The organizers of the Tour de Suisse announced Friday that they will organize, from April 22 to 26, a virtual Tour de Suisse, the “Digital Swiss 5”, bringing together the best teams in the world.
The various teams which must participate in the next edition of the Tour de Suisse, a WorldTour race scheduled for June 7 to 14 for which a decision to postpone or cancel has not yet been made, have been invited to take part in this test, at the rate of three runners per formation. And many seem interested.
The project, in association with the Rouvy and Velon groups, specializing in virtual cycling, which brings together a dozen WorldTour teams, consists of a series of five individual races on training bikes connected to a platform, for a duration of one hour, on routes appearing on the Tour of Switzerland route, which will be broadcast live on the RTS.
Avatars and webcams on runners
“While the cyclist is watching the route and its position in the race on the real-time monitor and in the form of a real video image, the smart roller trainer applies the respective resistance to the pedals – depending on the topography of the route,” explains the organizer.
The data of the runners, represented by 3D avatars wearing their team jersey, will be displayed with regard to speed, power and cadence. Several of them will be equipped with webcams so, explains Velon, that “viewers can see their faces by pushing the watts”.
Küng: “a more exciting experience”
“In fact, I like cycling because it is normally practiced outdoors and in all weathers,” says St. Welshman Stefan Küng in the organizers’ press release, “but given the extraordinary circumstances, where many of my team colleagues can only train at home and where all the races are canceled until further notice, these new digital races will certainly be more exciting. These virtual races are also attractive to our sponsors because they allow them to gain even a little attention from the public and fans. ”
For the Zugois Grégory Rast, now sports director at Trek-Segafredo, it’s a great idea. He says it will allow runners to “stay motivated and have a goal that looks like a real race.” For our team, the Tour de Suisse is an exceptional and important race and I hope that this year’s edition will not be canceled. For me, as a Swiss, this is the most beautiful race in the world. ”
Dpa / Sport-Center
Created: 27.03.2020, 6:23 p.m.
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