Le Tour Utrecht kicks off with ‘Bon Voyage!’
During the presentation of the stages of the Tour de France 2015 in Paris earlier today, Jan van Zanen, Mayor of Utrecht which hosts the Grand Départ, launched the official Grand Départ title song and animation ‘Bon Voyage!’ made especially for the occasion. During his presentation the Mayor emphasized the uniqueness of Utrecht and the great passion the city has for cycling.
Bon Voyage!
The official song of the Grand Départ is called ‘Bon Voyage!’ and was produced by the Dutch singer-songwriter Blaudzun. Creating the song combined his love for music, cycling, and the city of Utrecht in a unique way. The accompanying short animation movie was produced by Job, Joris & Marieke, a Utrecht-based design studio for animation, illustrations and character design.
Story of love
Le Tour Utrecht chose an animation movie to present Utrecht on an international stage during the presentation of the Tour stages. This medium fits the city perfectly: young, creative and talented. The animation movie tells the story of Tim, a young man who has planned to watch the start of the Tour de France in Utrecht with his girlfriend. Unfortunately, he can’t reach her, because he’s on the wrong side of the barriers. He tries all kinds of ways to get to her, which results in some comic situations. Finally, he manages to show his love in an inventive way. All highlights of Utrecht appear in the movie.
Utrecht bicycle city
In his speech Mayor Van Zanen focused on Utrecht as host of the Grand Départ. Utrecht, a special city with a lot of history, is also a city of knowledge and culture. Utrecht is personal, creative and innovative. And it’s a bicycle city. Mayor Van Zanen: “Utrecht has a passion for cycling, which was the basis for its candidacy for the start of the Tour. We are extremely proud to be the host of the Grand Départ 2015. March 26th 2015 marks 100 days until the Tour will kick off. From that day onwards there will be all kinds of festivities, activities and sports events in the city, which will all be Tour de France themed.”
About Le Tour Utrecht
The start of the Tour de France, the Grand Départ, is an elite sports spectacle that will bring the best cyclists of the world to Utrecht. From July 1st to 5th, Utrecht will turn yellow with the presentation of the teams, an individual time-trial of 13.7 kilometers through the city and a second stage that will pass underneath the Dom Tower. During this spectacle Utrecht expects to welcome 600,000 to 800,000 visitors. With a worldwide audience of 3.5 billion television spectators, Utrecht will be in the spotlights. It will be the sixth time that the Tour de France starts in the Netherlands.