Key points:
 Continental, official partner of the Tour de France between 2018 and 2022, is upgrading its sponsorship to main partner and stage winner presenter for 2019
 Continental will supply its high-performance car tires to official vehicles and its bicycle tires handmade in Korbach (Germany) to a number of World Tour teams.
This year on July 6th at the Grand Depart in Brussels, Continental will launch its second year at the most prestigious cycle race of the world, and its first as main partner alongside LCL, E.Leclerc, Krys and Škoda as the stage winning presenter.
Continental tire technology serving the Tour de France
This year six World Tour teams (Bahrain-Merida, Groupama-FDJ, Movistar Team, Team Katusha-Alpecin, Teand Sky and Team Sunweb) will participate on the Competition Pro LTD tire, the high-end product designed and produced in Korbach, Germany. Additionally, drivers of the official vehicles of the Tour de France will be able to enjoy the performance of the latest Continental car tire, the PremiumContact 6, produced in Sarreguemines, France.
An increased visibility
Joining the five main partner’s club of the event will allow Continental to gain more visibility in front of the general public. The Continental logo will be visible on the finish line arch as well as on the iconic “flamme rouge”. After each stage a representative from Continental will hand over the trophy to the stage winner on the podium.
Continental and cycling: a long-standing tradition
The partnership with the Tour de France initiated in 2018 and running at least until 2022 is in line with the company’s goal to continuously develop better bicycle and car tires by sharing some of the same technologies. For example, the Black Chili compound provides an extraordinary level of grip for Continental bicycle tires as well as high-performance car tires. Technologies which have been trusted by the World Tour teams for a long time now. The long tradition of tire manufacturing goes back to 1892 when the first version of a bicycle tire (pneumatic) was produced while the first car tire followed in 1898 making Continental the first German tire manufacturer.
“Vision Zero”
Continental uses the partnership with the Tour de France to further promote the topic of road safety as part of its “Vision Zero” strategy: a world without injuries, accidents and casualties. As part of this objective Continental gives fans on the Tour de France website safety advice on how to travel to and from the event safely. The tire manufacturer will also continue to offer free mobile tire checks to public vehicles parked along the race route hours before the Pro riders pass by. For the vehicles inside the race Continental offers free tire checks at the Grand Depart in Brussels as well as the start and finish area of each stage. Inside the cycling race dangerous corners will be highlighted to riders as well as drivers by special warning signs in the noticeable Continental color for the first time. The concept of sharing the road safely between riders and drivers by keeping a respectful distance will also be promoted again by Continental.
Nikolai Setzer, Head of Tire Division, Continental: “We are delighted to play a major part in the biggest cycling race in the world in 2019. Being the stage winning partner of the Tour de France fits perfectly to our core value of “passion to win”. We are very much looking forward to contributing to the race with our wide range of high-performance tires.”
Christian Prudhomme, director of the Tour de France: “The joy of winning a stage is a daily emotion on the Tour de France. The rider that lifts his arms at the finish line, whether he is a many-time victor or takes his only career win, surely experiences one of the highlights of his life. Continental associates its image to these thrills, which are also linked to the notion of performance, defended at the highest level by the brand of tyres. The Tour champions, from Brussels to Paris via Saint-Etienne, the Tourmalet or Nîmes, will recognize themselves in this quest for excellence that defines Continental „.
@ASO