The long line of yellow, white, polka dot and green jerseys has set off on the roads since July 1.
Like every summer, France is passionate about these
"riders"
of the Tour de France.
But why do we use this name to qualify them?
Yet they roll more than they run... The editorial staff returns to the story of this funny word.
” READ ALSO – Tour de France: little primer to talk about it like a professional
Let's go back in time.
The
“runner”
was not always
“one who runs fast”
, the first definition of the word in the 12th century.
It also means at the same time a
"scout"
, then in the first half of the 13th century, a
"messenger"
, according to the Treasury of the French language.
The runner is thus the one who goes beyond the others to convey information.
Nothing to do for the moment, therefore, with a cyclist, and a fortiori even less with our Tour de France.
A “road runner”
In the 16th century,
"coureur"
was used in the feminine to designate... a
"debauchee"
, a
"woman of promiscuous morals"
, before being used in the masculine.
Even today, the word is still heard in the expression
“womanizer”
to qualify
“a man or a woman who seeks amorous adventures”
.
A
“runner”
then becomes, more broadly,
“one who seeks out and assiduously frequents certain places, certain people.”
We have to wait a few more years for its meaning to come close to what we know of it.
It was in 1585 that the word designates
“one who seeks, frequents something”
.
Here is a first explanation for its use in cycling jargon: the cyclist
“racer”
, or motorist, is so called because of a very specific search: the
“race”
.
He is therefore
“a person who participates or who is used to participating in racing events”
, we read in the dictionary of the French Academy.
Last precision.
The name also designates a person who goes, who comes, who is constantly on the move, on a journey.
This is why we speak of
"great runner"
or
"road runner"
.
And that's what the runners in the yellow jersey are, who criss-cross the roads for almost 3,500 kilometres!
