How many of these French cycling terms do you know?
Racing includes all sorts of colourful terms to describe the people, places, and events in the sport
If you watch professional cycling on television, you have undoubtedly seen lots of French terms on the feed, even if the commentators are speaking English. In fact, you’ll also notice that the commentators themselves will use French terms for pro cycling. The language acts as a lingua franca for both riders and staff. Given the long history of cycling in the country – the first Tour de France was in 1903—it’s no surprise that these terms are the standard for the sport.
Some of these terms are pretty common—everyone knows what a peloton or maillot is, but how many of the rest are you familiar with?
People in pro cycling
arriere de la course – back of the race
autobus – a group of cyclists who ride to try and finish in the time limit, (“grupetto” in Italian.)
directeur sportif – sports director, or manager
domestique – a support rider. The rider who carries bottles, paces a leader back on or sets the pace at the front
échappé – a breakaway
guerrier – a warrior
grimpeur – a climber
la tête de course – leader, or literally, front of the race
le metier – the occupation, trade, or profession of being a professional cyclist
peloton – main bunch of riders. Translates to platoon or squad.
poursuivant – a chaser
poisson pilote – the “pilot fish,” the last leadout man who guides the team sprinter to the line
puncheur – a rider with explosive acceleration that can attack hard up short climbs
rouleur – a steady rider
soigneur – rider’s helper, from the French verb soigner, to take care of
During a race
à bloc – riding as hard and fast as you can
jour sans – a day without. When a rider has a bad day during a race
sans chaine – “without chain:” an amazing ride. It’s when your legs feel so great, it’s as if there’s no chain.
souplesse – using a supple pedal stroke, riding smoothly
Items and equipment
bidon – water bottle
crevaison – flat
dossard – race number
gilet – vest
maillot – jersey (notably, the maillot jaune)
musette – feed bag. The name comes from the French for a small bagpipe. The bags are tucked to the side and resemble one.
pneu – tire
Things, places and occurrences
chute – crash
col – mountain pass
contre la montre – literally, against the clock, a time trial
côte – hill
course – race
course par étapes – stage race
descente – descent
départ fictif – the “fictional start”. Riders will assemble in the village départ, the start village, and start the race, but it is neutralized
départ réel – when the flag drops from the lead car, the race is on.
étape – stage
hors catégorie – a mountain pass that is “beyond classification”
la flamme rouge – red marker at 1 kilometre from finish
montée – slope
parcours – route, course
relai – a pull in a breakaway or pack, “prendre un relai”, take a pull
zone de ravitaillement – feed zone
Prizes and results
classement – standings
la bonification – bonus points
lanterne rouge – last rider
le maillot à pois – polka dot jersey (best climber)
le maillot blanc – white jersey (best young rider)
le maillot jaune – you probably already know this
le maillot vert – green jersey (best sprinter)
prime – pronounced “preme,” it refers to a prize midway in the race. The term comes from the French for a work bonus.
palmarés – a list of results and accomplishments for a cyclist
