The Limited Times

A camera at 10,000 images per second: in the secret workshops of the Tour de France photo-finish

7/24/2022, 1:12:15 PM


We went to the workshops of the Swiss brand Tissot, which officiates as the official timekeeper of the Tour de France, for everything

Corgemont, its Bernese Jura mountains, its green meadows as far as the eye can see, its cows grazing peacefully when the snow has melted.

Welcome to Switzerland in the valley of the watchmakers, a 45-minute drive from Neuchâtel, where the biggest watch brands on the planet are made.

“The reason for this location is historical, confides an executive of the Swatch Group which brings together brands such as Omega, Tissot, Longines, Swatch and even Breguet, which all have their world headquarters in these few square kilometers.

In the 19th century during the winter in the mountains, the shepherds were bored.

So they made clockwork mechanisms that they sold in the valley when they came back down.

You have to imagine these boorish men assembling watches by candlelight…”

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