The annual study of the national market conducted by the Sport & Cycle Union (USC), a trade body, put growth in 2020 at an extremely robust 25 per cent, with bicycles themselves accounting for €1.925 billion (£1.7 billion/$2.3 billion) of the €3.02 billion (£2.6 billion/$3.6 billion) total.

Unit sales increased only 1.7 per cent to 2.68 million, but the market for electric bicycles, at over €2,000 (£1,730/$2,400) a machine on average, was exceptionally buoyant, accounting for almost one in every five bikes sold during the course of the year.

The new figures for the nation of the Tour de France, the sport's pre-eminent race, follow indications of similarly encouraging trends in the United Kingdom, another of the larger Western European countries and - in recent times - a considerable force in the sport.

A recent trading update from the retailer Halfords revealed that over the first seven weeks of the new year, its cycling sales were up 43 per cent from a year earlier on a like-for-like basis.

The automotive and cycling products retailer had already managed to double its pre-tax profit for the 26 weeks to October 2.

While the new study showed that imports - at more than 2.2 million units - continue to claim the lion’s share of the French market, it also indicated that domestic manufacturers were being helped by the current popularity of electric bikes.

Folding bicycles also sold relatively strongly in France in 2020.

Unit sales of road bikes, by contrast, were down by 13 per cent.