(FILES) German cycling enthusiast Dieter 'Didi' Senft, nicknamed "El diablo" waits for the riders during the 7th stage of the 107th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 168 km between Millau and Lavaur, on September 4, 2020. For more than 30 years, Dieter "Didi" Senft has been one of the Tour de France's most recognisable figures without ever riding a stage. Better known as "El Diablo" (The Devil), the German superfan appears each July in a bright red devil costume, complete with horns, cape and trident. Since first appearing along the race route in 1993, Senft has entertained roadside crowds and television audiences, sprinting or jumping alongside riders. His devil persona was inspired by the Tour's "flamme rouge", the red banner marking the final kilometre. A former amateur cyclist, locksmith and inventor, Senft has also crafted dozens of novelty bicycles, earning him a Guinness World Record. Despite health and financial setbacks, he has remained a fixture of the race and a symbol of its colourful roadside culture. After thieves broke into his camper van at the start of the 2026 Tour de France race in Barcelona, forcing him to miss the opening stage, Senft returned to the route within days, trident in hand, reinforcing his status as one of the Tour's most enduring characters. (Photo by Marco BERTORELLO / AFP via Getty Images)

A member of the French customs services records obsolete industrial air conditioning parts seized in containers in a warehouse of the northwestern harbour of Le Havre on July 8, 2026. (Photo by Alain JOCARD / AFP via Getty Images)

A cruise ship is moored in the northwestern harbour of Le Havre on July 8, 2026. (Photo by Alain JOCARD / AFP via Getty Images)

Members of the Peloton de surveillance maritime et portuaire (PSMP) (Maritime and Port Surveillance Unit) control a container ship in the northwestern harbour of Le Havre on June 30, 2026. (Photo by Alain JOCARD / AFP via Getty Images)

A member of the Police aux Frontieres (PAF) (Boarder police) stands near a cruise ship in the northwestern harbour of Le Havre on July 8, 2026. (Photo by Alain JOCARD / AFP via Getty Images)

Tourists pass custom control after disembarking from a cruise ship in the northwestern harbour of Le Havre on July 8, 2026. (Photo by Alain JOCARD / AFP via Getty Images)

Tourists pass custom control after disembarking from a cruise ship in the northwestern harbour of Le Havre on July 8, 2026. (Photo by Alain JOCARD / AFP via Getty Images)

Tourists pass custom control after disembarking from a cruise ship in the northwestern harbour of Le Havre on July 8, 2026. (Photo by Alain JOCARD / AFP via Getty Images)