{"id":189572,"date":"2022-05-20T12:13:19","date_gmt":"2022-05-20T12:13:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?p=189572"},"modified":"2022-05-20T12:16:12","modified_gmt":"2022-05-20T12:16:12","slug":"does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/","title":{"rendered":"Does Tro-Bro L\u00e9on Want To Be Mainstream?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hipster culture. Shoreditch, London. Coffee foam art. Rolled-up beanies. Fixed gear bikes. Wherever we look, many things in our world, wherever you look, come into fashion and then can fall out again after building up somewhat of a cult culture.<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Cycling is no different. Some races have been described as a hipster \u2013 for example the Tour of Portugal is seen by some as the fourth grand tour. People rave about the Tour of Colombia or the now defunct Peace Race. For one-day races there is only one which strikes at the heart of cult cycling and that is Tro-Bro L\u00e9on. A one-day classic, that in 2022 was won by Hugo Hofstetter. It lies away from the typical classics season and, this year, took place during the Giro D\u2019Italia.<\/a> It seems to lurk in the cycling shadows.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s race, like every year, was full gas racing and was dominated by French teams. For Arkea-Samsic – who Hofstetter rides for – it seems to be their duty to honour this race and going into the final stages they had a Quick-Step-like stranglehold on proceedings. Connor Swift, who won in 2021, was part of the leading group and it was only a puncture for Laurent Pichon that kept their numbers to just two as they headed under the flamme rouge. They were alongside Luca Mozzato from B&B Hotels – KTM as Swift led the sprint out and it was Hofstetter who took the honours, the Frenchman nearly breaking his hand on a railing during the celebrations.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/Cdv-vXLsEtE\/<\/p>\n

Hofstetter, who, incidentally, also won a pig for his troubles – as does every winner – is the calibre of rider who typically wins this race. Normally a name known to ardent fans but not one that has taken the classics season by storm. This means that the race does have a lot of surprises and never seems to attract the biggest teams to the start line. This has led it to remain a cult classic.<\/p>\n

It was first run in 1984 through the fields of Brittany, and the race\u2019s heart is set in the region. The name itself is Breton and it sets itself apart from Paris-Roubaix by not heading onto the cobbles of the north, using the farm tracks instead. It is fun and furious \u2013 vociferously supported by the Breton public, even before it went professional at the turn of the millennium.<\/p>\n

Where it sits in the calendar is not the only thing that has seen it remain outside of the mainstream cycling world. Firstly, it is not a World Tour race, meaning teams aren\u2019t obliged to show up. The French teams typically do \u2013 honouring a race in their home country – but others do not with the Giro taking place at the same time. This has led to the race playing second fiddle to other races rather than taking centre stage, as Paris-Roubaix<\/a> does a month earlier.<\/p>\n

The other reason is its geographical position in the country. Brittany is one of two pan-handles France has on its west coast. The region, as mentioned above, has its own language, it also has its own culture, customs and way of life \u2013 distinct from most of the country. Maybe this is another reason as to why it remains on the fringes of cycling\u2019s fraternity?<\/p>\n

Whatever the case, the race \u2013 an amateur one for 16 years before turning pro in 2000 \u2013 doesn\u2019t seem to mind. But, its survival is important. Races, which have this unique charm, are hard to come by and variety in the calendar is pivotal to keeping riders and fans engaged. ASO, the organisers of the Tour de France and Paris-Roubaix amongst other races, seem to understand this, partnering with Tro-Bro L\u00e9on in September of last year to support the race behind the scenes.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is with joy and pride that ASO. will lend its support to one of the greatest success stories of cycling in Brittany. The Bro L\u00e9on, a forerunner in terms of the uniqueness of its route, offers a model from which ASO. has even drawn inspiration to invigorate the Paris-Tours classic, which now includes vineyard paths,\u201d Pierre-Yves Thouault, director of cycling at ASO explained.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cAs director of the event, it is my duty today to think about the future of the race so it can continue for decades,\u201d said race boss Jean-Paul Mellou\u00ebt. \u201cFor me, this agreement is a guarantee that the Tro Bro L\u00e9on,<\/a> thanks to ASO\u2019s recognized know-how in commercial, media and logistical matters, and while preserving the unique character that has made it a success, will continue to flourish for many years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

With ASO taking up this partnership, it shows just how far the race has come in its nearly 50-year history. The organisation tend to stay true to the roots of their races and, although it is hard to predict whether this will happen with Tro Bro L\u00e9on, the future looks bright. It is a race built on the area surrounding it and even if it becomes a part of the World Tour, it should never forget the cult following it has had for the last two decades.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hipster culture. Shoreditch, London. Coffee foam art. Rolled-up beanies. Fixed gear bikes. Wherever we look, many things in our world, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":99,"featured_media":189574,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[329],"tags":[6274,3977,6398,6396,6397,3053],"global-categories":[3366],"class_list":["post-189572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-road-cycling","tag-aso","tag-hugo-hofstetter","tag-jean-paul-mellouet","tag-laurent-pichon","tag-pierre-yves-thouault","tag-tro-bro-leon","global-categories-cycling"],"yoast_head":"\nDoes Tro-Bro L\u00e9on Want To Be Mainstream? - \u0160koda We Love Cycling<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Hipster culture. Shoreditch, London. Coffee foam art. Rolled-up beanies. Fixed gear bikes. Wherever we look, many things in our world, wherever you look,\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Does Tro-Bro L\u00e9on Want To Be Mainstream?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Hipster culture. Shoreditch, London. Coffee foam art. Rolled-up beanies. Fixed gear bikes. Wherever we look, many things in our world, wherever you look,\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u0160koda We Love Cycling\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-05-20T12:13:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-05-20T12:16:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/2\/2022\/05\/Tro_Bro_Leon_CVR.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2048\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1365\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"tereza\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Joshua Donaldson\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/\",\"name\":\"Does Tro-Bro L\u00e9on Want To Be Mainstream? - \u0160koda We Love Cycling\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/2\/2022\/05\/Tro_Bro_Leon_CVR.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-05-20T12:13:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-05-20T12:16:12+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#\/schema\/person\/50f01ecd18718d2333cf72e823c4f926\"},\"description\":\"Hipster culture. Shoreditch, London. Coffee foam art. Rolled-up beanies. Fixed gear bikes. Wherever we look, many things in our world, wherever you look,\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/2\/2022\/05\/Tro_Bro_Leon_CVR.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/2\/2022\/05\/Tro_Bro_Leon_CVR.webp\",\"width\":2048,\"height\":1365,\"caption\":\"Tro Bro L\u00e9on\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Does Tro-Bro L\u00e9on Want To Be Mainstream?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/\",\"name\":\"\u0160koda We Love Cycling\",\"description\":\"\u0160koda We Love Cycling magazine\",\"alternateName\":\"\u0160koda WLC\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#\/schema\/person\/50f01ecd18718d2333cf72e823c4f926\",\"name\":\"tereza\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f9eb71be33845f0afabce3791bc1c58ecdb0a25c62964987e5dbcf7a20d2ec7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f9eb71be33845f0afabce3791bc1c58ecdb0a25c62964987e5dbcf7a20d2ec7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"tereza\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/author\/tereza\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Does Tro-Bro L\u00e9on Want To Be Mainstream? - \u0160koda We Love Cycling","description":"Hipster culture. Shoreditch, London. Coffee foam art. Rolled-up beanies. Fixed gear bikes. Wherever we look, many things in our world, wherever you look,","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Does Tro-Bro L\u00e9on Want To Be Mainstream?","og_description":"Hipster culture. Shoreditch, London. Coffee foam art. Rolled-up beanies. Fixed gear bikes. Wherever we look, many things in our world, wherever you look,","og_url":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/","og_site_name":"\u0160koda We Love Cycling","article_published_time":"2022-05-20T12:13:19+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-05-20T12:16:12+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2048,"height":1365,"url":"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/2\/2022\/05\/Tro_Bro_Leon_CVR.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"tereza","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Joshua Donaldson","Est. reading time":"5"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/","url":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/","name":"Does Tro-Bro L\u00e9on Want To Be Mainstream? - \u0160koda We Love Cycling","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/2\/2022\/05\/Tro_Bro_Leon_CVR.webp","datePublished":"2022-05-20T12:13:19+00:00","dateModified":"2022-05-20T12:16:12+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#\/schema\/person\/50f01ecd18718d2333cf72e823c4f926"},"description":"Hipster culture. Shoreditch, London. Coffee foam art. Rolled-up beanies. Fixed gear bikes. Wherever we look, many things in our world, wherever you look,","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/2\/2022\/05\/Tro_Bro_Leon_CVR.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net\/2\/2022\/05\/Tro_Bro_Leon_CVR.webp","width":2048,"height":1365,"caption":"Tro Bro L\u00e9on"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2022\/05\/20\/does-tro-bro-leon-want-to-be-mainstream\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Does Tro-Bro L\u00e9on Want To Be Mainstream?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/","name":"\u0160koda We Love Cycling","description":"\u0160koda We Love Cycling magazine","alternateName":"\u0160koda WLC","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#\/schema\/person\/50f01ecd18718d2333cf72e823c4f926","name":"tereza","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f9eb71be33845f0afabce3791bc1c58ecdb0a25c62964987e5dbcf7a20d2ec7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f9eb71be33845f0afabce3791bc1c58ecdb0a25c62964987e5dbcf7a20d2ec7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"tereza"},"url":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/author\/tereza\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189572","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/99"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=189572"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189572\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":189576,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189572\/revisions\/189576"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/189574"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=189572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=189572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=189572"},{"taxonomy":"global-categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/global-categories?post=189572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}