Completed: 16 July 2021
The biggest challenge: mountain giants
The catchphrase: “You have to experience a gale to be grateful for a good tailwind.”
I was the first blind person in the world to successfully complete the entire course of cycling’s most famous race, the Tour de France. Its route covers an incredible 3,414 km, which I had to cover with my tracker Marek Peterka in 21 days.
We set off on the tandem bike on 26 June 2021 from Brest, France, and a total of 21 stages awaited us during the Tour. For example, we rode the longest day stage of 249 km or mountain sections in the French Alps and Pyrenees. We even climbed Mont Ventoux (1,910 m) twice on a double bike – for the first time in the history of the Tour de France, one stage included two ascents of this very peak.
We finished our cycling journey on Friday 16 July 2021, two days apart from the official peloton, when we crossed the imaginary finish line at the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Élysées in Paris.
The whole adventure will be made into a book and a film story, captured by documentary filmmaker Rostislav Málek.
And why did I decide to ride in the famous Tour de France race? Not only to overcome my cycling limits, but mainly to help those who need it most. A few days before the start, in cooperation with the Světluška (Firefly) Czech Radio Foundation, I launched a charity fund-raising campaign to support blind children and their leisure activities. The campaign raised an incredible 149 590CZK. With this money we bought tandem bicycles, sports equipment, and compensatory aids for the children, which will help them to be independent and realize their own dreams.
And what is important for such a dream to come true? After all, having the right team around you to support you even in the toughest kilometres. The support of partners is also crucial, without whom this project could not happen. And I can’t forget about the fans who were enthusiastically watching every pedal we’ve pedalled.
Thanks especially to the whole team:
Jiří Hort, Petra Vodičková, Vojta Hort, Lukáš Nožička, Lukáš Turek, Pavel Krize, Rostislav Málek and Marek Peterka.
