Tom on Tour | Britain's Retreat: Shakespeare on the Road

Great Britain was once a dominant force in road cycling. Tour de France victories and Olympic medals from the likes of Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, and Geraint Thomas were the norm. Mark Cavendish amassed a record number of sprint victories. But along with Brexit, this glorious era has faded. On Sunday in Châteauroux, France, which self-ironically calls itself "Cavendish City" because of Cavendish's victories, Belgian Tim Merlier won ahead of Italian Jonathan Milan. The best Briton, Jake Stewart (Israel Premier Tech), finished 31st. Geraint Thomas, the 2018 Tour winner, is still in the race. The 39-year-old told "nd" that while he is enjoying his farewell tour, his ambitions are only to fight for stage victories from breakaways.

Brexit hasn't just weakened cycling, it's also changed lives. In France, between "Cavendish City" and Ennezat, the starting point of the tenth stage, Tony and Sadie have converted an old farm and set up a guest apartment. Over dinner in the garden, it quickly becomes clear: both are Brexit refugees.

"We signed the purchase agreement two days before the UK officially left the EU. We received resident status in France in time and are enjoying being able to move freely around Europe," Tony said. A former journalist at the Guardian, he now writes about fair trade cocoa farming. He's even been to Colombia—a country where our paths may have crossed when I visited Colombian professional cyclists like Egan Bernal and Nairo Quintana. We were both in Medellín, on the streets where cycling is deeply rooted in the culture.

And Sadie, a singer and theater director, was in Berlin in the 1990s and performed at the "Schokoladen" on Ackerstrasse – exactly where I later worked with the Orphtheater. She was a co-founder of the Kule artists' house, where I now work as a dramaturge at Grotest Maru. A surprising amount of home in the heart of France! Sadie founded her own theater ensemble in France. She develops Shakespeare plays and brings them to festivals across Europe, from Avignon to Edinburgh. Both describe their escape from Brexit-affected Britain as a great blessing. However, they feel the effects of Brexit when Sadie brings her productions with French actors to England and has to deal with visas and customs formalities.

Sadie also has connections with the Tour de France: "Two years ago, the Tour passed through here. We stormed the road in costume and masks and cheered the riders as if we were part of a Shakespearean play." Back then, there was a British stage winner, Adam Yates, who finished third overall, followed closely behind by his twin brother Simon in fourth.

The Yates twins are participating again this year, but only in support roles. British cycling has been relegated to the back seat—a decline that mirrors Brexit, as if the island had lost not only the EU but also its sporting glory.