Julien Bernard had a dreamy homecoming Friday. Through the stage seven time trial of the Tour de France, held in Bernard’s dwelling area of Burgundy, the French bicycle owner soaked up his native crowd and shared a expensive embrace along with his spouse and son.
For stopping his trip to kiss his household, Bernard was slapped with a fantastic of 200 Swiss francs ($223) by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) for what the governing physique deemed “unseemly or inappropriate conduct in the course of the race and harm to the picture of sport.”
The smooch — which drew a rousing ovation from his a whole bunch of native followers cheering — got here in a cinematic second as Bernard pushed up a steep hill with one arm raised within the air as his family and friends crowded the course, slapping him on the again, waving indicators and enjoying devices.
In the course of the pack was his beaming spouse carrying their son.
Wonderful scenes for Julien Bernard with unbelievable fan assist and stopping along with his household in the course of the time trial.#TDF2024 📺: Peacock pic.twitter.com/FjIhSOWtjx
— NBC Sports activities Biking (@NBCSCycling) July 5, 2024
On social media, Bernard took the fantastic in jest.
“Sorry UCI for having broken the picture of sport,” Bernard wrote on X. “However I’m prepared to pay 200 (francs) each day and relive this second.”
Belgium’s Remco Evenepoel ultimately gained the hilly 23.5 km (14.6 mile) stage.
Bernard’s time of 32:03 was the 61st quickest time of the stage. His Lidl-Trek teammate Giulio Ciccone completed in 31:19 for forty first within the stage.
One other Lidl-Trek teammate, Toms Skujins, responded to Bernard’s fantastic with related sarcastic confusion.
UCI doing UCI issues
😂 pic.twitter.com/VFrIDWYL2I— Toms Skujiņš (@Tomashuuns) July 5, 2024
“I knew my spouse and my mates did one thing on the climb, and I used to be trying ahead to seeing them,” Bernard mentioned in an interview after the trial, later including, “I needed to take pleasure in everybody second with my buddy and household. It was dream second for me.”
“On a time trial, you might have time to take pleasure in your self. It’s these moments that hold me going and biking.”
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(Photograph: Dario Belingheri / Getty Photos)