Tour de France 2018 **SPOILERS**

[smutchin]

I am very disappointing that they played the English national anthem, it should have been the Welsh one, Geraint is Welsh first.

I agree with this. The tune of the British national anthem is an awful dirge and the words are even worse. I hate it.

Peter Tatchell got it right:

There are no noble ideals like liberty and equality. Our anthem is all about slavish deference and idolatry – the veneration of aristocratic privilege, inherited status and monarchical rule. It promotes jingoism, war, imperial conquest and the British people's subservience to God and royalty.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/aug/27/britishidentity

Like him, I feel embarrassed every time I hear it, especially on occasions like this when the person it is being played for is Welsh or Scottish.

By contrast, Land of My Fathers is both a cracking tune and expresses the right kind of sentiment for a national anthem - it’s about the country and the people, not some superannuated figurehead. La Marseillaise is even better, but I suspect it will be many more years before we hear that played for the Tour de France winner.

 

[roadrash]

As far as the national anthem goes ,I cant fekin stand it, I have never understood how ours is not a national anthem, it is not about the nation , it is about one person , did I mention that I fekin hate it

 

[LarryDuff]

SPOTY? Too soon?

No, too Welsh!

 

[Bollo]

Harry Kane, Anthony Joshua, Lewis Hamilton are all going to be in with a shout.

Sorry @Beebo, I wasn’t being entirely serious.

 

[rich p]

I agree with this. The tune of the British national anthem is an awful dirge and the words are even worse. I hate it.

Peter Tatchell got it right:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/aug/27/britishidentity

Like him, I feel embarrassed every time I hear it, especially on occasions like this when the person it is being played for is Welsh or Scottish.

By contrast, Land of My Fathers is both a cracking tune and expresses the right kind of sentiment for a national anthem - it’s about the country and the people, not some superannuated figurehead. La Marseillaise is even better, but I suspect it will be many more years before we hear that played for the Tour de France winner.

I tend to regard it like turning up to a church wedding. I do it because it doesn't actually matter in the great scheme of things, despite being a republican atheist.
Hypocritical bastard that I am!!!

 

[roadrash]

At least they didn't have that awful screeching banshee singing the national anthem that they had when wiggins won

 

[smutchin]

I tend to regard it like turning up to a church wedding. I do it because it doesn't actually matter in the great scheme of things, despite being a republican atheist.
Hypocritical bastard that I am!!!

This is also true. It's not hypocrisy, it's understanding that there's a time and a place to make your republicanism known.

Tbh, I don't know why they need to play anyone's national anthem at the end of the Tour de France anyway. It's not a national victory, it's a victory for a commercially sponsored trade team comprised of several nationalities who all contributed to the win.

 

[Buck]

I am very disappointing that they played the English national anthem, it should have been the Welsh one, Geraint is Welsh first.

The thing is that he was entered into the TdF under the GB banner rather than Welsh. Why I’m not sure.

Would have been good for them to ask him his preference?!

 

[Beebo]

What’s happened to cow bells.
You used to hear them everywhere but I heard almost nothing now.

 

[roadrash]

there was loads of cow bells especially in the mountains

 

[ColinJ]

What’s happened to cow bells.
You used to hear them everywhere but I heard almost nothing now.

The wasps took them!

 

[Beebo]

The thing is that he was entered into the TdF under the GB banner rather than Welsh. Why I’m not sure.

Would have been good for them to ask him his preference?!

I expect it will be due to affiliation to the UCI. Where we compete as GB.
Same as the Olympics where we compete as GB.
The only time I can think of Wales competing as a nation is at the common wealth games.

 

[Va Va Froome]

Dan Martin took the Combativity Award!

He stood out this Tour with some great attacks, strong top 10 performance and a stage win.

 

[Mike_P]

I expect it will be due to affiliation to the UCI. Where we compete as GB.
Same as the Olympics where we compete as GB.

Correct, and why the Union Flag was shown against all the British riders names on the captions etc regardless of their respective home nation.

 

[Beebo]

Dan Martin took the Combativity Award!

He stood out this Tour with some great attacks, strong top 10 performance and a stage win.

Well deserved, and he didn’t win any individual stage combativity awards during the actual race.