PARIS (REUTERS) - Only 5,000 spectators will be granted access to the Champs-Elysees to watch Sunday's finale of the Tour de France due to health protocols that have been put in place to control the spread of Covid-19, local authorities said on Thursday (Sept 17).

"The access to the Champs-Elysees will be forbidden once the tally of 5,000 people will be reached," authorities said in a statement.

The Tour de France, the world's biggest cycling race, has finished on the Champs-Elysees since 1975.

The final stage is generally won by a sprinter, without any impact on the general classification.

On Thursday, France registered 10,593 new confirmed coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours, setting a new daily record and pushing the cumulative number to 415,481, the health ministry reported.