The hometown of 2015 French road race champion Steven Tronet, Calais, which had hosted stage starts in 1994 (a team time trial won by the GB-MG team) and 2001 (when Marc Wauters went on to win in Antwerp), finally hosted a Tour de France stage finish in 2022, which concluded with a victory for Wout van Aert. A frequent fixture on the route of the now-defunct Tour du Nord, Calais witnessed victories for Pierrick Fédrigo (2008) and Sylvain Chavanel (2014) in the Four Days of Dunkirk.
- Sub-prefecture of Pas-de-Calais
- Population: 67,600; 99,000 within the Grand Calais Terres et Mers municipality; 1,460,000 within Pas-de-Calais
- calais.fr
Calais and cycling
In 2022, Wout van Aert was unstoppable. The Belgian took the Yellow Jersey on the very second day of racing in Denmark and went on to pull off one of his finest performances in Calais. Set up by his teammates from the Jumbo-Visma team, he broke away 10 km from the finish and won solo ahead of the peloton, outsprinted by Jasper Philipsen. It was the seventh of Van Aert’s ten stage victories in the Tour de France and the first of three he secured in that edition, in which he went on to win the green jersey.
As the gateway to the United Kingdom, Calais has seen the Tour de France and its followers pass through every time the race has crossed the Channel, but the town had only been a stage town twice before 2022, in 1994 and 2001. The first time, following a Grand Départ in Lille, a 66.5 km team time trial saw the GB-MG Technogym team take victory and Johan Museeuw don the Yellow Jersey before crossing the Channel for three stages in England. Seven years later, Calais was the start town for a stage finishing in Antwerp with a sprint victory for Marc Wauters.
Calais, which has hosted the finish of the Four Days of Dunkirk on several occasions, was also, in the early days of cycling, the destination for two historic road races: Lille–Calais, won in 1895 by Maurice Garin, the future first winner of the Tour, and Paris–Calais, held between 1909 and 1926 and won in its inaugural edition by Eugène Christophe. The second edition was won by Calais native Léon Lannoy, who competed in the Tour de France in 1909 and 1910. Another local rider, Steven Tronet, was French road champion in 2015.
Sights
Town Hall and belfry
History: built in the 20th century (1925).
Style: Neo-Flemish (architect: Louis Debrouwer).
Features: 75 metres high. Four gold-leaf-covered knights mark the four cardinal points at its summit, above the four dials of its clock. Unlike other older buildings, its tower is completely empty. Only a staircase filled the interior: it was used solely by the technician responsible for setting the clock to winter or summer time.
History: the decision to build this belfry was taken in 1885, at the same time as that for the new town hall, to mark the merger of the municipalities of Calais and Saint-Pierre.
Listing: Listed as a Historic Monument since 2003, the belfry is also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Belfries of Belgium and France.
Monument to the Burghers of Calais
Creation: a work created in the 19th century (between 1884 and 1889) by Auguste Rodin (1840–1917).
Style: bronze.
Description: the monument commemorates the collective sacrifice of six prominent citizens who set out to hand over the keys to the city to the victorious King of England at the end of the 1346–47 siege during the Hundred Years’ War. The six figures are depicted individually, gathered on a single plinth but standing apart. Alone in the face of their fate and death, they do not look at one another or touch one another.
Background: commissioned by the city of Calais, the monument, completed in 1889, was erected in 1895 in the square in front of Calais Town Hall, though this did not comply with Rodin’s wish for it to be displayed at a great height.
Calais LA Plage
The ‘Calais LA Plage’ project is a regeneration of a strategic area of the city. It involves a complete transformation of the seafront, designed to enhance Calais’s seaside character. Inaugurated in July 2021 during a large-scale show, the ‘Calais LA Plage’ resort offers residents and tourists a new setting for living, relaxing and strolling.
The Dragon of Calais
In November 2019, during a spectacular inaugural show, 400,000 visitors welcomed the arrival in Calais of the monumental ‘Dragon of Calais’. For four days, the dragon’s magic captivated the public. Open to passengers since February 2020 for a 45-minute ride, the Calais Dragon continues to make a powerful impression on those discovering it or boarding its back. The Dragon attracts thousands of visitors, particularly during the summer season.
Notre-Dame Church
Founded: built in the 13th century.
Style: Tudor.
History: It is the only religious building constructed in the English Perpendicular style, and its bell tower is situated in the centre of the building.
Trivia: It was in this church that Charles de Gaulle (1890–1970), then a young captain and future President of the French Republic from 1958 to 1969, married Yvonne Vendroux on 7 April 1921.
Listing: Listed as a Historic Monument in 1913.
City of Lace and Fashion
It is housed in one of the last remaining traditional collective lace factories, dating from the late 19th century. Following an architectural competition launched in 2004, the firm Moatti et Rivière was selected, and construction began in 2006. Today, the building houses magnificent collections of haute couture lace, as well as industrial heritage, including the famous Leavers looms which still produce Calais lace.