frtour1-10, Exercise 1: Applying the six questions

Model answer (check the details), using "The French always win their own race":

1. Who says it? Often fans, commentators and nostalgic writers; sometimes an old rival nation's press. It is a popular saying rather than a researched claim.
2. What exactly is claimed? That French riders win the Tour more than anyone else, or in most years. "Always" is far stronger than "often".
3. What would count as evidence? The list of winners by nationality over the full history, from the organisers' official record and independent histories.
4. Compared with what? With other nations' winning totals (France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, others), and with the share of French riders in the race.
5. Which period? France won many of the early Tours and the golden age, but the last French winner was in 1985 (check). A claim about "always" fails across the whole history and especially for the last four decades.
6. What would change my mind? A pattern of French winners continuing to the present.

Verdict: false as "always", true as "France has more wins than any other country" (check the total). A careful sentence gives the period.

Care: the totals change if titles are stripped, so use the current official list.