2019 Tour de France Skoda Shanghai Criterium, an international cycling competition, was held at the China Art Museum on 15 and 16 November 2019. The Tour de France champion Egan Bernal for the year 2019, a three-time Grand Slam champion Vincenzo Nibali, and a four-time Tour de France champion Christopher Froome, along with other Tour de France stars, including five world-class cycling teams and 7 outstanding local teams, participated in the event. With outstanding ability, Caleb Ewan took the lead and was crowned the champion of Tour de France Shanghai.
In 1903, the first Tour de France was held in France. The event has a history of more than 100 years and is regarded as the most prestigious event in the cycling world. In 2017, Tour de France took place in China for the first time. For the past three years, it has been held in Changsha, Beijing, Zhuji and Shanghai. Domestic and foreign, professionals and amateur cyclists as well as the public have already enjoyed Tour de France. With the support of the local municipal governments in China and partners, Tour de France in China has been held in Zhuji and Changsha, where 4,000 people participated in the closed-loop cycling event and thus broke the record of attendance. The brand of the Tour de France has been gaining traction in China as the event combines the elements of sports and entertainment with the participation of the world’s top cyclists.
Tour de France intellectual property (“IP”) combines elements of sports and entertainment as a model for sports event marketing
The top international French sports company and Tour de France planner, Amaury Sport Organization (A.S.O.) has actively promoted the globalization of the Tour de France brand in recent years. This is aligned with the IP marketing concept of the Activation Group. The two parties have cooperated since 2017 to promote the Tour de France IP in China. Tour de France held in Changsha in 2017, Beijing, Shanghai and Zhuji at the beginning of the year has, in turn, earned its host cities fame and plentiful business opportunities. It is reported that an experience center for cycling will be opened in Zhuji in 2020. It will be positioned as a first-of-its-kind “one-stop, multi-functional, outdoor cycling tour service center”, which will be complemented by the official cycling routes and themed homestays. With its strong sense of market, Activation Group has explored the integration of the Tour de France with mass consumption, enabling cyclists and sports enthusiasts to enjoy entertainment as a part of their lives.
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