Amaury Sport Organization Throws 18 Million Freebies at Tour de France Crowds

1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 24

18 million giveaways will be tossed to spectators over the Tour de France’s three weeks by the race’s publicity caravan, a daily pre-stage spectacle run by Amaury Sport Organization.
170 customized vehicles stretching about six miles roll ahead of each stage, flinging food samples, clothing and branded trinkets as crowds arrive hours early to compete for them.
The caravan, a Tour tradition since 1930, has become a major commercial engine for ASO, the privately held family company that owns the race and is portrayed as resistant to change.
That mix of mass spectacle and entrenched control underscores the broader question around the Tour: whether the Amaury family’s grip benefits cycling or holds it back.