Paris police shoot at car which attempted to crash Tour de France barricade on the Champs Elysées

Police in central Paris opened fire on a driver who tried to ram through a barricade as they stood guard ahead of the final stage of the Tour de France Sunday morning.

The car managed to evade police fire at Place de la Concorde at about 8am, with the two people inside reportedly being unharmed by the gunfire, according to Luc Poignant, a spokesman for the SGP police union.

Security forces are on high alert, as extra armed police soon flooded into the area looking for the car and its occupants but police said it doesn't appear to be a terrorist attack. 

Paris has been on maximum security alert since the shootings in Paris in January at satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo's offices. 

Police are now investigating CCTV footage to identify the driver and the passenger inside the Renault Twingo.

"This is a minor incident. It wasn't aimed at the Tour de France, it's not terrorism, it's just a simple refusal to comply, as there are many every day," a police official told Reuters.

Hundreds of thousands traditionally gather in the Place de la Concorde and the Champs Elysees for the final stage of the Tour de France, which will happen later today.

The stage itself does not leave its start point, the town of Sèvres, until 4.15pm local time, with the riders not due to arrive in central Paris until nearly 6pm. 

Britain’s Chris Froome is all but guaranteed victory, with a lead of more than a minute over his closest rival, Nairo Quintana of Colombia.

Chris Froome has urine thrown at him during 2015 Tour de France

One of the great things about the Tour de France is that fans can get up-close-and-personal with the cyclists as they peddle through the scenic course.

And, sometimes though, the fans get too up-close-and-personal with the competitors.

On Saturday, Team Sky cyclist Chris Froome was allegedly subject to a shocking attack during Stage 14 of the race, when Froome claimed a spectator drenched him in urine and labelled him a “doper” at around the 50-kilometer mark of the 187-kilometer route.

Chris Froome branded 'doper' by a fan who threw urine in his face: http://t.co/KtjBtljNuS pic.twitter.com/7biEmMHeeY

— Telegraph Sport (@TelegraphSport) July 18, 2015

The yellow jersey holder revealed the extent of the incident to BBC Sport, saying, “Unfortunately, someone threw a cup of urine into my face and shouted 'doper' which is extremely wrong on so many different levels."

Disappointing that a French “fan” ruined a great day for me today. Congrats @StevoCummings @TeamMTNQhubeka #MandelaDay @letour

— Chris Froome (@chrisfroome) July 18, 2015

On Friday, Team Sky teammate Richie Porte claimed he was punched during Stage 10. The BBC also reports Team Sky claims its computers have been hacked by critics who believe Froome is using PEDs.

Still, the nasty incident wasn’t enough to distract Froome, as he extended his lead at the top of the Tour de France standings to three minutes and 10 seconds.

And he's still wearing the yellow jersey.

Massive pileup highlights third stage of Tour de France (VIDEO)

Spaniard Joaquim Rodriguez won the third stage of the Tour de France on Monday, with British rider Chris Froome finishing second to take the race leader’s yellow jersey. 

But it was a massive pileup of other cyclists which stood out on the day.

The crash happened with a little under 65 kilometers (37 miles) remaining, forcing the stage to be neutralized and then stopped altogether shortly after — for nearly 20 minutes — while organizers allowed those who were in the crash to catch up.

The crash took place before the 159.5 kilometer Stage Three course wound through Belgium when Frenchman William Bonnet went down and several riders tumbled around him.

All of the main contenders avoided the 20 rider crash, except Fabian Cancellera, who started the day in the yellow jersey and pulled out of the Tour with two fractured vertebrae. 

Tour de France champion suffers severe sunburn wearing new mesh skinsuit (PHOTO)

Team Sky's bid to gain an advantage over other racing teams literally backfired on star rider Chris Froome — who suffered severe sunburn during a training ride in South Africa. 

The 2013 Tour de France winner was wearing the new lightweight mesh skinsuit, but failed to apply enough suncream and posted the painful results on Twitter.

Froome sports a bright pink back, except on the pale areas where the packs he wore prevented any burning.

Team Sky unveiled the sheer, skin-tight racing suits — which leaves little to the imagination — last month in hope of securing all "marginal gains" over opposing racers.

They forgot one thing—the SPF.

Michelle Cound, Froome's fiancee, posted the photos on her Twitter page on Wednesday, with the message: "The danger with wearing mesh jerseys... #OUCH"

The danger with wearing mesh jerseys... #OUCH pic.twitter.com/CuIhrakWCk
— Michelle Cound (@michellecound) January 22, 2014

Team Sky unveils racy and revealing cycling suits (PHOTO)

Team Sky's new racing suit for the 2014 season will leave very little to cycling fans' imagination after Chris Froome unveiled the Rapha-made gear via Twitter.

The defending Tour de France champion modeled the sheer, skin-tight suit that is so close to actual skin they might need a Band-Aid to fix a tear.

The sheer, netted fabric — that shows a little nipple — with a black panel covering the groin area, looks more like a Miley Cyrus castoff designed by Lady Gaga than a top-cycling team's uniform.

As one Twitter fan pointed out, maybe this is what Team Sky boss Sir Dave Brailsford meant when he promised "transparency" in his team.

'Trying out my new 2014 @TeamSky @rapharacing kit. The skin suit takes #marginalgains to the next level,' he tweeted.

Trying out my new 2014 @TeamSky @rapharacing kit. This skin suit takes #marginalgains to the next level 😉 pic.twitter.com/UlnSTDgVtv
— Chris Froome (@chrisfroome) December 31, 2013

Froome's referring to Team Sky's intense philosophy of "marginal gains", which basically means their thorough examination and improvement in anyway possible for every aspect that could impact their rider's performance. 

This can mean nutrition, physiology and psychology to ergonomics and, of course, their equipment.