Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Poland and Austria.

The Eras Tour has worked its way across North and South America and Asia since starting in March 2023.

By the end of the year, it had already become the first to sell more than $1 billion in tickets and is on track to more than double that by the time it concludes in Vancouver this December.

Swift's popularity shows no sign of dimming — the new album sold 1.4 million copies on its first day and broke every streaming record , reaching a billion streams on Spotify within five days.

Swift's tell-all dissections of her love stories have been the fuel powering her global domination, and fans have been poring over "The Tortured Poets Department" for cryptic clues about ex-boyfriend Joe Alwyn, her short-but-dramatic fling with Matty Healy (lead singer of The 1975), and her current partner, American football star Travis Kelce.

"Taylor talks about toxic relationships, impossible love, politics, mental health, and so much more," said Chris as she waited by her tent for the big moment. "I think we can all find a song that resonates with our experiences." 

• Taylor Swift
• European Union

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‘Tour de France: Unchained’ Season 2 Confirms June 2024 Netflix Return

07/07/2023 – Tour de France 2023 – Mont-de-Marsan / Bordeaux (169,9 km) – PHILIPSEN Jasper (ALPECIN-DECEUNINCK) – Vainqueur de l’étape 7

Netflix’s sports documentary series on the world-famous Tour de France is back for a second season, with eight new episodes set to land on Netflix globally on June 11th, 2024. The series will go behind the scenes of the 110th edition of the cycling race, which Jonas Vingegaard ultimately won for the third year in a row. 

Before the release of season 1 on June 8th, 2023, it was announced that Tour de France: Unchained had already received a second season order . Cycling Weekly was the first to report that the documentary series would cover the 2023 race, which occurred between July 1st and 23rd, 2023.

Per Netflix, the new season will consist of another eight episodes, with the streamer providing the following tidbits about the new season:

“This new season goes behind the scenes of the 21 stages of Tour de France 2023: amid the scandals, low blows and thirst for glory; amid the dramatic falls and historic breakaways; amid the withdrawals and desire to win: the series dives back into the fierce battle of the riders for the yellow jersey!”

The new season will continue in its first season footsteps, with interviews with everyone in various teams, picking the riders’ brains and the people behind the teams.

Unlike most of the other sports documentaries that have flooded onto Netflix recently, Tour de France: Unchained is in a co-distribution deal with France Télévisions, which will carry it in France.

Box to Box Films is the production company behind Netflix’s co-distribution release. It has pioneered the sports docuseries over the past few years, starting out with Formula 1: Drive to Survive , which is currently in production with its seventh season . They’re also behind Six Nations: Full Contact , which has been given a second season order, plus Break Point , which has concluded after 1 season, and Full Swing , currently awaiting a season 3 renewal.

For more on Netflix’s upcoming sports documentary lineup , keep it locked here on What’s on Netflix.

Now, we’ll leave you with some newly released pictures of the second season of Tour de France: Unchained .

Tour de France 2023 – Etape 8 – Libourne / Limoges (200,7 km) – VINGEGAARD Jonas (JUMBO-VISMA)

Image by Alex Broadway for Netflix

Tour de France 2023 – Etape 16 – Passy / Combloux (22,4 km CLM) – POGACAR Tadej (UAE TEAM EMIRATES)

Tour de France 2023 – Etape 20 – Belfort / Le Markstein Fellering (133,5 km) – POGACAR Tadej (UAE TEAM EMIRATES) – Vainqueur de l’étape

Picture via Netflix

19/07/2023 – Tour de France 2023 – Etape 17 – Saint-Gervais Mont-Blanc / Courchevel (165,7 km) – GALL Felix, O’CONNOR Ben (AG2R CITROEN TEAM)

Will you be checking out Tour de France: Unchained season 2? Let us know in the comments, and keep checking back for more on what’s coming to Netflix in June 2024 .

Founder of What's on Netflix, Kasey has been tracking the comings and goings of the Netflix library for over a decade. Covering everything from new movies, series and games from around the world, Kasey is in charge of covering breaking news, covering all the new additions now available on Netflix and what's coming next.

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What to Know About Xi Jinping’s Trip to Europe

The Chinese president this week will be visiting France, Serbia and Hungary. His trip comes at a time of tensions with many European countries over trade and accusations of Chinese espionage.

By Emma Bubola

This week, for the first time in five years, President Xi Jinping of China is visiting Europe, with stops in France, Serbia and Hungary.

Mr. Xi’s trip comes at a time of tensions with many European countries over China’s support for Russia in the face of its war in Ukraine, its trade practices and its apparent espionage activities . The trip will also test Europe’s delicate balancing act between China and the United States.

Mr. Xi hopes to head off a trade war with the European Union as frictions rise over exports of Chinese electric vehicles and diminished market access for European companies in China. Mr. Xi will also encourage President Emmanuel Macron of France to pursue greater autonomy from the United States in a bid to weaken Washington’s global dominance.

Here is what we know about Mr. Xi’s trip, which began Sunday.

What is the significance of Mr. Xi’s itinerary?

The three countries Mr. Xi will be visiting, experts say , to varying degrees embrace China’s push for a redefined global order. All have to some extent questioned America’s postwar ordering of the world, and are eager to bolster ties with Beijing.

Hungary has close ties to China and is keen to attract Chinese investments in areas like electric car and battery manufacturing as Chinese producers expand beyond Asia. Serbia, too, has warm relations with Beijing and has secured billions of dollars in Chinese investment.

Mr. Xi’s first stop is France, where Mr. Macron recently said that Europe “must never be a vassal of the United States,” and has cast France as a bridge between the “Global South” and Western powers.

Despite his courting of Beijing, Mr. Macron has said he is still closer to its ally, the United States, than to China.

“I prefer to choose my relationship with the United States, with China, rather than have it imposed on me by one of the two parties, either pushing me in one direction or pulling me in the other,” he said in an interview with The Economist magazine. But, he added: “Very clearly, we are not equidistant. We are allies of the Americans.”

Before Mr. Xi’s visit, Chinese diplomats expressed hopes that ties between France and China would be at the forefront of China’s relations with the West .

Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, the E.U.’s executive branch, joined talks on Monday with Mr. Xi and Mr. Macron in Paris.

This year is also a symbolic one for China and the three countries.

It is the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and France and the 75th of those with Hungary.

This year is also the 25th anniversary of the NATO bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, Serbia, during the Kosovo war, which killed three Chinese journalists and set off angry protests at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. Chinese authorities have continued to point to the bombing as a sign of NATO aggression and an example of why Russia was justified in feeling threatened before it decided to invade Ukraine.

When was the last time Mr. Xi visited Europe?

Mr. Xi’s last European visit was in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic, which he spent hunkered down in China, leaving the country’s borders for the first time in the fall of 2022 .

The 2019 trip included a flashy ceremony in Rome to celebrate Italy’s participation in China’s Belt and Road global infrastructure project, which is aimed at expanding China’s influence abroad. France rolled out the red carpet for Mr. Xi in Paris and signed more than a dozen commercial and governmental treaties worth billions of euros, even as Mr. Macron warned that “China plays on our divisions” and that “the period of European naïveté is over.”

Mr. Xi also visited Greece , where he pledged his support to the country in its struggle with Britain to obtain the Parthenon sculptures known as the Elgin Marbles .

How is the relationship between Europe and China?

Since Mr. Xi’s last visit, there has been a widening rift in the relationship between China and much of Europe. The coronavirus pandemic , Beijing’s embrace of Russia and its repression of ethnic minorities, and a surge in Chinese exports have generated backlashes against China in many European countries.

China has quintupled car shipments to foreign markets in recent years, and the European Union has recently adopted a more confrontational tone over China’s trade practices. E.U. authorities have opened an investigation that could result in limits on Chinese solar exports, and have taken preliminary steps toward restricting trade with Chinese goods that include electric cars, wind turbines and medical devices.

Italy has also told China that it would no longer participate in its Belt and Road Initiative, and last month, six people in Europe were charged with spying for China in the span of a week, in a sign that European countries are stepping up their response to Chinese espionage.

At the same time, European nations vary in their views on how to engage with Beijing and benefit from economic opportunities there, and some are fearful of any imposition of European tariffs.

Mr. Macron and Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany also think that China’s leverage will be critical in bringing an end to the war in Ukraine.

David Pierson contributed reporting from Hong Kong, and Aurelien Breeden from Paris.

Emma Bubola is a Times reporter based in London, covering news across Europe and around the world. More about Emma Bubola