Stage town for the 12th time
Prefecture of Puy-de-Dôme (63)
Population: 145,000 (Clermont-Ferrand population), 290,000 in the Clermont Auvergne metropolitan area
Personalities: Vercingétorix, André and Édouard Michelin (industrialists), Alexandre Vialatte (writer), Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (President of the French Republic), Blaise Pascal, Henri Bergson, Michel Foucault (philosophy), Fernand Raynaud (comedian), Arletty (actress), Chantal Lauby (comedian and actress), Laure Adler (journalist and writer), Fanny Agostini (presenter), Claire Chazal (journalist, presenter), Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron (ice dancing), Jessy Tremoulière (rugby), Geoffroy Mathieu (French 200m backstroke swimming champion), Axelle Etienne (BMX), Raphaël Geminiani, Romain Bardet, Rémi Cavagna (cycling), Renaud Lavillenie (athletics)
Specialities: fruit jellies, Le Lautrec chocolates, aligot, truffade auvergnate, potée auvergnate, tripoux, potato pâté, petit salé with lentils, apple pumps. Cheeses: Saint Nectaire, Fourme d'Ambert, Bleu d'Auvergne, Cantal. Volvic water. Vineyards: Côtes d'Auvergne
Sport: 150 sports associations and 30,000 members, including ASM Clermont-Auvergne (rugby), Clermont Foot 63, JA Vichy-Clermont Métropole Basket. Events: All Star perche, Le Tour Auto, Clermont en Rose (running), Clermont Week-end Courses
Economy: Industry of the future and mobility alongside international companies (Michelin, Trelleborg, Aubert et Duval, etc.); Agri-food and environmental farming (Limagrain and France's leading INRA centre outside Paris); Wellness, prevention, health and nutrition; Digital; Cultural and creative industries (Allegorithmic, Riot house production, Biscuit production, etc.)
Festivals: Festival International du Court Métrage (January), Europavox festival (contemporary music, June), les Contre-plongées (summer cultural season: films, readings, street theatre, concerts and major circus shows), Jazz en tête (October), le rendez-vous du carnet de voyage (November)
Labels: ville fleurie (3 flowers), child-friendly city, I-Site, Clermont Auvergne French tech, 3rd most creative city in France (2018), Apicité, UNESCO learning city. Bid to become European Capital of Culture in 2028
Websites / FB / Twitter / Insta: www.clermont-ferrand.fr / www.clermontmetropole.eu / https://www.clermontauvergnetourisme.com/ / https://www.puy-de-dome.fr/ / https://www.facebook.com/villedeclermontferrand/ / https://www.facebook.com/clermontmetropole/ / https://twitter.com/clrmntmetropole / https://twitter.com/ClermontFd / https://www.instagram.com/villedeclermontfd / https://www.instagram.com/clermontauvergnetourisme/ / https://www.facebook.com/Clermont.Tourisme/ / https://twitter.com/clrmntauvergne / https://www.facebook.com/Departement63 / https://twitter.com/Departement63
CLERMONT-FERRAND AND CYCLING
Clermont-Ferrand already occupies a special place in the young history of the Tour de France Femmes with Zwift, having hosted the Grand Départ in 2023. The stage around the prefecture of Puy de Dôme was won by Lotte Lopecky, who took the Yellow Jersey and held it until the summit of the Tourmalet, finishing second behind Demi Vollering. The following day, the race set off from Place de Jaude for a stage won in Jaunac by Liane Lippert. While Clermont-Ferrand thus becomes the first city to have hosted the Women's Tour on two occasions, in recent years it has also become an obligatory stopover for the Men's Tour, which is determined to renew its ties with the Massif Central. In 2023, Jasper Philipsen won a sprint in Moulins on a stage that started in the Michelin stronghold. The Grande Boucle returned to Clermont-Ferrand in 2020 after an absence of more than thirty years for a rest day and a stage to Lyon won by Soren Kragh Andersen. The previous finish was in 1988, when Thierry Marie won. The city of Michelin, long a privileged partner of the Tour, has most often served as a launching pad, notably for two time trials judged at the summit of the Puy de Dôme in 1959 (Federico Bahamontes) and 1983 (Angel Arroyo). The first winner of a stage in Clermont was a rider who is inextricably linked with the town, Raphaël Geminiani. The "Grand Fusil", who was born here in 1925 and died here last year, won seven stages of the Grande Boucle and wore the Yellow Jersey for four days in 1958. Fun-loving and friendly both in the race and in the city, 'Gem' was also an inspired sports director and one of the strongest personalities in the history of cycling. His successor today is Rémi Cavagna, the TGV from Clermont, winner of a stage in the Tour of Spain in 2019. Driver for Christian Prudhomme in the Tour de France, Gilles Maignan was crowned French time trial champion in 1999. That year, as the year before, it was also in Clermont-Ferrand that Jeannie Longo won two of her twenty French road race titles. Other local riders to have competed in the Tour de France include Noël Lajoie (1950 and 1952), Jean-Claude Baud (1973) and Damien Monier (2010). Among the local female riders, we should mention Lucie Pader, a professional in 2013 and 2014.
SIGHTS
Chaîne des Puys - Limagne fault: The Puy de Dôme (1,465 m) - a Grand Site de France - is a landmark of the city, dominating the Chaîne des Puys and its line of 80 volcanoes. Accessible on foot or by cog railway, it offers a panoramic view from Limagne to the Sancy mountains. Since July 2018, the site has been listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site as a "tectonic high spot", the first to be listed as a natural asset in mainland France.
Notre-Dame de l'Assomption Cathedral
Construction: 13th to 19th centuries.
Style: Gothic.
Characteristics: it stands on the central hillock of Clermont. It is the first and largest building to be constructed entirely of Volvic lava stone. Construction work began in the mid-13th century and was completed in the 19th century under the supervision of the famous architect Viollet-le-Duc. He was responsible for the two 90 m-high spires. The apse is typical of the Gothic style of the Île-de-France region. The cathedral contains a unique collection of murals and stained-glass windows from different periods, including some rare Romanesque windows.
Listed as: Historic Monument in 1862.
Basilica of Notre-Dame-du-Port
Built: 13th century.
Style: Romanesque.
Characteristics: Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Pilgrim's Way to Santiago de Compostela in France, the basilica is famous for its pyramidal apse adorned with rosettes, its sculpted portal and more than 250 Romanesque capitals with remarkable decorations. An interpretation centre adjoining the basilica was opened in 2021.
Listed as: Historic Monument in 1840.
Royat thermal baths: The Royat-Chamalières spa offers visitors and spa-goers the inimitable charm of the spa towns of the Belle Époque. Specialising in the treatment of rheumatological conditions and cardio-arterial diseases, the resort is ideal for health tourism. Built on the model of the Emperor Constantine's basilica, the thermal baths, listed as a historic monument, are remarkable for their façade, painted vaults and ornate floors. Also worth a look are the Roman remains and the Eugénie refreshment room, topped with an ornate glass bell.
La Comédie, National Stage: This new landmark will be home to the Comédie de Clermont-Ferrand from May 2020. The building was designed by Eduardo Souto de Moura, the world-famous Portuguese architect and winner of the Pritzker Prize. It was built on the site of the former bus station, a much-loved landmark for the people of Clermont-Ferrand and one of the city's architectural icons, listed as a historic monument. The 9,500 m² complex includes 2 theatres, a cultural mediation centre and a brasserie.
Mille formes, Europe's 1st art initiation centre for 0-6 year olds: The Centre d'initiation à l'art pour les 0-6 ans is designed by the City, in partnership with the Centre Pompidou, as a space for experimentation where young children can come into contact with contemporary art in all its forms. Children are encouraged to discover art as a family through gestures and interaction with a new environment. It is located on rue Fontgiève.
TO EAT
Fruit jellies: Clermont-Ferrand is not just the capital of tyres. It's also the bastion of fruit jelly. During long journeys, candied fruit has been delighting holidaymakers since the end of the 19th century. These delicacies are made from fruit cooked with water and beetroot sugar from the Bourdon sugar factory, set up in 1837 by the Duke of Morny, half-brother of Napoleon III. The invention of fruit paste dates back to the 10th century. Mention of them began in the 15th century. They are made around Clermont and known as "Pâtes d'Auvergne". In accordance with the recipe registered in 1947 by the Chambre Syndicale des Confiseurs, Confituriers et Conserveurs de Fruits d'Auvergne at the time, Auvergne confectioners are obliged to use at least 67 pc fruit pulp to make their fruit pastes.