Lille is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the Nord department, and the main city of the European Metropolis of Lille.
Montmartre is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement. It is 130 m (430 ft) high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for its artistic history, for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré-Cœur on its summit, and as a nightclub district.
Pierre-Joseph Redouté, was a painter and botanist from Belgium, known for his watercolours of roses, lilies and other flowers at the Château de Malmaison, many of which were published as large coloured stipple engravings. He was nicknamed "the Raphael of flowers" and has been called the greatest botanical illustrator of all time.
The Bibliothèque nationale de France is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites known respectively as Richelieu and François-Mitterrand. It is the national repository of all that is published in France. Some of its extensive collections, including books and manuscripts but also precious objects and artworks, are on display at the BnF Museum on the Richelieu site.
Maurice-François Garin was an Italian-French road bicycle racer best known for winning the inaugural Tour de France in 1903, and for being stripped of his title in the second Tour in 1904 along with eight others, for cheating. He was of Italian origin but adopted French nationality on 21 December 1901.
Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the 'Monuments' or classics of the European calendar, and contributes points towards the UCI World Ranking. The most recent edition was held on 9 April 2023.
Roubaix is a city in northern France, located in the Lille metropolitan area on the Belgian border. It is a historically mono-industrial commune in the Nord department, which grew rapidly in the 19th century from its textile industries, with most of the same characteristic features as those of English and American boom towns. This former new town has faced many challenges linked to deindustrialisation such as urban decay, with their related economic and social implications, since its major industries fell into decline by the middle of the 1970s. Located to the northeast of Lille, adjacent to Tourcoing, Roubaix is the chef-lieu of two cantons and the third largest city in the French region of Hauts-de-France ranked by population with nearly 99,000 inhabitants.
Tourcoing is a city in northern France on the Belgian border. It is designated municipally as a commune within the department of Nord. Located to the north-northeast of Lille, adjacent to Roubaix, Tourcoing is the chef-lieu of two cantons and the fourth largest city in the French region of Hauts-de-France ranked by population with about 97,000 inhabitants.
François Pinault is a French billionaire businessman, founder of the luxury group Kering and the investment holding company Artémis.
Liège–Bastogne–Liège, also known as La Doyenne, is a one-day classic cycling race in Belgium. First run in 1892, it is the oldest of the five Monuments of the European professional road cycling calendar; usually coming as the last of the spring classics. It is held annually in late April, in the Ardennes region of Belgium, from Liège to Bastogne and back.
Chantilly is a commune in the Oise department in the Valley of the Nonette in the Hauts-de-France region of Northern France. Surrounded by Chantilly Forest, the town of 10,863 inhabitants (2017) falls within the metropolitan area of Paris. It lies 38.4 km north-northeast of the centre of Paris and together with six neighbouring communes forms an urban area of 37,254 inhabitants (2018).
Fnac is a French multinational retail chain selling cultural and electronic products, founded by André Essel and Max Théret in 1954. Its head office is in Le Flavia in Ivry-sur-Seine near Paris. It is an abbreviation of Fédération Nationale d’Achats des Cadres. It merged with Darty in 2016 to become Groupe Fnac Darty.
Kering is a French-based multinational corporation specializing in luxury goods. It owns the brands Gucci, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Yves Saint Laurent, Creed and Alexander McQueen.
The Palace of Justice of Brussels or Law Courts of Brussels is a courthouse in Brussels, Belgium. It is the country's most important court building, seat of the judicial arrondissement of Brussels, as well as of several courts and tribunals, including the Court of Cassation, the Court of Assizes, the Court of Appeal of Brussels, the Tribunal of First Instance of Brussels, and the Bar Association of Brussels.
The Hôtel de Soubise is a city mansion entre cour et jardin, located at 60 rue des Francs-Bourgeois, in the 3rd arrondissement of Paris.
Thomas de la Rue was a printer from Guernsey who founded De La Rue plc, a printing company which is now the world's largest commercial security printer and papermaker.
François-Henri Pinault is a French businessman, the chairman and CEO of Kering since 2005, and president of Groupe Artémis since 2003. Under his leadership, the retail conglomerate PPR was transformed into the luxury fashion group Kering.
The Rue du Bât-d'Argent is an old street which crosses perpendicularly a part of the Presqu'île quarter in the 1st arrondissement of Lyon. It begins at the rue Édouard-Herriot, in continuation of the rue du Plâtre, crosses the rue de la République and the rue du Garet, and ends on the Quai Jean Moulin. The street is famous for its college, the Collège-lycée Ampère.
Piscine Molitor is a swimming pool and hotel complex located in Porte Molitor, 16th arrondissement of Paris, Île-de-France, Paris, France. It is next to the Bois de Boulogne park, and between Stade Roland Garros and Parc des Princes. The complex was built in 1929 and inaugurated by Olympic swimmers Aileen Riggin, Matthew Gauntlett and Johnny Weissmuller. The pool is known for its Art Deco designs and the popular introduction of the bikini by Louis Réard on 5 July 1946.
Redcats was a group of commercial companies managed by Jean-Michel Noir. This group entity specialized in international online fashion and home furnishing distribution. PPR sold the Redcats company to focus on luxury and sports.
