LENS, PAS-DE-CALAIS

'Lens' is a ''commune'' in northern France, in the Pas-de-Calais ''département''. It is one of France's large ''Picarde'' cities along with Lille, Valenciennes, Amiens, Roubaix, Tourcoing, Arras, and Douai.

Contents

Metropolitan area

Economy

Miscellaneous

Famous Lensois

See also

External links

Metropolitan area

Lens belongs to the ''communauté d'agglomération'' of Lens-Liévin (Communaupole) which gathers 36 communes, with a total population of 250,000 inhabitants.
Lens, along with Douai, forms the metropolitan area (in French: ''aire urbaine'') of Douai-Lens, whose population at the 1999 census was 552,682.

Economy

The city is an industrial and mining centre and has a long history of coal mining. Surrounding the town are many large slag heaps.

Miscellaneous

The city supports a top-level football team, Racing Club de Lens.
Very close from there, the Vimy Memorial, is at Vimy Ridge.
Lens will also be from 2009 the location of the Louvre-Lens.

Famous Lensois

★ Émile Basly, trade unionist then mayor of the city, died there in 1928

★ Maurice Garin, first winner of Tour de France, died there in 1957

See also

★ Stade Félix Bollaert

External links

★ Town council website (in French)

★ Communauté d'Agglomeration of Lens-Liévin