Police open fire as Tour de France finishes in Paris

Police had to shoot at a car carrying four people that tried to crash through a security barrier near the finish line on the Champs-Elysees avenue, Sunday, July 26.

The incident happened on the Champs-Elysees avenue at around 8am local time on Sunday. Barricades were set up in the area to ensure security hours before the cyclists crossed the finish line.

The scene of the police shooting at the car is relatively close to the US Embassy.

A car believed to be carrying four people attempted to crash through a barrier at high speed near the US Embassy. Police opened fire on the car to stop it, but the driver managed to escape. A black Renault Twingo was later found abandoned nearby. The car’s registered owner is a man from Mantes-la-Jolie, west of Paris.

The car had earlier crashed into a taxi parked in the famous Place de la Concorde, located at the eastern end of the Champs-Élysées, right on the banks of the Seine. The driver then tried to drive through a police cordon ahead of the finish line of the final stage of the Tour de France.

No gunfight occurred after the police opened fire on the car. Therefore, international media believe that this incident is unlikely to be related to terrorism, but may simply be due to the driver losing control after causing a traffic collision after a night out somewhere in Paris.

According to police reports, two men and two women were seen leaving the bullet-riddled vehicle and running away.

Security has been tightened to the maximum due to terrorism concerns. Photo: EPA.

Tour de France director Thierry Gouvenou said the incident was unforeseeable, but it did not affect the final stage of the race.

After three weeks of competition, Chris Froome became the first British rider to win the Tour de France twice. The 30-year-old previously won the yellow jersey in 2013.

According to VNE