(FILES) This photograph taken on July 18, 2024, shows German cycling enthusiast Dieter 'Didi' Senft, nicknamed "El diablo" posing with the chalkboard indicating his 31st Tour de France attendance as riders cycle past during the 18th stage of the 111th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 179,5 km between Gap and Barcelonnette, in southeastern France. 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 Anne-Christine POUJOULAT / AFP via Getty Images)