View source for Tour de France

{{Short description|Multi-stage cycling race}}
{{About|the men's multi-stage cycling race|the women's race|Tour de France Femmes|other uses}}
{{Redirect-distinguish|Letour|Latour (disambiguation){{!}}Latour}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox cycling race
| name          = Tour de France
| current_event = 2025 Tour de France
| image         = Tour de France logo (black background).svg
| date          = July
| region        = France and nearby countries
| localnames    = Tour de France {{in lang|fr}}
| nickname      = ''La Grande Boucle'' (The Big Loop)
| discipline    = [[Road bicycle racing|Road]]
| competition   = [[UCI World Tour]]
| type          = [[Grand Tour (cycling)|Grand Tour]]
| organiser     = [[Amaury Sport Organisation]]
| director      = [[Christian Prudhomme]]
| first         = {{start date and age|df=yes|1903|7|1}}
| number        = 112 (as of [[2025 Tour de France|2025]])
| firstwinner   = {{flagathlete|[[Maurice Garin]]|FRA}}
| mostwins      = {{flagathlete|[[Jacques Anquetil]]|FRA}}<br />{{flagathlete|[[Eddy Merckx]]|BEL}}<br />{{flagathlete|[[Bernard Hinault]]|FRA}}<br />{{flagathlete|[[Miguel Induráin]]|ESP}}
:''5 wins each''
| mostrecent    = {{flagathlete|[[Tadej Pogačar]]|SVN}}
| website       = letour.fr
}}

The '''Tour de France''' ({{IPA|fr|tuʁ də fʁɑ̃s}}) is an annual men's multiple-stage [[road bicycle racing|road cycling]] race held primarily in [[France]].<ref name="Telegraph Tour Info">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/cycling/tour-de-france/9400588/The-Tour-de-France-a-guide-to-the-basics.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/cycling/tour-de-france/9400588/The-Tour-de-France-a-guide-to-the-basics.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=The Tour de France: a guide to the basics |first=Joel |last=Gunter |work=The Telegraph |date=16 July 2012 |access-date=30 July 2012}}{{cbignore}}</ref> It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three [[Grand Tour (cycling)|Grand Tours]], which include the [[Giro d'Italia]] and the [[Vuelta a España]].

The race was first organized in [[1903 Tour de France|1903]] to increase sales for the newspaper ''[[L'Auto]]'' (which was an ancestor of ''[[L'Équipe]]'')<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1903.html#story |title=1903 Tour de France |publisher=BikeRaceInfo |date=19 January 1903 |access-date=30 July 2012}}</ref> and has been held annually since, except when it was not held from 1915 to 1918 and 1940 to 1946 due to the two [[World war|World Wars]]. As the Tour gained prominence and popularity, the race was lengthened and gained more international participation. The Tour is a [[UCI World Tour]] event, which means that the teams that compete in the race are mostly [[UCI WorldTeam]]s, with the exception of the teams that the organizers invite.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uci.ch/templates/UCI/UCI2/layout.asp?MenuId=MTUyMjQ |publisher=Union Cycliste Internationale |title=2008–2009 UCI Road Calendar |access-date=6 August 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090217144300/http://www.uci.ch/templates/UCI/UCI2/layout.asp?MenuId=MTUyMjQ |archive-date=17 February 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/530629/uci-worldtour-calendar-2012.html |title=UCI WorldTour calendar 2012 |work=Cycling Weekly |access-date=6 August 2012}}</ref>

Traditionally, the bulk of the race is held in July. While the route changes every year, the format of the race stays the same and includes time trials,<ref name="Telegraph Tour Info"/> passage through the mountain chains of the [[Pyrenees]] and the [[Alps]], and, from 1975 to 2023, a finish on the [[Champs-Élysées stage in the Tour de France|Champs-Élysées]] in Paris.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.letour.fr/2011/TDF/LIVE/us/2100/etape_par_etape.html#zone3 |title=Tour de France 2011&nbsp;– Stage by stage |publisher=LeTour.fr |access-date=30 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111223070556/http://www.letour.fr/2011/TDF/LIVE/us/2100/etape_par_etape.html#zone3 |archive-date=23 December 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bicycling.com/news/2010-tour-de-france/moment-17-1975-tdfs-first-champs-elysees-finish |title=Moment 17: 1975&nbsp;– TDF's First Champs Elysees Finish |work=Bicycling Magazine |access-date=30 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110905075501/http://www.bicycling.com/news/2010-tour-de-france/moment-17-1975-tdfs-first-champs-elysees-finish |archive-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> The modern editions of the Tour de France consist of 21 day-long stages over a 23- or 24-day period and cover approximately {{convert|3500|km}} total.<ref>{{cite web |title=UCI Regulations |page=43 |url=http://www.uci.ch/Modules/BUILTIN/getObject.asp?MenuId=MTkzNg&ObjTypeCode=FILE&type=FILE&id=34028&LangId=1 |access-date=21 July 2009 |edition=2.6.011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110623174023/http://www.uci.ch/Modules/BUILTIN/getObject.asp?MenuId=MTkzNg&ObjTypeCode=FILE&type=FILE&id=34028&LangId=1 |archive-date=23 June 2011}}</ref> Each year, the race alternates between clockwise and counterclockwise circuits of France.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=17}}

Twenty to twenty-three teams of eight riders usually compete. All of the stages are timed to the finish, and the riders' times are compounded with their previous stage times.<ref name="Telegraph Tour Info"/> The rider with the lowest cumulative time is the leader of the race and wears the yellow jersey.<ref name="Telegraph Tour Info"/><ref name="ASO">{{cite web |url=http://www.letour.fr/2006/TDF/LIVE/docs/reglement_2006_us.pdf |publisher=ASO |title=Regulations of the race |access-date=30 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060705025939/http://www.letour.fr/2006/TDF/LIVE/docs/reglement_2006_us.pdf |archive-date=5 July 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref> While the [[General classification in the Tour de France|general classification]] attracts the most attention, there are other contests held within the Tour: the [[Points classification in the Tour de France|points classification]] for the sprinters (green jersey), the [[Mountains classification in the Tour de France|mountains classification]] for the climbers (polka-dot jersey), [[Young rider classification in the Tour de France|young rider classification]] for riders under the age of 26 (white jersey), and the [[Team classification in the Tour de France|team classification]], based on the first three finishers from each team on each stage.<ref name="Telegraph Tour Info"/> Achieving a stage win also provides prestige, often accomplished by a team's [[cycling sprinter|sprint]] specialist or a rider taking part in a breakaway.

A [[Grande Boucle Féminine Internationale|similar race for women]] was held under various names between 1984 and 2009. Following criticism by campaigners and the professional women's peloton, a one/two-day race ([[La Course by Le Tour de France]]) was held between 2014 and 2021. The first [[Tour de France Femmes]] was held in [[2022 Tour de France Femmes|2022]].<ref name=":0" />

==History==
{{See also|List of Tour de France general classification winners}}
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===Origins===
The Tour de France was created in 1903. The roots of the Tour de France trace back to the emergence of two rival sports newspapers in the country. On one hand was ''[[Le Vélo]]'', the first and the largest daily sports newspaper in France,{{sfn|Boeuf|Léonard|2003|p=23}}{{sfn|Nicholson|1991|p=}} on the other was ''[[L'Auto]]'', which had been set up by journalists and businesspeople including Comte [[Jules-Albert de Dion]], [[Adolphe Clément]], and [[Édouard Michelin (born 1859)|Édouard Michelin]] in 1899. The rival paper emerged following disagreements over the [[Dreyfus Affair]]. De Dion, Clément and Michelin were particularly concerned with ''Le Vélo''—which reported more than cycling—because its financial backer was one of their commercial rivals, the Darracq company. De Dion believed ''Le Vélo'' gave Darracq too much attention and him too little. De Dion was rich and could afford to indulge his whims. The new newspaper appointed [[Henri Desgrange]] as the editor. He was a prominent cyclist and owner with Victor Goddet of the [[velodrome]] at the [[Parc des Princes]].{{sfn|Goddet|1991|p=16}}

''L'Auto'' sales were lower than the rival it was intended to surpass, leading to a crisis meeting on 20 November 1902 on the middle floor of ''L'Auto''{{'}}s office at 10 Rue du Faubourg Montmartre, Paris. The last to speak was the chief cycling journalist, a 26-year-old named [[Géo Lefèvre]].{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=}} Lefèvre suggested a six-day race of the sort popular on the track but all around France.{{sfn|Goddet|1991|p=20}} Long-distance cycle races were a popular means to sell more newspapers, but nothing of the length that Lefèvre suggested had been attempted.<ref group="n">Giffard was the first to suggest a race that lasted several days, new to cycling but established practice in car racing. Unlike other cycle races, it would also be run largely without pacers.</ref>

===The first Tour de France (1903)===
{{Main|1903 Tour de France}}
[[File:Wielrennen, Tour de France 1903, SFA001006411.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Maurice Garin]], winner of the first Tour de France standing on the right. The man on the left is possibly [[Leon Georget]] (1903).<ref>[[Spaarnestad Photo]] image number SFA001006411</ref>]]
The first Tour de France was staged in 1903. The plan was a five-stage race from 31 May to 5 July, starting in Paris and stopping in Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux, and Nantes before returning to Paris. Toulouse was added later to break the long haul across [[southern France]] from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic. Stages would go through the night and finish the next afternoon, with rest days before riders set off again, but this proved too daunting and the costs too great for most{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=13}} and only 15 competitors had entered. Desgrange had never been wholly convinced and he came close to dropping the idea.{{sfn|Nicholson|1991|p=44}} Instead, he cut the length to 19 days, changed the dates to 1 to 19 July, and offered a daily allowance to those who averaged at least {{convert|20|km/h}} on all the stages,{{sfn|Cazeneuve|Chany|2011|p=21}} equivalent to what a rider would have expected to earn each day had he worked in a factory.{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=131}} He also cut the entry fee from 20 to 10 francs and set the first prize at 12,000 francs and the prize for each day's winner at 3,000 francs. The winner would thereby win six times what most workers earned in a year.{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=131}} That attracted between 60 and 80 entrants&nbsp;– the higher number may have included serious inquiries and some who dropped out&nbsp;– among them not just professionals but amateurs, some unemployed, and some simply adventurous.{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=}}

The first Tour de France started almost outside the Café Reveil-Matin at the junction of the Melun and Corbeil roads in the village of [[Montgeron]]. It was waved away by the starter, Georges Abran, at 3:16&nbsp;p.m. on 1 July 1903. ''L'Auto'' hadn't featured the race on its front page that morning.<ref group="n">L'Auto preferred to concentrate on the Coupe Gordon-Bennett car race, even though it wasn't to start for another 48 hours. The choice reflects not only that the Tour de France was an unknown quantity&nbsp;– only after the first race had finished did it establish a reputation&nbsp;– but it hints at Desgrange's uncertainty. His position as editor depended on raising sales. That would happen if the Tour succeeded. But the paper and his employers would lose much money if it didn't. Desgrange preferred to keep a distance. He didn't drop the flag at the start and he didn't follow the riders. Reporting was left to Lefèvre, whose idea it had been, who followed the race by bike and by train. Desgrange showed a personal interest in his race only when it looked a success.</ref>{{sfn|Cazeneuve|Chany|2011|p=26}}{{sfn|Allchin|Bell|2003|p=3}}

Among the competitors were the eventual winner, [[Maurice Garin]], his well-built rival [[Hippolyte Aucouturier]], the German favourite [[Josef Fischer (cyclist)|Josef Fischer]], and a collection of adventurers, including one competing as "Samson".<ref group="n">The use of false and often colourful names was not unusual. It reflected not only the daring of the enterprise but the slight scandal still associated with riding bicycle races, enough that some preferred to use a false name. The first city-to-city race, from Paris to Rouen, included many made-up names or simply initials. The first woman to finish had entered as "Miss America", despite not being American.</ref>

Many riders dropped out of the race after completing the initial stages, as the physical effort the tour required was just too much. Only a mere 24 entrants remained at the end of the fourth stage.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Tour de France: The Illustrated History|last = Latzell|first = Marguerite|publisher = Firefly Books|year = 2003|isbn = 1552977366|location = Toronto, Buffalo|url-access = registration|url = https://archive.org/details/tourdefranceillu0000laze|via=Archive.org}}</ref> The race finished on the edge of Paris at Ville d'Avray, outside the Restaurant du Père Auto, before a ceremonial ride into Paris and several laps of the Parc des Princes. Garin dominated the race, winning the first and last two stages, at {{convert|25.68|km/h}}. The last rider, [[Arsène Millocheau]], finished 64h 57m 8s behind him.

''L'Auto''<nowiki/>'s mission was accomplished, as circulation of the publication doubled throughout the race, making the race something much larger than Desgrange had ever hoped for.{{fact|date=November 2024}}

===1904–1939===
Such was the passion that the first Tour created in spectators and riders that Desgrange said the [[1904 Tour de France]] would be the last. Cheating was rife, and riders were beaten up by rival fans as they neared the top of the col de la République, sometimes called the col du Grand Bois, outside St-Étienne.{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2006|p=11}} The leading riders, including the winner Maurice Garin, were disqualified, though it took the Union Vélocipèdique de France until 30 November to make the decision.{{sfn|Seray|2000|p=154}} McGann says the UVF waited so long "...well aware of the passions aroused by the race."{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2006|p=12}} Desgrange's opinion of the fighting and cheating showed in the headline of his reaction in ''L'Auto'': THE END.{{sfn|Seray|2000|p=129}}

By the following spring, Desgrange was planning a longer Tour with 11 stages instead of 6, and this time all the stages would take place during daylight hours to make cheating more noticeable.{{sfn|Seray|2000|p=148}} In 1905, stages started between 3:00 AM and 7:30 AM.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=9}} The race captivated audiences and returned after a hiatus during World War I, continuing to grow in popularity.

Desgrange and his Tour invented [[Race stage|bicycle stage racing]].{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2006|p=}} Desgrange experimented with different ways of judging the winner. Initially he used total accumulated time (as used in the modern Tour de France){{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=7}} but from 1906 to 1912 by points for placings each day.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=9}}<ref group="n">The formula in 1905 was a combination of both time and points. Riders had points deducted for each five minutes lost.</ref> Desgrange saw problems in judging both by time and by points. By time, a rider coping with a mechanical problem—which the rules insisted he repair alone—could lose so much time that it cost him the race. Equally, riders could finish so separated that time gained or lost on one or two days could decide the whole race. Judging the race by points removed over-influential time differences but discouraged competitors from riding hard. It made no difference whether they finished fast or slow or separated by seconds or hours, so they were inclined to ride together at a relaxed pace until close to the line, only then disputing the final placings that would give them points.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=9}}

[[File:Btv1b8442891c-p21 (2).jpg|thumb|1936 Tour de France]]
The format changed over time. The Tour originally ran around the perimeter of France. Cycling was an endurance sport, and the organisers realised the sales they would achieve by creating supermen of the competitors. Night riding was dropped after the second Tour in 1904, when there had been persistent cheating when judges could not see riders.{{sfn|Seray|2000|p=}} That reduced the daily and overall distance, but the emphasis remained on endurance. The first mountain stages (in the [[Pyrenees]]) appeared in [[1910 Tour de France|1910]]. Early tours had long multi-day stages, with the format settling on 15 stages from [[1910 Tour de France|1910]] until [[1924 Tour de France|1924]]. After this, stages were gradually shortened, such that by 1936 there were as many as three stages in a single day.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=36}}

Desgrange initially preferred to see the Tour as a race of individuals. The first Tours were open to whoever wanted to compete. Most riders were in teams that looked after them. The private entrants were called ''touriste-routiers—''tourists of the road—from 1923{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=23}} and were allowed to take part provided they make no demands on the organisers. Some of the Tour's most colourful characters have been touriste-routiers. One finished each day's race and then performed acrobatic tricks in the street to raise the price of a hotel. Until 1925, Desgrange forbade team members from pacing each other.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=25}} The [[1927 Tour de France|1927]] and [[1928 Tour de France|1928]] Tours, however, consisted mainly of [[team time-trial]]s, an unsuccessful experiment which sought to avoid a proliferation of sprint finishes on flat stages.{{Sfn|Augendre|1996|p=27}}

Until [[1930 Tour de France|1930]], Desgrange demanded that riders mend their bicycles without help and that they use the same bicycle from start to end. Exchanging a damaged bicycle for another was allowed only in [[1923 Tour de France|1923]].{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=23}} Desgrange stood against the use of multiple gears, and for many years insisted riders use wooden rims, fearing the heat of braking while coming down mountains would melt the glue that held the tires on metal rims (however, they were finally allowed in [[1937 Tour de France|1937]]).{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=37}}

By the end of the 1920s, Desgrange believed he could not beat what he believed were the underhand tactics of bike factories.{{sfn|Masso|2003|p=50}}{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2006|p=84}} When in [[1929 Tour de France|1929]] the [[Alcyon]] team contrived to get [[Maurice De Waele]] to win even though he was sick,{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=30}} he said, "My race has been won by a corpse".{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=30}}<ref>"Tour de France, 100 ans, 1903–2003", ''L'Équipe'', France, 2003, p182</ref> In [[1930 Tour de France|1930]], Desgrange again attempted to take control of the Tour from teams, insisting competitors enter in national teams rather than trade teams and that competitors ride plain yellow bicycles that he would provide, without a maker's name.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=30}} There was no place for individuals in the post-1930s teams, and so Desgrange created regional teams, generally from France, to take in riders who would not otherwise have qualified. The original touriste-routiers mostly disappeared, but some were absorbed into regional teams.

Desgrange died at home on the Mediterranean coast on 16 August 1940.{{sfn|Goddet|1991|p=}} The race was taken over by his deputy, [[Jacques Goddet]].<ref>''Tour de France, 100 ans, 1903–2003'', L'Équipe, France, 2003, p227</ref> The Tour was again disrupted by War after 1939, and did not return until [[1947 Tour de France|1947]].

===1947–1969===
[[File:Jacques Goddet Memorial.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Jacques Goddet]] memorial at the top of the [[Col du Tourmalet]]]]

In 1944, ''L'Auto'' was closed—its doors nailed shut—and its belongings, including the Tour, sequestrated by the state for publishing articles too close to the Germans.<ref name="Liberation1">Libération, France, 4 July 2003.</ref> Rights to the Tour were therefore owned by the government. Jacques Goddet was allowed to publish another daily sports paper, ''L'Équipe'', but there was a rival candidate to run the Tour: a consortium of ''Sports'' and ''Miroir Sprint''. Each organised a candidate race. ''L'Équipe'' and ''Le Parisien Libéré'' had La Course du Tour de France,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cyclingrevealed.com/timeline/Race%20Snippets/TdF/TdF1940_46.htm |title=Cycling Revealed&nbsp;– Tour de France Timeline |publisher=Cyclingrevealed.com |access-date=18 July 2009}}</ref> while ''Sports'' and ''Miroir Sprint'' had La Ronde de France. Both were five stages, the longest the government would allow because of shortages.{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=}} ''L'Équipe''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s race was better organised and appealed more to the public because it featured national teams that had been successful before the war, when French cycling was at a high. ''L'Équipe'' was given the right to organise the [[1947 Tour de France]].{{sfn|Goddet|1991|p=}} However, ''L'Équipe''{{'}}s finances were never sound, and Goddet accepted an advance by Émilion Amaury, who had supported his bid to run the postwar Tour.{{sfn|Goddet|1991|p=}} Amaury was a newspaper magnate whose sole condition was that his sports editor, [[Félix Lévitan]], should join Goddet for the Tour.{{sfn|Goddet|1991|p=}} The two worked together—with Goddet running the sporting side, and Lévitan the financial.

On the Tour's return, the format of the race settled on between 20 and 25 stages. Most stages would last one day, but the scheduling of 'split' stages continued well into the 1980s. [[1953 Tour de France|1953]] saw the introduction of the [[Points classification in the Tour de France|Green Jersey]] 'Points' competition. National teams contested the Tour until [[1961 Tour de France|1961]].{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=55}} The teams were of different sizes. Some nations had more than one team, and some were mixed in with others to make up the number. National teams caught the public imagination but had a snag: that riders might normally have been in rival trade teams the rest of the season. The loyalty of riders was sometimes questionable, within and between teams. Sponsors were always unhappy about releasing their riders into anonymity for the biggest race of the year, as riders in national teams wore the colours of their country and a small cloth panel on their chest that named the team for which they normally rode. The situation became critical at the start of the 1960s. Sales of bicycles had fallen, and bicycle factories were closing.{{sfn|Masso|2003|p=122}} There was a risk, the trade said, that the industry would die if factories were not allowed the publicity of the Tour de France. The Tour returned to trade teams in 1962.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=55}} In the same year, Émilion Amaury, owner of ''le Parisien Libéré'', became financially involved in the Tour. He made [[Félix Lévitan]] co-organizer of the Tour, and it was decided that Levitan would focus on the financial issues, while [[Jacques Goddet]] was put in charge of sporting issues.{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2006|pp=253–259}} The Tour de France was meant for professional cyclists, but in 1961 the organisation started the [[Tour de l'Avenir]], the amateur version.{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=115}}

Twice, in [[1949 Tour de France|1949]] and [[1952 Tour de France|1952]], Italian rider [[Fausto Coppi]] won the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France in the same year, the first rider to do so.

[[Louison Bobet]] was the first great French rider of the post-war period and the first rider to win the Tour in three successive years, [[1953 Tour de France|1953]], [[1954 Tour de France|1954]] and [[1955 Tour de France|1955]].

[[File:Raymond Poulidor, Jacques Anquetil and Federico Bahamontes podium, Tour de France 1964 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|[[Jacques Anquetil]] (centre), [[Raymond Poulidor]] (left) and [[Federico Bahamontes]] (right), podium of the [[1964 Tour de France]]]]
[[Jacques Anquetil]] became the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times, in [[1957 Tour de France|1957]] and from [[1961 Tour de France|1961]] to [[1964 Tour de France|1964]].<ref name="sports-reference">{{cite web|url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/an/jacques-anquetil-1.html |title=Jacques Anquetil Olympic Results |access-date=28 December 2012 |work=sports-reference.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121214112523/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/an/jacques-anquetil-1.html |archive-date=14 December 2012 }}</ref> He stated before the 1961 Tour that he would gain the yellow jersey on day one and wear it all through the tour, a tall order with two previous winners in the field—[[Charly Gaul]] and [[Federico Bahamontes]]—but he did it.{{efn|Anquetil took the yellow jersey after the second half-stage (time trial) of the first day, Darrigade having won the first half-stage.}} His victories in stage races such as the Tour were built on an exceptional ability to ride alone against the clock in [[individual time trial]] stages, which lent him the name ''"Monsieur Chrono"''. Anquetil enjoyed a rivalry with [[Raymond Poulidor]], who was known as "''The Eternal Second''", because he never won the Tour, despite finishing in second place three times, and in third place five times (including his final Tour at the age of 40).

Doping had become a serious problem, culminating in the [[death of Tom Simpson]] in [[1967 Tour de France|1967]], after which riders went on strike,{{Sfn|Augendre|1996|p=59}}{{sfn|Nicholson|1991|p=50}} although the organisers suspected sponsors provoked them. The [[Union Cycliste Internationale]] introduced limits to daily and overall distances, imposed rest days, and tests were introduced for riders. It was then impossible to follow the frontiers, and the Tour increasingly zig-zagged across the country, sometimes with unconnected days' races linked by train, while still maintaining some sort of loop. The Tour returned to national teams for 1967 and [[1968 Tour de France|1968]]{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=60}} as "an experiment".{{sfn|Masso|2003|p=126}} The Tour returned to trade teams in [[1969 Tour de France|1969]]{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=62}} with a suggestion that national teams could come back every few years, but this has not happened since.

===1969–1987===
In the early 1970s, the race was dominated by [[Eddy Merckx]], who won the [[General classification in the Tour de France|General Classification]] five times, the [[Mountains classification in the Tour de France|Mountains Classification]] twice, the [[Points classification in the Tour de France|Points Classification]] three times and [[Tour de France records and statistics#Stage wins per rider|held the record for the most stage victories (34)]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Eddy Merckx reflects on his career and life on his 70th birthday|date=17 June 2015|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/eddy-merckx-reflects-on-his-career-and-life-on-his-70th-birthday/|work=Cycling News|access-date=28 July 2015}}</ref> until overtaken by [[Mark Cavendish]] in 2024. Merckx's dominating style earned him the nickname "The Cannibal". In [[1969 Tour de France|1969]], he already had a commanding lead when he launched a long-distance solo attack in the mountains which none of the other elite riders could answer, resulting in an eventual winning margin of nearly eighteen minutes. In [[1973 Tour de France|1973]] he did not win because he did not enter the Tour; instead, his great rival [[Luis Ocaña]] won. Merckx's winning streak came to an end when he finished 2nd to [[Bernard Thévenet]] in [[1975 Tour de France|1975]].

During this era, race director Felix Lévitan began to recruit additional sponsors, sometimes accepting prizes in kind if he could not get cash. In [[1975 Tour de France|1975]], the polka-dot jersey was introduced for the winner of the [[Mountains classification in the Tour de France|Mountains Classification]].<ref name="Gard Obit">{{cite news|last1=Fotheringham|first1=William|title=Obituary: Félix Lévitan|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2007/apr/03/guardianobituaries.cycling|work=The Guardian|access-date=28 July 2015}}</ref>{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=69}} This same year Levitan also introduced the finish of the Tour at the Avenue des [[Champs-Élysées]]. Since then, this stage has been largely ceremonial and is generally only contested as a prestigious sprinters' stage. (See 'Notable Stages' below for examples of non-ceremonial finishes to this stage.) Occasionally, a rider will be given the honor of leading the rest of the [[peloton]] onto the circuit finish in their final Tour, as was the case for [[Jens Voigt]] and [[Sylvain Chavanel]], among others.
[[File:Bernard Hinault 1978.jpg|thumb|upright|right|[[Bernard Hinault]] at the [[1978 Tour de France]]]]
From the late 1970s and into the early 1980s, the Tour was dominated by Frenchman [[Bernard Hinault]], who would become the third rider to win five times. Hinault was defeated by [[Joop Zoetemelk]] in [[1980 Tour de France|1980]] when he withdrew, and only once in his Tour de France career was he soundly defeated, and this was by [[Laurent Fignon]] in [[1984 Tour de France|1984]]. In [[1986 Tour de France|1986]], Hinault, who had won [[1985 Tour de France|the year before]] with American rider [[Greg LeMond]] [[Domestique|supporting]] him, publicly pledged to ride in support of LeMond. Several attacks during the race cast doubt on the sincerity of his promise, leading to a rift between the two riders and the entire [[La Vie Claire]] team, before LeMond prevailed. It was the first ever victory for a rider from outside of Europe. The 1986 Tour is widely considered to be one of the most memorable in the history of the sport due to the battle between LeMond and Hinault.

The [[1987 Tour de France|1987 edition]] was more uncertain than past editions, as previous winners Hinault and Zoetemelk had retired, LeMond was absent, and Fignon was suffering from a lingering injury. As such, the race was highly competitive, and the lead changed hands eight times before [[Stephen Roche]] won. When Roche won the [[1987 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|World Championship Road Race]] later in the season, he became only the second rider (after Merckx) to win [[Triple Crown of Cycling|cycling's Triple Crown]], which meant winning the [[Giro d'Italia]], the Tour and the [[UCI Road World Championships|Road World Cycling Championship]] in one calendar year.

Lévitan helped drive an internationalization of the Tour de France, and cycling in general.<ref name="Gard Obit" /> Roche was the first winner from Ireland; however, in the years leading up to his victory, cyclists from numerous other countries began joining the ranks of the peloton. In [[1982 Tour de France|1982]], [[Sean Kelly (cyclist)|Sean Kelly]] of Ireland (points) and [[Phil Anderson (cyclist)|Phil Anderson]] of Australia (young rider) became the first winners of any Tour classifications from outside cycling's [[Continental Europe]] heartlands, while Lévitan was influential in facilitating the participation in the [[1983 Tour de France|1983 Tour]] by amateur riders from the [[Eastern Bloc]] and Colombia.<ref name="Gard Obit" /> In 1984, for the first time, the Société du Tour de France organized the [[Tour de France Féminin]], a version for women.{{refn|group="n"|A race for female cyclists similar to the men's Tour de France had been organized in 1955, but it was not official.}} It was run in the same weeks as the men's version, and it was won by [[Marianne Martin]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.net/feminines/tdf_feminin.php |title=Tour de France féminin |language=fr |publisher=Memoire du Cyclisme |date=23 November 2008 |access-date=27 March 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120510052454/https://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.net/feminines/tdf_feminin.php |archive-date=10 May 2012}}</ref>

While the global awareness and popularity of the Tour grew during this time, its finances became stretched.<ref name="CN obit">{{cite web|title=Remembering Félix Lévitan|date=21 February 2007|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/remembering-felix-levitan/|work=Cycling News}}</ref> Goddet and Lévitan continued to clash over the running of the race.<ref name="CN obit" /> Lévitan launched the Tour of America as a precursor to his plans to take the Tour de France to the US.<ref name="CN obit" /> The Tour of America lost much money, and it appeared to have been cross-financed by the Tour de France.{{sfn|Goddet|1991|p=}} In the years before 1987, Lévitan's position had always been protected by [[Émilien Amaury]], the then owner of [[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]], but Émilien Amaury would soon retire and leave son [[Philippe Amaury]] responsible. When Lévitan arrived at his office on 17 March 1987, he found that his doors were locked and he was fired. The organisation of the 1987 Tour de France was taken over by Jean-François Naquet-Radiguet.{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2008|pp=171–178}} He was not successful in acquiring more funds, and was fired within one year.<ref name="Cyclismas">{{cite web | title=The Rise of the Amaurys (Part 2 in a series) | work=Cyclismas | url=http://www.cyclismas.com/biscuits/philippe-amaury/ | access-date=17 September 2020}}</ref>

=== 1988–1997 ===
Months before the start of the 1988 Tour, director Jean-François Naquet-Radiguet was replaced by Xavier Louy.{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2008|pp=178–184}} In 1988, the Tour was organised by [[Jean-Pierre Courcol]], the director of ''L'Équipe'', then in 1989 by Jean-Pierre Carenso and then by [[Jean-Marie Leblanc]], who in 1989 had been race director. The former television presenter [[Christian Prudhomme]]—he commentated on the Tour among other events—replaced Leblanc in 2007, having been assistant director for three years. In 1993 ownership of ''L'Équipe'' moved to the [[Amaury Group]], which formed [[Amaury Sport Organisation]] (ASO) to oversee its sports operations, although the Tour itself is operated by its subsidiary the Société du Tour de France.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=87}}
[[File:Miguel INDURAIN (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Miguel Induráin]] at the [[1993 Tour de France]]]]
1988 onward was arguably the beginning of what can be referred to as the doping era. A new drug, [[erythropoietin]] (EPO), began to be used; it could not be detected by drug tests of the time. [[Pedro Delgado]] won the [[1988 Tour de France]] by a considerable margin, and in [[1989 Tour de France|1989]] and [[1990 Tour de France|1990]] LeMond returned from injury and won back-to-back Tours, with the 1989 edition still standing as the closest two-way battle in TDF history, with LeMond claiming an 8-second victory on the final time trial to best Laurent Fignon.

The early 1990s was dominated by Spaniard [[Miguel Induráin]], who won five Tours from [[1991 Tour de France|1991]] to [[1995 Tour de France|1995]], the fourth, and last, to win five times, and the only five-time winner to achieve those victories consecutively. He wore the race leader's yellow jersey in the Tour de France for 60 days. He holds the record for the most consecutive Tour de France wins and shares the record for most wins with [[Jacques Anquetil]], [[Bernard Hinault]] and [[Eddy Merckx]].<ref name="SportsRef">{{cite web |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/in/miguel-indurain-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418050159/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/in/miguel-indurain-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 April 2020 |title=Miguel Induráin Olympic Results |access-date=18 May 2015 |work=Sports Reference}}</ref> Induráin was a strong [[Individual time trial|time trialist]], gaining on rivals and riding defensively in the climbing stages. Induráin won only two Tour stages that were not [[individual time trial]]s: mountain stages to [[Cauterets]] (1989) and [[Luz Ardiden]] (1990) in the [[Pyrenees]]. These superior abilities in the discipline fit perfectly with the time trial heavy Tours of the era, with many featuring between 150 and 200&nbsp;km of time trialling vs the more common 50–80&nbsp;km today.

The influx of more international riders continued through this period, as in [[1996 Tour de France|1996]] the race was won for the first time by a rider from Denmark, [[Bjarne Riis]], who ended Miguel Induráin's reign with an attack on [[Hautacam]]. On 25 May 2007, Bjarne Riis admitted that he placed first in the Tour de France using banned substances, and he was no longer considered the winner by the Tour's organizers.<ref>{{cite news|url = https://www.espn.com/olympics/cycling/news/story?id=2896276 |title = Tour no longer lists Riis as champ after doping admission| agency=Associated Press/ESPN| date=7 June 2007}}</ref> In July 2008, the Tour reconfirmed his victory but with an asterisk label to indicate his doping offences.<ref name="GuideHistorique">{{cite web|url=http://www.letour.fr/2009/TDF/COURSE/docs/histo2009_05.pdf|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|page=95|title=Guide Historique|author=Augendre, Jacques|language=fr|access-date=18 August 2009|year=2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019082316/http://www.letour.fr/2009/TDF/COURSE/docs/histo2009_05.pdf|archive-date=19 October 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2013 [[Jan Ullrich]], the first German rider to win the Tour (in [[1997 Tour de France|1997]]), admitted to blood doping.

=== 1998–2011 ===
During the [[1998 Tour de France]], a doping scandal known as the [[Festina Affair]] shook the sport to its core when it became apparent that there was systematic doping going on in the sport. Numerous riders and a handful of teams were either thrown out of the race, or left of their own free will, and in the end [[Marco Pantani]] survived to win his lone Tour in a decimated main field. The [[1999 Tour de France]] was billed as the ‘Tour of Renewal’ as the sport tried to clean up its image following the doping fiasco of the previous year. Initially it seemed to be a [[Cinderella (sports)|Cinderella]] story when [[cancer]] survivor [[Lance Armstrong]] stole the show on [[Sestriere]] and kept on riding to the first of his astonishing seven consecutive Tour de France victories; however, in retrospect, 1999 was just the beginning of the doping problem getting far worse. Following Armstrong's retirement in [[2005 Tour de France|2005]], the [[2006 Tour de France|2006]] edition saw his former teammate [[Floyd Landis]] finally get the chance to win the Tour in the final time trial with a stunning and improbable solo breakaway in Stage 17. Not long after the Tour was over, however, Landis admitted to doping and had his Tour win revoked.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2010/0520/Floyd-Landis-admits-doping-to-clear-his-conscience-implicates-Lance-Armstrong|title=Floyd Landis admits doping to clear his conscience, implicates Lance Armstrong|date=20 May 2010|work=Christian Science Monitor|access-date=26 March 2020|issn=0882-7729}}</ref>
[[File:Tour de France 2009, andy en albert (22014224710).jpg|thumb|left|[[Andy Schleck]] (left) and [[Alberto Contador]] (right) at the [[2009 Tour de France]]]]
Over the next few years, a new star in [[Alberto Contador]] came onto the scene;<ref>{{Cite news|last=Fotheringham|first=William|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2017/aug/07/alberto-contador-retire-cycling-vuelta-a-espana|title=Alberto Contador leaves a legacy of cavalier racing and controversy|date=7 August 2017|work=The Guardian|access-date=26 March 2020|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> however, during the [[2007 Tour de France|2007]] edition, a veteran Danish rider, [[Michael Rasmussen (cyclist)|Michael Rasmussen]], was in the [[maillot jaune]] late in the Tour, in position to win, when his own team sacked him for a possible doping infraction;<ref>{{cite web|title=I am a Drug Cheat and a Liar Says Former Rival of Cadel Evans
|work=Sydney Morning Herald |date=1 February 2013 |url=https://www.smh.com.au/sport/cycling/i-am-a-drug-cheat-and-a-liar-says-former-rival-of-cadel-evans-20130201-2dowo.html}}</ref> this allowed the rising star Contador to ride mistake-free for the remaining stages to win his first. [[2008 Tour de France|2008]] saw a Tour where so many riders were doping that, when it went ten days without a single doping incident, it became news.<ref name="Jamey Keaten">{{cite web|title=Carlos Sastre Wins Doping Scarred Tour
|publisher=Jamey Keaten |date=27 July 2008 |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/carlos-sastre-wins-doping-scarred-tour/}}</ref> It was during this Tour that a UCI official was quoted as saying, "These guys are crazy, and the sooner they start learning, the better."<ref name="Jamey Keaten"/> [[Roger Legeay]], a [[Directeur Sportif]] for one of the teams noted how riders were secretly and anonymously buying doping products on the internet. Like Greg LeMond at the beginning of the EPO era, 2008 winner [[Carlos Sastre]] was a rider who went his entire career without a single doping incident and between approximately 1994 and 2011 this was the only Tour to have a winner with a clear biological passport.<ref>{{cite web|title=Lemond: Doping Era Denied Evans His Best Years
|publisher=Cycling Central SBS |date=7 April 2015 |url=https://www.sbs.com.au/cyclingcentral/article/2015/01/22/lemond-doping-era-denied-evans-his-best-years}}</ref> 2009 saw the [[2009 Tour de France|return]] of Lance Armstrong and, strangely, after Contador was able to defeat his teammate, [[Der er et yndigt land|the Danish National Anthem]] was mistakenly played. No Danish rider was in contention in 2009, and Rasmussen, the only Danish rider capable of winning the Tour during this era, was not even in the race. Another rider absent was Floyd Landis, who had asked Armstrong to get him back on a team to ride the Tour once more, but Armstrong refused because Landis was a convicted doper. Landis joined [[UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling (men's team)|OUCH]], an American continental team, and not long after this initiated contact with USADA to discuss Armstrong.

In [[2011 Tour de France|2011]], [[Cadel Evans]] became the first Australian to win the Tour after coming up just short several times in the previous few editions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.espn.co.uk/olympics/tdf2011/story/_/id/6797580/2011-tour-de-france-cadel-evans-becomes-first-australian-win|title=Evans first Australian to capture Tour de France|date=24 July 2011|work=ESPN.co.uk|access-date=26 May 2020}}</ref> The [[2012 Tour de France]] was won by the first British rider to ever win the Tour, [[Bradley Wiggins]], while finishing on the podium just behind him was [[Chris Froome]], who along with Contador became the next big stars to attempt to contest the giants of [[Jacques Anquetil|Anquetil]], Merckx, Hinault, Indurain and Armstrong.
[[File:Tour de France 2016, froome (27979590983).jpg|thumb|right|[[Chris Froome]] at the [[2016 Tour de France]]]]
Overshadowing the entire sport at this time, however, was the [[Lance Armstrong doping case]], which finally revealed much of the truth about doping in cycling.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2018/10/24/lance-armstrong-doping-scandal-panel-delivers-final-justice/1757954002/|title=Final justice handed down in Lance Armstrong doping scandal|access-date=15 September 2020|first=Brent|last=Schrotenboer|work=USA Today|date=17 December 2019}}</ref> As a result, the UCI decided that each of Armstrong's seven wins would be revoked. This decision cleared the names of many people, including lesser-known riders, reporters, team medical staff, and even the wife of a rider who had their reputations tarnished or had been forced from the sport due to pressure from Armstrong and his support staff. Much of this only became possible after Floyd Landis came forward to [[USADA]]. Also around this time, an investigation by the French government into doping in cycling revealed that way back during the 1998 Tour, close to 90% of the riders who were tested, retroactively tested positive for EPO.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-doping-cycling-france/french-senate-lays-bare-doping-in-1998-tour-de-france-idUSBRE96N0PA20130724|title=French Senate lays bare doping in 1998 Tour de France|first=Alexandria|last=Sag|access-date=15 September 2020|work=Reuters|date=24 July 2013}}</ref> {{Failed verification|date=May 2024}} The result of these doping scandals being that in the case of Landis in 2006, and Contador in 2010, new winners were declared in [[Óscar Pereiro]] and [[Andy Schleck]], respectively; however, in the case of the seven Tours revoked from Armstrong, no alternative winner was ever named.

=== Since 2012 ===
[[File:Tour de France, 2014 02.jpg|thumb|Tour de France, Yorkshire (England), 2014]]
[[Ineos Grenadiers|Team Sky]] dominated the event for several years, with wins for [[Bradley Wiggins]], [[Chris Froome]] (four times) and [[Geraint Thomas]] before [[Egan Bernal]] became the first Colombian winner in 2019.  The streak was interrupted only by [[Vincenzo Nibali]]'s [[2014 Tour de France|2014]] win.
[[File:TDF3033 pogacar vingegaard (52243724489).jpg|thumb|left|[[Tadej Pogačar]] (''right'') and [[Jonas Vingegaard]] (left) during the [[2022 Tour de France]]]]
Due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic in France|COVID-19]] outbreak, the [[2020 Tour de France|2020 Tour]] started in late August,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/52275648|title=Tour de France to go ahead at end of August after coronavirus delay|date=15 April 2020|publisher=BBC Sport|access-date=15 April 2020}}</ref> the first time since the end of World War II that the Tour was not held in July.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lindsey |first1=Joe |title=The Tour de France Goes Virtual |date=29 June 2020 |url=https://www.outsideonline.com/2415248/tour-de-france-virtual-online-coronavirus |publisher=Outside |access-date=30 June 2020}}</ref>  This saw the first of two successive victories for [[Tadej Pogačar]] of [[UAE Team Emirates]], who was the first Slovenian winner, and the second youngest (at 21) after Henri Cornet in 1904. He also won the mountain and youth classifications, becoming the first rider since Eddy Merckx in [[1972 Tour de France|1972]] to win three jerseys in a single Tour.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tadej Pogačar: Shark in Sheeps Clothing|author=Patrick Fletcher |date=20 September 2020 |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/features/tadej-pogacar-shark-in-sheeps-clothing-tour-de-france-champion/}}</ref>  Pogačar repeated this triple in [[2021 Tour de France|2021]]. On stage 13 of this Tour, sprinter [[Mark Cavendish]] tied the record of [[Eddy Merckx]] for all time stage wins with 34.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mark Cavendish ties Eddy Merckx's record 34 Tour de France stage wins
|publisher=NBC Sports by Associated Press
|date=9 July 2021
|url=https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2021/07/09/mark-cavendish-tour-de-france-stage-wins-merckx/
}}</ref>

Danish rider [[Jonas Vingegaard]], second in 2021, won in both [[2022 Tour de France|2022]] and [[2023 Tour de France|2023]], with Pogačar coming second both times. The 2022 race was followed by the [[2022 Tour de France Femmes|Tour de France Femmes]], the first official Tour de France for women since 1989.<ref name=":3" />

In [[2024 Tour de France|2024]], Pogačar took back the Tour title, winning by more than six minutes over Vingegaard while Tour debutant, [[Remco Evenepoel]], rounded out the podium. Pogačar won six stages, including five of the last eight stages. With his win, he became only the eighth rider, and the first since [[Marco Pantani]] in [[1998 Tour de France|1998]], to win the [[Giro d'Italia]] and the Tour de France in the same calendar year.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tadej Pogacar wraps up Tour de France victory to seal historic double|author=Jeremy Whittle|work=The Guardian|date=21 July 2024|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/jul/21/tadej-pogacar-wraps-up-tour-de-france-victory-to-seal-historic-double}}</ref> On stage 5 of the race, sprinter [[Mark Cavendish]] won his 35th overall Tour stage win, breaking the tie between him and [[Eddy Merckx]], who held the record for 49 years, for the all-time stage wins record in the Tour.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tour de France: Cavendish breaks Merckx's record with 35th stage win
|publisher=Le Monde
|date=3 July 2024
|url=https://www.lemonde.fr/en/sports/article/2024/07/03/tour-de-france-cavendish-breaks-merckx-s-record-with-35th-stage-win_6676578_9.html
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=A tribute to Cavendish
|publisher=Le Tour
|date=3 July 2024
|url=https://www.letour.fr/es/video/8749/a-tribute-to-cavendish-etapa-5-tour-de-france-2024
}}</ref>

==Classifications==
[[File:Festivélo - Tour de France jerseys 01.jpg|thumb|right|The four jerseys of the [[2020 Tour de France]]]]
The oldest and main competition in the Tour de France is known as the "general classification", for which the yellow jersey is awarded; the winner of this is said to have won the race.<ref name="SL exp">{{cite web|url=http://www.sportinglife.com/other-sports/news/article/678/8788944/tour-de-france-jerseys-explained|title=Tour de France jerseys explained|date=1 July 2013|access-date=18 July 2013|work=Sporting Life|publisher=British Sky Broadcasting|archive-date=27 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130627030924/http://www.sportinglife.com/other-sports/news/article/678/8788944/tour-de-france-jerseys-explained|url-status=dead}}</ref> A few riders from each team aim to win overall, but there are three further competitions to draw riders of all specialties: points, mountains, and a classification for young riders with general classification aspirations.<ref name="SL exp"/> The leader of each of the aforementioned classifications wears a distinctive jersey, with riders leading multiple classifications wearing the jersey of the most prestigious that he leads.<ref name="SL exp"/> In addition to these four classifications, there are several minor and discontinued classifications that are competed for during the race.<ref name="SL exp"/>

===General classification===
{{Main|General classification in the Tour de France}}
{{See also|List of Tour de France general classification winners|Yellow jersey statistics}}

[[File:Voigt Cancellara TDF 2010 Cambrai (cropped).JPG|thumb|upright|[[Fabian Cancellara]] pictured at the [[2010 Tour de France]]. He is the rider who has worn the yellow jersey as leader of the [[General classification in the Tour de France|general classification]] for the most days without having ever been the overall winner]]
The oldest and most sought-after classification in the Tour de France is the general classification.<ref name="SL exp"/><ref name="clasexp">{{cite web|url=http://www.roadcycling.co.nz/TourdeFrance/tour-de-france-demystified-part-1.html |title=Tour de France demystified&nbsp;— Evaluating success |first=Sarah |last=Christian |date=2 July 2009 |access-date=18 July 2013 |publisher=RoadCycling|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130209134934/http://www.roadcycling.co.nz/TourdeFrance/tour-de-france-demystified-part-1.html |archive-date=9 February 2013}}</ref> All of the stages are timed to the finish.<ref name="clasexp"/> The riders' times are compounded with their previous stage times; so the rider with the lowest aggregate time is the leader of the race.<ref name="SL exp"/><ref name="clasexp"/> The leader is determined after each stage's conclusion: he gains the privilege to wear the yellow jersey, presented on a podium in the stage's finishing town, for the next stage. If he is leading more than one classification that awards a jersey, he wears the yellow one, since the general classification is the most important one in the race.<ref name="ASO"/> Between [[1905 Tour de France|1905]] and [[1912 Tour de France|1912]] inclusive, in response to concerns about rider cheating in the [[1904 Tour de France|1904 race]], the general classification was awarded according to a point-based system based on their placings in each stage, and the rider with the lowest total of points after the Tour's conclusion was the winner.<ref name="clasexp"/>

The leader in the [[1903 Tour de France|first Tour de France]] was awarded a green armband.{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=}} The yellow jersey (the color was chosen as the newspaper that created the Tour, ''[[L'Auto]]'', was printed on yellow paper), was added to the race in the 1919 edition and it has since become a symbol of the Tour de France.<ref name="SL exp"/> The first rider to wear the yellow jersey was [[Eugène Christophe]]. Riders usually try to make the extra effort to keep the jersey for as long as possible in order to get more publicity for the team and its sponsors. [[Eddy Merckx]] wore the yellow jersey for 96 stages, which is more than any other rider in the history of the Tour. Four riders have won the general classification five times in their career: [[Jacques Anquetil]], [[Eddy Merckx]], [[Bernard Hinault]], and [[Miguel Induráin]].

===Mountains classification===
{{Main|Mountains classification in the Tour de France}}

[[File:Richard Virenque - Tour de France 2003 - Alpe d'Huez (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|[[Richard Virenque]] pictured at the [[2003 Tour de France]] wearing the polka dot jersey. He won the [[Mountains classification in the Tour de France|mountains classification]] a record seven times.]]
The mountains classification is the second-oldest jersey awarding classification in the Tour de France. The mountains classification was added to the Tour de France in the [[1933 Tour de France|1933 edition]] and was first won by [[Vicente Trueba]].<ref name="SL exp"/>{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=203}} Prizes for the classification were first awarded in [[1934 Tour de France|1934]].{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=203}} During stages of the race containing climbs, points are awarded to the first riders to reach the top of each categorized climb, with points available for up to the first 10 riders, depending on the classification of the climb. Climbs are classified according to the steepness and length of that particular hill, with more points available for harder climbs. The classification was preceded by the ''meilleur grimpeur'' ({{langx|en|best climber}}) which was awarded by the organising newspaper ''L'Auto'' to a cyclist who completed each race.

The classification awarded no jersey to the leader until the [[1975 Tour de France]], when the organizers decided to award a distinctive white jersey with red dots to the leader. This is colloquially referred to in English as the "polka dot" jersey.<ref name="SL exp"/>{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=203}} The climbers' jersey is worn by the rider who, at the start of each stage, has the largest number of climbing points.<ref name="clasexp"/> If the race leader is also leading the Mountains classification, the polka dot jersey will be worn by the next eligible rider in the Mountains standings. At the end of the Tour, the rider holding the most climbing points wins the classification. Some riders may race with the aim of winning this particular competition, while others who gain points early on may shift their focus to the classification during the race. The Tour has five categories for ranking the mountains the race covers. The scale ranges from category 4, the easiest, to hors catégorie, the hardest. During his career [[Richard Virenque]] won the mountains classification a record seven times.

The point distribution for the mountains in the 2019 event was:<ref>{{cite web |url=https://netstorage.lequipe.fr/ASO/cycling_tdf/rules-reglement-tour-de-france-2019.pdf |title=Tour de France 2019&nbsp;– Rules |publisher=Letour.fr |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190701191111/https://netstorage.lequipe.fr/ASO/cycling_tdf/rules-reglement-tour-de-france-2019.pdf |archive-date=1 July 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan=2|Type||1st||2nd||3rd||4th||5th||6th||7th||8th
|-
|[[File:Mountainstage.svg]]||align=left|Hors catégorie||20||15||12||10||8||6||4||2
|-
|[[File:Mountainstage.svg]]||align=left|First Category||10||8||6||4||2||1|| ||
|-
|[[File:Mediummountainstage.svg]]||align=left|Second Category||5||3||2||1|| || || ||
|-
|[[File:Mediummountainstage.svg]]||align=left|Third Category||2||1|| || || || || ||
|-
|[[File:Hillystage.svg]]||align=left|Fourth Category||1|| || || || || || ||
|}
* Points awarded are doubled for HC climbs over 2000m of altitude.

===Points classification===
{{Main|Points classification in the Tour de France}}

[[File:TDF24646 sagan (43769469381).jpg|thumb|right|[[Peter Sagan]] in the [[Points classification in the Tour de France|green jersey]] at the [[2018 Tour de France]]. Sagan won the points classification a record seven times, in [[2012 Tour de France|2012]], [[2013 Tour de France|2013]], [[2014 Tour de France|2014]], [[2015 Tour de France|2015]], [[2016 Tour de France|2016]], [[2018 Tour de France|2018]] and [[2019 Tour de France|2019]]]]
The points classification is the third oldest of the currently awarded jersey classifications.<ref name="SL exp"/> It was introduced in the [[1953 Tour de France]] and was first won by [[Fritz Schär]]. The classification was added to draw the participation of the sprinters as well as celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Tour. Points are given to the first 15 riders to finish a stage, with an additional set of points given to the first 15 riders to cross a pre-determined 'sprint' point during the route of each stage. The point classification leader green jersey is worn by the rider who at the start of each stage, has the greatest number of points.<ref name="clasexp"/>

In the first years, the cyclist received penalty points for not finishing with a high place, so the cyclist with the fewest points was awarded the green jersey. From 1959 on, the system was changed so the cyclists were awarded points for high place finishes (with first place getting the most points, and lower placings getting successively fewer points), so the cyclist with the most points was awarded the green jersey. The number of points awarded varies depending on the type of stage, with flat stages awarding the most points at the finish and time trials and high mountain stages awarding the fewest points at the finish.<ref name="clasexp"/> This increases the likelihood of a sprinter winning the points classification, though other riders can be competitive for the classification if they have a sufficient number of high-place finishes.

The winner of the classification is the rider with the most points at the end of the Tour. In case of a tie, the leader is determined by the number of stage wins, then the number of intermediate sprint victories, and finally, the rider's standing in the general classification. The classification has been won a record seven times by [[Peter Sagan]].<ref name="SL exp"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Peter Sagan toughs it out to win his sixth green jersey in Paris|date=30 July 2018 |url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/peter-sagan-toughs-it-out-to-win-his-sixth-green-jersey-in-paris/ |work=Cycling News |access-date=30 July 2018}}</ref>

The first year the points classification was used it was sponsored by La Belle Jardinière, a lawn mower producer, and the jersey was made green. In [[1968 Tour de France|1968]] the jersey was changed to red to please the sponsor.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cvccbike.com/tour/eddy/xtra_bestanden/green.htm |title=Tour Xtra: Green Jersey |publisher=Cvccbike.com |access-date=3 August 2014 |archive-date=21 September 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070921215202/http://www.cvccbike.com/tour/eddy/xtra_bestanden/green.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> However, the color was changed back the following year. For almost 25 years the classification was sponsored by Pari Mutuel Urbain, a state betting company.{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=203}}<ref name=skoda>{{cite web |url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/tour-de-france/tour-de-france-announces-new-green-jersey-sponsor-163251 |title=Tour de France announces new green jersey sponsor |last1=Clarke |first1=Stuart |date=23 March 2015 |work=Cycling Weekly|access-date=23 March 2015}}</ref> However they announced in November 2014 that they would not be continuing their sponsorship, and in March 2015 it was revealed that the green jersey would now be sponsored by Czech automaker [[Škoda Auto|Škoda]] brand (part of German group [[Volkswagen AG]]).<ref name=skoda />

As of [[2015 Tour de France|2015]], the points awarded are:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.letour.com/le-tour/2015/docs/TDF15_Reglement-BD.pdf|publisher=ASO/letour.fr|title=Regulations of the race|access-date=6 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150707032116/http://www.letour.com/le-tour/2015/docs/TDF15_Reglement-BD.pdf|archive-date=7 July 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan=2|Type||1st||2nd||3rd||4th||5th||6th||7th||8th||9th||10th||11th||12th||13th||14th||15th
|-
|[[File:Plainstage.svg]]||Flat stage finish||50||30||20||18||16||14||12||10||8||rowspan=2|7||rowspan=2|6||rowspan=2|5||rowspan=2|4||rowspan=2|3||rowspan=2|2
|-
|[[File:Mediummountainstage.svg]]||Medium mountain stage finish||30||25||22||19||17||15||13||11||9
|-
|[[File:Mountainstage.svg]]||High mountain stage finish||rowspan=3|20||rowspan=3|17||rowspan=3|15||rowspan=3|13||rowspan=3|11||rowspan=3|10||rowspan=3|9||rowspan=3|8||rowspan=3|7||rowspan=3|6||rowspan=3|5||rowspan=3|4||rowspan=3|3||rowspan=3|2||rowspan=3|1
|-
|[[File:Time Trial.svg|22px]]||Individual time trial
|-
| ||Intermediate sprint
|}

===Young rider classification===
{{Main|Young rider classification in the Tour de France}}

[[File:Tadej Pogacar - Meilleur jeune du Tour de France 2023.jpg|thumb|right|upright|[[Tadej Pogačar]] wearing the [[Young rider classification in the Tour de France|White Jersey]] at the [[2023 Tour de France]]. Pogačar is the only rider to win the Young Rider's Classification 4-times overall and has held the white jersey for a record 75 days in total.]]
The leader of the classification is determined the same way as the general classification, with the riders' times being added up after each stage and the eligible rider with lowest aggregate time is dubbed the leader. The Young rider classification is restricted to the riders that will stay under the age of 26 in the calendar year the race is held. Originally the classification was restricted to neo-professionals – riders that are in their first three years of professional racing – until [[1983 Tour de France|1983]]. In 1983, the organizers made it so that only first time riders were eligible for the classification. In [[1987 Tour de France|1987]], the organizers changed the rules of the classification to what they are today.

This classification was added to the Tour de France in the [[1975 Tour de France|1975 edition]], with [[Francesco Moser]] being the first to win the classification after placing seventh overall. The Tour de France awards a white jersey to the leader of the classification, although this was not done between 1989 and 2000.<ref name="SL exp"/> Six riders have won both the young rider classification and the general classification in the same year: [[Laurent Fignon]] (1983), [[Jan Ullrich]] ([[1997 Tour de France|1997]]), [[Alberto Contador]] ([[2007 Tour de France|2007]]), [[Andy Schleck]] ([[2010 Tour de France|2010]]), [[Egan Bernal]] ([[2019 Tour de France|2019]]) and [[Tadej Pogačar]] ([[2020 Tour de France|2020]] and [[2021 Tour de France|2021]]). Three riders have won the young rider classification three times in their respective careers: Jan Ullrich, Andy Schleck and Tadej Pogačar.

As of 2015 Jersey sponsor is Optician company Krys,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.sportspromedia.com/news/krys_eyes_tour_de_frances_white_jersey |title=Krys eyes Tour de France's white jersey – SportsPro Media<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=5 July 2015 |archive-date=11 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210711121104/https://www.sportspromedia.com/news/krys_eyes_tour_de_frances_white_jersey |url-status=dead}}</ref> replacing Škoda who moved to the Green Jersey.

===Minor classifications and prizes===
[[File:Plus Combatif à l'arrivée du Tour de France 2017 à Chambéry.JPG|thumb|left|[[Warren Barguil]] with the ''prix de la combativité'' award at the [[2017 Tour de France]]]]
The ''[[Combativity award in the Tour de France|prix de la combativité]]'' goes to the rider who most animates the day, usually by trying to break clear of the field. The most combative rider wears a number printed white-on-beige instead of black-on-white next day. An award goes to the most aggressive rider throughout the Tour. Already in 1908 a sort of combativity award was offered, when ''Sports Populaires'' and ''L'Éducation Physique'' created ''Le Prix du Courage'', 100 francs and a silver gilt medal for "the rider having finished the course, even if unplaced, who is particularly distinguished for the energy he has used."{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=96}}{{sfn|Thompson|2008|p=40}} The modern competition started in 1958.{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=96}}{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=45}} In 1959, a Super Combativity award for the most combative cyclist of the Tour was awarded. It was initially not awarded every year, but since 1981 it has been given annually. Eddy Merckx has the most wins (4) for the overall award.

The [[Team classification in the Tour de France|team classification]] is assessed by adding the time of each team's best three riders each day. The competition does not have its own jersey but since 2006 the leading team has worn numbers printed black-on-yellow. Until 1990, the leading team would wear yellow caps. As of 2012, the riders of the leading team wear yellow helmets.<ref>{{cite web |author=Simon MacMichael |url=http://road.cc/content/news/60789-team-skys-yellow-helmets-cause-kerfuffle-during-tour-de-france-stage-1 |title=Team Sky's yellow helmets cause a kerfuffle during Tour de France Stage |publisher=Farrelly Atkinson|work=Road.cc |date=1 July 2012 |access-date=9 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105172325/http://road.cc/content/news/60789-team-skys-yellow-helmets-cause-kerfuffle-during-tour-de-france-stage-1 |archive-date=5 November 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> During the era of national teams, France and Belgium won 10 times each.{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=203}} From 1973 up to 1988, there was also a team classification based on points (stage classification); members of the leading team would wear green caps.

===Historical classifications===
[[File:CombinadaLemond.jpg|thumb|upright|Combination classification jersey won by [[Greg LeMond]] at the [[1985 Tour de France]]]]
There has been an [[Intermediate sprints classification in the Tour de France|intermediate sprints classification]], which from 1984 awarded a red jersey{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=77}} for points awarded to the first three to pass intermediate points during the stage. These sprints also scored points towards the points classification and bonuses towards the general classification. The intermediate sprints classification with its red jersey was abolished in 1989,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://h2g2.com/edited_entry/A3197171
 |title=The Tour de France |access-date=9 July 2007 |work=BBC H2G2|date=26 November 2004}}</ref> but the intermediate sprints have remained, offering points for the points classification and, until 2007, time bonuses for the general classification.

From 1968 there was a [[Combination classification in the Tour de France|combination classification]],{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=61}} scored on a points system based on standings in the general, points and mountains classifications. The design was originally white, then a patchwork with areas resembling each individual jersey design. This was also abolished in 1989.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=83}}

===Lanterne rouge===
The rider who has taken most time is called the ''[[lanterne rouge]]'' (''red lantern, as in the red light at the back of a vehicle so it can be seen in the dark'') and in past years sometimes carried a small red light beneath his [[saddle]]. Such was sympathy that he could command higher fees in the races that previously followed the Tour.{{Clarify|reason=What fees is this referring to?|date=July 2022}} In 1939 and 1948 the organisers excluded the last rider every day, to encourage more competitive racing.<ref group="n">Jacques Goddet said in his autobiography that teams were using the rule to eliminate rivals. A rider in last position knew he would be disqualified at the end of the stage. If he dropped out before or during the stage, another competitor became the last and he would leave the race as well. That weakened a rival team, which now had fewer helpers.</ref>

===Prizes===
[[File:Tdf prize money in 2013 euro.svg|thumb|Prize money in 2013 [[euro]]s in the Tour de France]]
Prize money has always been awarded. From 20,000 [[French franc|francs]] the first year,{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=300–304}} prize money has increased each year, although from 1976 to 1987 the first prize was an apartment offered by a race sponsor. The first prize in 1988 was a car, a studio-apartment, a work of art, and 500,000 francs in cash. Prizes only in cash returned in 1990.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=69–83}}

Prizes and bonuses are awarded for daily placings and final placings at the end of the race. In 2009, the winner received €450,000, while each of the 21 stage winners won €8,000 (€10,000 for the team time-trial stage). The winners of the points classification and mountains classification each win €25,000, the young rider competition and the combativity prize €20,000 ; the winner of the [[Team classification in the Tour de France|team classification]] (calculated by adding the cumulative times of the best three riders in each team) receives €50 000 .<ref name="Letour Prix">{{cite web |url=http://www.letour.fr/2009/TDF/LIVE/us/reglements.html |title=Règlement de l'épreuve et Liste des prix |publisher=Letour.fr |access-date=18 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100213041745/http://www.letour.fr/2009/TDF/LIVE/us/reglements.html |archive-date=13 February 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The [[Souvenir Henri Desgrange]], in memory of the founder of the Tour, is awarded to the first rider over the [[Col du Galibier]] where his monument stands,<ref name="Letour Prix"/> or to the first rider over the highest col in the Tour. A similar award, the [[Souvenir Jacques Goddet]], is made at the summit of the [[Col du Tourmalet]], at the memorial to [[Jacques Goddet]], Desgrange's successor.

=== Trophy ===
The winner of general classification is the recipient of ''Coupe Omnisports'', presented by the [[President of France|president of the French Republic]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Coupe – making the Tour de France trophy |url=https://www.rouleur.it/blogs/the-rouleur-journal/the-coupe-making-the-tour-de-france-trophy |access-date=2024-07-26 |website=Rouleur |language=it}}</ref> The Trophy is realized by the [[Manufacture nationale de Sèvres]] and has been awarded since 1975, the first time the Tour [[Champs-Élysées stage in the Tour de France|finished on the Champs-Élysées]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mart1 |title=Le Vase de Sèvres, ce trophée remis au vainqueur du Tour |url=http://21virages.free.fr/blog/index.php?post/2013/01/16/Vase-de-Sevres-TDF |access-date=2024-07-26 |website=Le blog de l'Ardoisier |language=fr}}</ref>

Since 2011, [[Škoda Auto|Škoda]], the green jersey sponsor, have given a glass trophy in green to the winner of that competition.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-07-10 |title=Have a first look at The Glass Trophy of Tour de France |url=https://www.welovecycling.com/wide/2017/07/10/first-look-glass-trophy-tour-de-france/ |access-date=2024-07-26 |website=We Love Cycling magazine |language=en-US}}</ref> More recently, similar trophies in clear glass have been awarded to the other jersey winners.<ref>{{Cite web |title=2024 Tour de France final podium with the Glass Trophies |url=https://d2p6e6u75xmxt8.cloudfront.net/2/2024/07/Tour-de-France-2024-Podium-Girmay-Pogacar-Evenepoel-profimedia-0891300693-CVR.webp}}</ref>

After every stage, the general classification leader receives the yellow jersey, and, since 1987, a toy [[lion]] offered by the yellow jersey sponsor, [[Crédit Lyonnais]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Why is a lion given to the winners in the Tour de France? |url=https://en.brujulabike.com/lion-tour-de-france/ |access-date=2024-07-27 |website=brujulabike.com |language=en}}</ref>

==Stages==
The modern tour typically has 21 stages, one per day.

===Mass-start stages===
[[File:Tour de France 2006.JPG|thumb|A collected peloton in the [[2006 Tour de France]]]]
The Tour directors categorise [[Mass start|mass-start]] stages into 'flat', 'hilly', or 'mountain'.<ref>{{cite web|title=2015 Route|url=http://www.letour.com/le-tour/2015/us/overall-route.html|publisher=ASO|access-date=30 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150818234948/http://www.letour.com/le-tour/2015/us/overall-route.html|archive-date=18 August 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> This affects the points awarded in the sprint classification, whether the 3 kilometer rule is operational{{Clarification needed|reason=What is the 3 kilometer rule?|date=July 2023}}, and the permitted disqualification time in which riders must finish (which is the winners' time plus a pre-determined percentage of that time).<ref>{{cite web|title=Race Regulations 2015|url=http://www.letour.com/le-tour/2015/docs/TDF15_Reglement-BD.pdf|publisher=ASO|access-date=30 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150707032116/http://www.letour.com/le-tour/2015/docs/TDF15_Reglement-BD.pdf|archive-date=7 July 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> Time bonuses of 10, 6, and 4 seconds are awarded to the first three finishers, though this was not done from 2008 to 2014.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Voeckler: Tour de France time bonuses could spell the end for breakaways|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/tour-de-france/voeckler-tour-de-france-time-bonuses-could-spell-the-end-for-breakaways-180284|magazine=Cycling Weekly|access-date=30 July 2015}}</ref> Bonuses were previously also awarded to winners of intermediate sprints.

===Time trials===
[[File:Bradley Wiggins Tour 2012 EZF.jpg|thumb|right|[[Bradley Wiggins]] riding the [[2012 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 10#Stage 9|stage 9]] [[individual time trial]] of the [[2012 Tour de France]]]]
The first time trial in the Tour was between La Roche-sur-Yon and Nantes (80&nbsp;km) in 1934.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=34}} The first stage in modern Tours is often a short trial, a ''prologue'', to decide who wears yellow on the opening day. The first prologue was in 1967.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=60}} The 1988 event, at La Baule, was called "la préface".{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=81}} There are usually two or three time trials. The final time trial has sometimes been the final stage, more recently often the penultimate stage.

===Notable stages===
[[File:Etape 20 du Tour de France 2012, Paris 08.jpg|thumb|left|In [[2012 Tour de France|2012]] [[Mark Cavendish]] won the final stage of the Tour on the [[Champs-Élysées stage in the Tour de France|Champs-Élysées]], for a record fourth successive year.]]
Since 1975 the race has usually finished with [[Champs-Élysées stage in the Tour de France|laps of the Champs-Élysées]]. As the peloton arrives in downtown Paris the [[French Air Force]] does a three-jet flyover with the three colors of the French flag in smoke behind them. This stage rarely challenges the leader because it is flat and the leader usually has too much time in hand to be denied. In modern times, there tends to be a gentlemen's agreement: while the points classification is still contended if possible, the overall classification is not fought over; because of this, it is not uncommon for the ''de facto'' winner of the overall classification to ride into Paris holding a glass of champagne. The only time the [[maillot jaune]] was attacked in a manner that lasted all the way through the end of this stage was during the [[1979 Tour de France]]. In 1987, [[Pedro Delgado]] vowed to attack during the stage to challenge the 40-second lead held by [[Stephen Roche]]. He was unsuccessful and he and Roche finished in the peloton.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Abt |first1=Samuel |title=Tour de France; Roche Victory Caps Strong Comeback |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/07/27/sports/tour-de-france-roche-victory-caps-strong-comeback.html |access-date=26 November 2019 |work=The New York Times |date=27 July 1987}}</ref> In 2005, controversy arose when [[Alexander Vinokourov (sportsman)|Alexander Vinokourov]] attacked and won the stage, in the process taking fifth place overall from [[Levi Leipheimer]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Pickering |first1=Edward |title=The Yellow Jersey Club |date=2015 |publisher=Transworld Publishers |location=London |isbn=9-780-5930-7396-4 |page=202 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MROCBgAAQBAJ |access-date=26 November 2019|via=Google Books}}</ref> This attack was not a threat to the overall lead, but was a long-shot at the Podium standings, as Vinokourov was about five minutes behind third place.

In 1989, the last stage was a time trial. [[Greg LeMond]] overtook [[Laurent Fignon]] to win by eight seconds, the closest margin in the Tour's history.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brunner |first1=Steve |title=The Outer Line: Remembering Greg LeMond's thrilling victory 30 years later |url=https://www.velonews.com/2019/07/tour-de-france/the-outer-line-remembering-greg-lemonds-thrilling-victory-30-years-later_497894 |publisher=VeloNews |access-date=26 November 2019 |date=23 July 2019}}</ref> The final stage has since only been held as a time trial once, in 2024.

The 2024 Tour finished with an individual time trial and ended in Nice owing to preparations for the [[2024 Summer Olympics|Paris 2024 Olympic]] and [[2024 Summer Paralympics|Paralympic Games]], which started on 26 July.
[[File:Lacets AlpedHuez.jpg|thumb|Panorama of the famous 21 bends towards [[Alpe d'Huez]] with outline]]
The climb of [[Alpe d'Huez]] has become one of the more noted mountain stages. During the [[2004 Tour de France]] it was the scene of a {{convert|15.5|km}} mountain time trial on the 16th stage. Riders complained of abusive spectators who threatened their progress up the climb.<ref>{{cite news
|title =Tour de France Letters Special&nbsp;– 23 July 2004
|publisher = CyclingNews
|date =23 July 2004
|url =http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/tour04.php?id=letters/2004/jul23tourletters#Fan
|access-date =27 May 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news
|last =Maloney
|first =Tim
|title =Stage 16&nbsp;– 21 July: Bourg d'Oisans&nbsp;– Alpe d'Huez ITT, 15.5&nbsp;km; Sign of the times: Armstrong dominates on l'Alpe d'Huez
|work = CyclingNews
|date = 21 July 2004
| url =http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2004/tour04/?id=results/stage16
|access-date =27 May 2007}}</ref> On this stage it is not uncommon for a low end estimate of the spectators in attendance to number 300,000. During a famous head-to-head battle between Anquetil and [[Raymond Poulidor]] on [[Puy de Dôme]] it was estimated that at least a half a million people were on hand.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.francebleu.fr/emissions/le-zoom-de-la-redaction/pays-d-auvergne/raymond-poulidor-et-jacques-anquetil-le-duel-legendaire-au-puy-de-dome-en-1964|language=fr|title=Raymond Poulidor et Jacques Anquetil: le duel légendaire au Puy de Dôme en 1964|date=14 November 2019|trans-title=Raymond Poulidor and Jacques Anquetil: the legendary duel at Puy de Dôme in 1964|work=France Bleu|access-date=18 September 2020|publisher=Médiatrice}}</ref> [[Mont Ventoux#Tour de France|Mont Ventoux]] is often claimed to be the hardest in the Tour because of the harsh conditions. Another notable mountain stage frequently featured climbs the [[Col du Tourmalet#Tour de France|Col du Tourmalet]], the most visited mountain in the history of the Tour. [[Col du Galibier]] is the most visited mountain in the Alps. The [[2011 Tour de France]] stage to Galibier marked the 100th anniversary of the mountain in the Tour and also boasted the highest finish altitude ever: {{convert|2,645|m}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.letour.fr/2011/TDF/COURSE/us/le_galibier.html |title=Tour de France 2011&nbsp;– The Galibier 1911–2011 |publisher=Letour.fr |date=10 July 1911 |access-date=23 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720075914/http://www.letour.fr/2011/TDF/COURSE/us/le_galibier.html |archive-date=20 July 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Some mountain stages have become memorable because of the weather. An example is a stage in [[1996 Tour de France]] from [[Val-d'Isère]] to [[Sestriere]]. A snowstorm at the start area led to a shortening of the stage from {{convert|190|km}} to just {{convert|46|km}}. During the [[2019 Tour de France]] multiple landslides and hail storms forced two critical mountain stages to be considerably shortened. Authorities made every effort to plow the road and make the course safe, but the volume of hail, mud and debris proved too much.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbssports.com/general/news/tour-de-france-stage-19-stopped-due-to-hailstorm-and-landslide-could-have-lasting-race-implications/ |title=Tour de France Stage 19 stopped due to hailstorm and landslide, could have lasting race implications |publisher=cbssports.com |date=26 July 2019}}</ref>

=== Deciding the route ===
To host a stage start or finish brings prestige and business to a town. The prologue and first stage ([[List of Tour de France Grands Départs|Grand Départ]]) are particularly prestigious. The race may start with a prologue (too short to go between towns) in which case the start of the next day's racing, which would be considered stage 1, usually in the same town. In 2007 director [[Christian Prudhomme]] said that "in general, for a period of five years we have the Tour start outside France three times and within France twice."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://provenceblog.typepad.com/provence_blog_by_provence/2007/06/tour-de-france-.html |title=Provence Blog by ProvenceBeyond: Tour de France starting in Monaco |publisher=Provenceblog.typepad.com |access-date=4 November 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090212200635/http://provenceblog.typepad.com/provence_blog_by_provence/2007/06/tour-de-france-.html |archive-date=12 February 2009}}</ref> Towns and cities pay ASO around €100,000 to €150,000 to have a stage start or finish.<ref name=":7">{{Cite news |date=2025-03-01 |title=For Tour de France, foreign starts are a money-spinner |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/for-tour-de-france-foreign-starts-are-a-money-spinner |access-date=2025-09-18 |work=The Straits Times |language=en |issn=0585-3923}}</ref>

In the local towns and cities that the Tour visits for stage starts and finishes, it is a spectacle that usually shuts these towns down for the day, resulting in a very festive atmosphere, and these events usually require months of planning and preparation. ASO employs around 70 people full-time, in an office facing—but not connected to—''L'Équipe'' in the [[Issy-les-Moulineaux]] area of outer western Paris. That number expands to about 220 during the race itself, not including the 500-odd contractors employed to move barriers, erect stages, signpost the route, and other work.{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=37}} ASO now also operates several other major bike races throughout the year.

==Advertising caravan==
[[File:Tour de France Advertising Caravan.jpg|thumb|left|Vehicles from the 2014 Tour de France Publicity Caravan]]
With the switch to the use of national teams in 1930, the costs of accommodating riders fell to the organizers instead of the sponsors and Henri Desgrange raised the money by allowing advertisers to precede the race. The procession of often colourfully decorated trucks and cars became known as the publicity caravan. It formalised an existing situation, companies having started to follow the race. The first to sign to precede the Tour was the chocolate company, [[Menier Chocolate|Menier]], one of those who had followed the race. Its head of publicity, Paul Thévenin, had first put the idea to Desgrange.{{sfn|Cazeneuve|Chany|2011|p=242}} It paid 50,000 francs. Preceding the race was more attractive to advertisers because spectators gathered by the road long before the race or could be attracted from their houses. Advertisers following the race found that many who had watched the race had already gone home. Menier handed out tons of chocolate in that first year of preceding the race, as well as 500,000 policemen's hats printed with the company's name. The success led to the caravan's existence being formalised the following year.

The caravan was at its height between 1930 and the mid-1960s, before television and especially television advertising was established in France. Advertisers competed to attract public attention. Motorcycle acrobats performed for the [[Cinzano]] apéritif company and a toothpaste maker, and an accordionist, [[Yvette Horner]], became one of the most popular sights as she performed on the roof of a [[Citroën Traction Avant]].<ref>Le Petit Bleu de Lot-et-Garonne, France, 20 July 2005</ref> The modern Tour restricts the excesses to which advertisers are allowed to go but at first anything was allowed. The writer Pierre Bost<ref group="n">Pierre Bost was a journalist and playwright known for the prolific film and stage scripts he wrote in the 1940s. He died in 1975.</ref> lamented: "This caravan of 60 gaudy trucks singing across the countryside the virtues of an apéritif, a make of underpants or a dustbin is a shameful spectacle. It bellows, it plays ugly music, it's sad, it's ugly, it smells of vulgarity and money."<ref>"Cette caravane de soixante camions barriolés qui chantent à travers la campagne les vertus d'un apéritif, d'un caleçon ou d'une boîte à ordures fait un honteux spectacle. Cela crie, cela fait de la sale musique, c'est laid, c'est triste, c'est bête, cela sue la vulgarité et l'argent."&nbsp;– Laget, Serge (1990), La Saga du Tour de France, Découvertes Gaillard, France, {{ISBN|978-2-07-053101-1}}. Legend says people in remote areas ran into their houses at the sight of a giant model black lion on the roof of a car promoting Lion Noir shoe polish in 1930.</ref>

[[File:Stage 20 Tour de France 2024 Col de la Couillole 6.jpg|thumb|right|The caravan on Tour de France 2024.]]
Advertisers pay the Société du Tour de France approximately €150,000 to place three vehicles in the caravan.<ref name=autogenerated3>Le Tour Guide, France, 2000</ref> Some have more. On top of that come the more considerable costs of the commercial samples that are thrown to the crowd and the cost of accommodating the drivers and the staff—frequently students—who throw them. The number of items has been estimated at 11&nbsp;million, each person in the procession giving out 3,000 to 5,000 items a day.<ref name=autogenerated3 /> A bank, GAN, gave out 170,000 caps, 80,000 badges, 60,000 plastic bags, and 535,000 copies of its race newspaper in 1994. Together, they weighed {{convert|32|t}}.<ref name=autogenerated7 /> The vehicles also have to be decorated on the morning of each stage and, because they must return to ordinary highway standards, disassembled after each stage. Numbers vary but there are normally around 250 vehicles each year. Their order on the road is established by contract, the leading vehicles belonging to the largest sponsors.

The procession sets off two hours before the start and then regroups to precede the riders by an hour and a half. It spreads {{convert|20|–|25|km}} and takes 40 minutes to pass at between {{convert|20|km/h}} and {{convert|60|km/h}}. Vehicles travel in groups of five. Their position is logged by [[GPS]] and from an aircraft and organised on the road by the caravan director—Jean-Pierre Lachaud<ref group="n">Jean-Pierre Lachaud joined the Tour de France caravan in 1983 to distribute publicity for Crédit Lyonnais, the bank that sponsors the yellow jersey. The experience led to his starting his own company, Newsport, which now administers the caravan for the Société du Tour de France</ref>—an assistant, three motorcyclists, two radio technicians, and a breakdown and medical crew.<ref name=autogenerated3 /> Six motorcyclists from the [[Garde Républicaine]], the élite of the gendarmerie, ride with them.<ref name=autogenerated7>GAN Spécial Tour de France, 1994</ref>

In 2019, around 30 members of the [[National Assembly (France)|French National Assembly]] criticized the [[plastic pollution]] produced by the Tour de France caravan.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |date=2019-07-03 |title=Tour insists it is working for a greener sponsors' caravan |url=https://www.france24.com/en/20190703-tour-insists-it-working-greener-sponsors-caravan |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=France 24 |language=en}}</ref> In response, the Tour de France Director affirmed that "for five years now, we have been working with our partners to reduce plastic in the gifts that sponsors give the public [...] We have included in the specifications and standards that we impose on our partners, the obligation to be part of a process to reduce the use of plastic."<ref name=":6" /> However, environemental groups have continued to criticize the Tour de France caravan for its environmental impact<ref>{{Cite news |author-link=Harry Cockburn |title=Tour de France condemned over 'avalanche' of 15 million bits of plastic thrown to crowd |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/tour-de-france-plastic-waste-crowd-caravan-pollution-environment-a9022226.html}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Reporterre |date=2023-07-01 |title=Au Tour de France, « la caravane publicitaire est une gabegie écologique » |url=https://reporterre.net/Au-Tour-de-France-la-caravane-publicitaire-est-une-gabegie-ecologique |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=Reporterre, le média de l'écologie - Indépendant et en accès libre |language=fr}}</ref> and for providing a platform for [[greenwashing]] the image of [[Fossil fuel|fossil fuels]] companies and plastics polluters.<ref>{{Cite web |title=And the Tour de France winner is… plastic! |url=https://www.zerowastefrance.org/en/project/tour-de-france-winner-plastic/ |access-date=2025-09-09 |language=en-US}}</ref> 

==Politics==
The first three Tours, from 1903 to 1906, stayed within France. The 1907 race went into [[Alsace-Lorraine]], which was annexed by the [[German Empire]] after the [[Franco-Prussian War]]. Passage was secured through a meeting at [[Metz]] between Desgrange's collaborator, [[Alphonse Steinès]], and the German governor.

In 1939, because of international tensions, not least the [[Spanish Civil War]], teams from Italy, Germany, and Spain did not compete. Following the breakout of the [[Second World War]], Henri Desgrange planned a Tour for 1940. The route, approved by military authorities, went along the [[Maginot Line]].<ref name="The Bicycle, UK, 8 July 1943, p6">The Bicycle, UK, 8 July 1943, p6</ref> Teams would have been drawn from military units in France, including the British, who would have been organised by a journalist, Bill Mills.<ref name="The Bicycle, UK, 8 July 1943, p6"/> After the German invasion of France, Desgrange's Tour was cancelled, and there was no official race until 1947 (see [[Tour de France during the Second World War]]). German teams would not compete again until 1960, though individual Germans rode in mixed teams. Since the end of the war, the Tour has started in Germany four times: in [[Cologne]] in 1965, in [[Frankfurt]] in 1980, in [[West Berlin]] on the city's 750th anniversary in 1987, and in [[Düsseldorf]] in 2017. Plans to enter [[German Democratic Republic|East Germany]] in 1987 were abandoned.

===Corsica===
Prior to 2013, the Tour de France had visited every region of [[Metropolitan France]] except [[Corsica]].<ref name=nouvelobs>{{cite web|url=http://leplus.nouvelobs.com/contribution/158813;la-corse-fait-elle-peur-au-tour-de-france.html |title=La Corse fait-elle peur au Tour de France ?&nbsp;– le Plus |date=July 2011 |publisher=Leplus.nouvelobs.com |access-date=23 February 2012}}</ref> Jean-Marie Leblanc, when he was organiser, said the island had never asked for a stage start there. It would be difficult to find accommodation for 4,000 people, he said.<ref name=autogenerated2>L'Équipe Magazine, France, 23 October 2004</ref> The spokesman of the Corsican nationalist party [[Party of the Corsican Nation]], [[François Alfonsi]], said: "The organisers must be afraid of terrorist attacks. If they are really thinking of a possible terrorist action, they are wrong. Our movement, which is nationalist and in favour of self-government, would be delighted if the Tour came to Corsica."<ref name=autogenerated2 /> The opening three stages of the [[2013 Tour de France]] were held on Corsica as part of the celebrations for the 100th edition of the race.

=== Accusations of sportswashing and greenwashing ===
The Tour de France has been accused of [[sportswashing]], including [[greenwashing]]. Environmental critiques have focused on the prominence of private and public fossil fuels producers among the sponsors. In the [[2025 Tour de France]], seven of the 23 teams were sponsored by companies or states tied to the production of fossil fuels and in June 2025, “the French oil giant [[TotalEnergies]] announced it had signed an official three-year partnership with the Tour de France, starting in 2026. The company is also the main sponsor of one of the participating teams, which bears its name”, [[Team TotalEnergies]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=2025-07-20 |title=Tour de France: Cycling's showcase event remains heavily sponsored by fossil fuels |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/en/sports/article/2025/07/20/tour-de-france-cycling-s-showcase-remains-heavily-sponsored-by-fossil-fuels_6743558_9.html |access-date=2025-09-09 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Kennedy |first=Tristan |date=2020-09-21 |title=The 'Sportswashing' Behind One of the World's Biggest Cycling Teams |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/ineos-tour-de-france-sportswashing/ |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=VICE |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-07-24 |title=ITV report on TotalEnergies Tour de France Sportswashing |url=https://www.badverts.org/latest/itv-report-on-totalenergies-sportswashing-at-the-2025-tour-de-france |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=Badvertising |language=en-US}}</ref> 

Human rights groups have also pointed at countries with "questionable records on civil liberties",<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |date=2020-09-18 |title=Macron rides to the Tour de France's aid |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/tour-de-france-political-elite/ |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=POLITICO |language=en-GB}}</ref> like [[Human rights in Bahrain|Bahrain]], [[Human rights in Kazakhstan|Kazakhstan]] and the [[Human rights in the United Arab Emirates|United Arab Emirates]] sponsoring teams participating in the Tour. In 2020, Minky Worden, director of global initiatives at [[Human Rights Watch]], stated that “more and more bad actors on human rights are laundering their reputations with international sport events. […] The UAE, Bahrain and Kazakhstan all have a chokehold on civil society. They all have serious abuses against [[LGBTQ people]]. They all have serious [[labor rights]] abuses. And they all repress the media and peaceful critics. […] These are countries that all have very questionable human rights records and the purpose of sponsoring Tour de France teams has a name: it’s sportswashing”.<ref name=":5" />

For the occasion of the [[2019 Tour de France]], 12 human rights and sporting organizations presented a letter to president of UCI protesting the [[Team Bahrain Victorious|Bahrain-Merida]] team’s participation in the Tour de France and other professional cycling competitions.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tour de France Urged Not to "Sportswash" Bahrain's Human Rights Abuses – Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy |url=https://birdbh.org/2019/07/tour-de-france-urged-not-to-sportswash-bahrains-human-rights-abuses/ |access-date=2025-09-09 |language=en-US}}</ref> The Director of Advocacy at the [[Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy]] (BIRD) stated that "Bahrain-Merida’s participation in the [[2019 Tour de France|Tour de France]], one of the world’s most iconic sporting events, provides a major opportunity for the government of Bahrain to sportswash their tarnished international reputation. With a long history of persecuting professional athletes, including credible allegations of torture, Bahrain is a totally unsuitable partner for an international sporting team".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tour de France Urged Not to "Sportswash" Bahrain's Human Rights Abuses – Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy |url=https://birdbh.org/2019/07/tour-de-france-urged-not-to-sportswash-bahrains-human-rights-abuses/ |access-date=2025-09-09 |language=en-US}}</ref> The following year, in 2020, the non-governmental organization Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) continued protesting against the team’s participation at the [[2020 Tour de France]]: “by running a team in the Tour de France, Bahrain is joining a long line of countries with diminished human rights records as they attempt to distract from continued abuses with flashy events such as the Olympics, the [[FIFA World Cup|World Cup]], or [[Formula One|Formula 1]], or as they rebrand themselves by associating their names with those of beloved teams".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=ADHRB |date=2020-08-28 |title=Bahrain's Sportswashing of the Tour de France |url=https://www.adhrb.org/2020/08/bahrains-sportswashing-of-the-tour-de-france/ |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain |language=en-US}}</ref>

Sportswashing accusations have also focused on the participation of the [[Israel–Premier Tech|Israel-Premier Tech]] team, both before<ref>{{Cite news |last=Liew |first=Jonathan |date=2022-01-24 |title=Sportswashing is associated with certain countries – why not Israel? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2022/jan/24/sportswashing-is-associated-with-certain-countries-why-not-israel |access-date=2025-09-09 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> and after<ref>{{Cite news |author-link=Amir Inbar |date=10 August 2025 |title=Tour De France 'Helps Israel Sportswash': Hitting the Brakes on an Israeli Cycling Team |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2025-08-10/ty-article-magazine/.premium/tour-de-france-helps-israel-sportswash-hitting-the-brakes-on-an-israeli-cycling-team/00000198-9381-d85a-ad9b-b7b129030000 |work=Haaretz}}</ref> the [[October 7 attacks|7 October 2023 attacks]], and recently in relation to the [[Gaza genocide]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=2024-04-08 |title=Giro d'Italia and Tour de France: Road Closed to Genocide |url=https://bdsmovement.net/road-closed |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240520063002/https://bdsmovement.net/road-closed |archive-date=2024-05-20 |access-date=2025-09-09 |work=BDS Movement |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-07-29 |title=Despite BDS protests, Israel finished the Tour de France {{!}} The Jerusalem Post |url=https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/sports/article-862646 |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=The Jerusalem Post {{!}} JPost.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Pretot |first=Julien |date=2025-07-23 |title=Anti-Israel activists protest Israeli team at Tour de France, call for ban |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/anti-israel-activists-protest-israeli-team-at-tour-de-france-call-for-ban/ |access-date=2025-09-09 |work=The Times of Israel |language=en-US |issn=0040-7909}}</ref> In early 2025, the Palestinian movement [[Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions]] (BDS) called for "peaceful protests" at the [[2025 Tour de France]] against the participation of Israel–Premier Tech. During the [[2025 Tour de France]] (5–27 July 2025), protests over the genocide in Gaza and calls for the exclusion of Israel-Premier Tech from the competition continued.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Pretot |first=Julien |date=2025-07-23 |title=Activists protest over Gaza during Tour de France, call for Israeli team to be barred |url=https://www.reuters.com/sports/activists-protest-over-gaza-during-tour-de-france-call-israeli-team-be-barred-2025-07-23/ |access-date=2025-09-09 |work=Reuters |language=en}}</ref> Notably, on stage 11 of the Tour of 16 July 2025, a protestor ran onto the final straight of the stage,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-01 |title=Tour de France 2025: "Le monde du sport n'a pas fait son travail", le militant anti-Israël justifie son action sur la ligne d'arrivée de la 11e étape |url=https://rmcsport.bfmtv.com/cyclisme/tour-de-france/tour-de-france-2025-le-monde-du-sport-n-a-pas-fait-son-travail-le-militant-anti-israel-justifie-son-action-sur-la-ligne-d-arrivee-de-la-11e-etape_AV-202508010279.html |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=RMC Sport |language=fr}}</ref> but was tackled and beaten<ref>{{Cite web |last=VPalestine |title=During stage 11 of the Tour de France in Toulouse, an activist stormed the track near the finish line, wearing a shirt that read "Israel out of the Tour". |url=https://web.facebook.com/reel/1029919855868204}}</ref> by the Tour's manager for stage finishes, before being arrested.<ref>{{Cite web |author1=Jackie Tyson |date=2025-07-16 |title=Political protestor tackled at Tour de France finish in Toulouse as Abrahamsen-Schmid duo sweep across the line to conclude stage 11 |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/political-protestor-tackled-at-tour-de-france-finish-in-toulouse-as-abrahamsen-schmid-duo-sweep-across-the-line-to-conclude-stage-11/ |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=Cyclingnews |language=en}}</ref> The protestor later defended his actions explaining "we have reached a point where we are forced to choose new spaces to express ourselves. The world of sport has not done its job and has not shown its opposition to what is happening in the Middle East".<ref>{{Cite web |title=ENTRETIEN. Tour de France : "Je veux plaider la liberté d'expression", confie le jeune toulousain qui a fait irruption sur la 11e étape |url=https://www.ladepeche.fr/2025/08/01/entretien-tour-de-france-je-veux-plaider-la-liberte-dexpression-confie-le-jeune-militant-toulousain-qui-a-fait-irruption-sur-la-11e-etape-12851789.php |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=ladepeche.fr |language=fr}}</ref>

Concerns have also been raised over the Tour de France’s role in sportswashing “[[Debt bondage|debt-bonded]] workers at manufacturing sites in Asia” linked to cycling brands such as Giant, Trek, Scott and Shimano.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bengtsen |first=Peter |date=1980-02-01 |title=Are Tour de France bike-makers overlooking forced labour risks? |url=https://mondediplo.com/outside-in/tour-de-france-forced-labour |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=Le Monde diplomatique |language=en}}</ref>  

==Start and finish of the Tour==
{{main|List of Tour de France Grands Départs}}
Most stages are in mainland France, although since the mid-1950s it has become common to visit nearby countries.{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=149}} The Tour has visited thirteen different countries in its history: Andorra, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, San Marino, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, all of which have hosted stages or part of a stage.<ref>{{cite web |date=21 December 2022 |title=2024 Grand Départ: First time's a charm for Italy |url=https://www.letour.fr/en/news/2023/2024-grand-depart-first-times-a-charm-for-italy/1308973 |access-date=4 October 2023 |website=www.letour.fr |language=en}}</ref> Since 1975 the finish has been on the [[Champs-Élysées]] in Paris; from 1903 to 1967 the race finished at the [[Parc des Princes]] stadium in western Paris and from 1968 to 1974 at the [[Vélodrome de Vincennes|Piste Municipale]] south of the capital.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=61}}  In the [[2024 Tour de France|111th edition]], because of the [[2024 Summer Olympics]] in Paris, the race ended outside Paris for the first time, on the [[Place Masséna]] in [[Nice]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.letour.fr/en/news/2024/111th-edition-a-set-of-aces-on-top-of-the-bill/1316767 | title=111th Edition : A set of aces on top of the bill - Tour de France 2024 }}</ref>

The right to host the Grand Départ is highly sought after, with cities bidding to host, and has been shown to increase economic activity as well as interest in cycling in the host area.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2015-07-13 |title=Yorkshire tourism boost after Tour de France Grand Depart |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-33513232 |access-date=2025-03-25 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=http://netstorage.lequipe.fr/ASO/cyclisme/le-tour/2014/histoire/Historique-VERSION_INTEGRALE-fr.pdf |title=Guide Historique |publisher=[[Tour de France]] |accessdate=13 July 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Startt |first=James |title='It has a real weight on the Tour': Behind the making of the Tour de France's foreign Grand Départ |url=https://www.rouleur.cc/blogs/the-rouleur-journal/behind-the-making-of-the-tours-grand-depart |access-date=2025-03-25 |website=Rouleur |language=en}}</ref> In recent years, cities outside France have paid organisers [[Amaury Sport Organisation]] around €6 million to host the start of the race. French cities pay less, with [[Brest, France|Brest]] paying €3.6 million in 2021 and Lille paying €4.2 million in 2025.<ref name=":7" />

Félix Levitan, race organizer in the 1980s, was keen to host stages in the United States, but these proposals have never been developed.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Reed|first1=Eric|title=Selling the Yellow Jersey: The Tour de France in the Global Era|date=7 January 2015|isbn=978-0-226-20653-0|page=162|publisher=University of Chicago Press}}</ref>

===Starts abroad===
[[File:Tour de France 2015, Utrecht (19227826549).jpg|thumb|right|Grand Départ of the 2015 Tour de France in [[Utrecht]]]]
[[File:20220701_Tour_De_France_Grand_Depart_Copenhagen_0479_(52188064924).jpg|thumb|right|Grand Départ of the 2022 Tour de France in [[Copenhagen]]]]
The following editions of the Tour started outside France:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2012/12/tour-de-france/foreign-grand-tour-starts-are-big-business_269064 |title=Foreign grand tour starts are big business |work=Velonews |date=15 December 2012 |access-date=3 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140721071009/http://velonews.competitor.com/2012/12/tour-de-france/foreign-grand-tour-starts-are-big-business_269064 |archive-date=21 July 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Tour de France to start from Bilbao in 2023 – organisers|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-cycling-tour-idUSKBN2BI1H9|work=Reuters|date=26 March 2021|access-date=13 May 2021}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|+Foreign starts of the Tour
|-
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | City
! scope="col" | Type 
! scope="col" | Winner
|-
| [[1954 Tour de France|1954]]
| {{flagicon|NED}} [[Amsterdam]]
| style="text-align:center;"|[[File:Plainstage.svg|20px]]
| [[Wout Wagtmans]]
|-
| [[1958 Tour de France|1958]]
| {{flagicon|BEL}} [[Brussels]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Plainstage.svg|20px]]
| [[André Darrigade]]
|-
| [[1965 Tour de France|1965]]
| {{flagdeco|FRG}} [[Cologne]]
| style="text-align:center;"| (1a) [[File:Plainstage.svg|20px]] <br> (1b) [[File:Team Time Trial Stage.svg|20px]]
| [[Rik Van Looy]] <br> [[Ford France (cycling team)|Ford France - Gitane]]
|-
| [[1973 Tour de France|1973]]
| {{flagicon|NED}} [[The Hague]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Joop Zoetemelk]]
|-
| [[1975 Tour de France|1975]]
| {{flagicon|BEL}} [[Charleroi]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Francesco Moser]]
|-
| [[1978 Tour de France|1978]]
| {{flagicon|NED}} [[Leiden]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Jan Raas]]
|-
| [[1980 Tour de France|1980]]
| {{flagicon|FRG}} [[Frankfurt]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Bernard Hinault]]
|-
| [[1982 Tour de France|1982]]
| {{flagicon|SWI}} [[Basel]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Bernard Hinault]]
|-
| [[1987 Tour de France|1987]]
| {{flagicon|FRG}} [[West Berlin]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Jelle Nijdam]]
|-
| [[1989 Tour de France|1989]]
| {{flagicon|LUX}} [[Luxembourg City]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Erik Breukink]]
|-
| [[1992 Tour de France|1992]]
| {{flagicon|ESP}} [[San Sebastián]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Miguel Induráin]]
|-
| [[1996 Tour de France|1996]]
| {{flagicon|NED}} [['s-Hertogenbosch]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Alex Zülle]]
|-
| [[1998 Tour de France|1998]]
| {{flagicon|IRL}} [[Dublin]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Chris Boardman]]
|-
| [[2002 Tour de France|2002]]
| {{flagicon|LUX}} [[Luxembourg City]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
|  <del>[[Lance Armstrong]]</del>
|-
| [[2004 Tour de France|2004]]
| {{flagicon|BEL}} [[Liège]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Fabian Cancellara]]
|-
| [[2007 Tour de France|2007]]
| {{flagicon|GBR}} [[London]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Fabian Cancellara]]
|-
| [[2009 Tour de France|2009]]
| {{flagdeco|MON}} [[Monte Carlo]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Fabian Cancellara]]
|-
| [[2010 Tour de France|2010]]
| {{flagicon|NED}} [[Rotterdam]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Fabian Cancellara]]
|-
| [[2012 Tour de France|2012]]
| {{flagicon|BEL}} [[Liège]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Fabian Cancellara]]
|-
| [[2014 Tour de France|2014]]
| {{flagicon|GBR}} [[Leeds]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Plainstage.svg|20px]]
| [[Marcel Kittel]]
|-
| [[2015 Tour de France|2015]]
| {{flagicon|NED}} [[Utrecht]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Rohan Dennis]]
|-
| [[2017 Tour de France|2017]]
| {{flagicon|DEU}} [[Düsseldorf]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Geraint Thomas]]
|-
| [[2019 Tour de France|2019]]
| {{flagicon|BEL}} [[Brussels]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Mike Teunissen]]
|-
| [[2022 Tour de France|2022]]
| {{flagicon|DEN}} [[Copenhagen]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Time Trial.svg|20px]]
| [[Yves Lampaert]]
|-
| [[2023 Tour de France|2023]]
| {{flagicon|ESP}} [[Bilbao]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Hillystage.svg|20px]]
| [[Adam Yates]]
|-
| [[2024 Tour de France|2024]]
| {{flagicon|ITA}} [[Florence]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Hillystage.svg|20px]]
| [[Romain Bardet]]
|-
| [[2026 Tour de France|2026]]
| {{flagicon|ESP}} [[Barcelona]]
| style="text-align:center;"| [[File:Team Time Trial Stage.svg|20px]]
|
|-
| [[2027 Tour de France|2027]]
| {{flagicon|GBR}} [[Edinburgh]]
|style="text-align:center;"| 
| 
|-
|}

==Broadcasting==
The Tour was first followed only by journalists from ''L'Auto'', the organisers. The race was founded to increase sales of a floundering newspaper and its editor, Desgrange, saw no reason to allow rival publications to profit.
The first time papers other than ''L'Auto'' were allowed was 1921, when 15 press cars were allowed for regional and foreign reporters.{{sfn|Augendre|1996|p=21}}

The Tour was shown first on cinema newsreels a day or more after the event. The first live radio broadcast was in 1929, when Jean Antoine and Alex Virot of the newspaper ''L'Intransigeant'' broadcast for Radio Cité. They used telephone lines. In 1932 they broadcast the sound of riders crossing the col d'Aubisque in the Pyrenees on 12 July, using a recording machine and transmitting the sound later.

The first television pictures were shown a day after a stage. The national TV channel used two 16mm cameras, a Jeep, and a motorbike. Film was flown or taken by train to Paris, where it was edited and then shown the following day.

The first live broadcast, and the second of any sport in France, was the finish at the [[Parc des Princes]] in Paris on 25 July 1948.{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=134}} [[Rik Van Steenbergen]] of Belgium led in the bunch after a stage of {{convert|340|km}} from [[Nancy, France|Nancy]]. The first live coverage from the side of the road was from the Aubisque on 8 July 1958. Proposals to cover the whole race were abandoned in 1962 after objections from regional newspapers whose editors feared the competition.{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=136}} The dispute was settled, but not in time for the race, and the first complete coverage was the following year in 1963. In 1958 the first mountain climbs were broadcast live on television for the first time,{{sfn|Thompson|2008|p=283}} and in 1959 helicopters were first used for the television coverage.{{sfn|Thompson|2008|p=137}}

The leading television commentator in France was a former rider, [[Robert Chapatte]]. At first he was the only commentator. He was joined in following seasons by an analyst for the mountain stages and by a commentator following the competitors by motorcycle.

Broadcasting in France was largely a state monopoly until 1982, when the [[Socialist Party (France)|socialist]] president [[François Mitterrand]] allowed private broadcasters and privatised the leading television channel. Competition between channels raised the broadcasting fees paid to the organisers from 1.5 per cent of the race budget in 1960 to more than a third by the end of the century.{{sfn|Dauncey|Hare|2013|p=117}} Broadcasting time also increased as channels competed to secure the rights. The two largest channels to stay in public ownership, [[Antenne 2]] and [[FR3]], combined to offer more coverage than its private rival, [[TF1]]. The two stations, renamed France 2 and France 3, still hold the domestic rights and provide pictures for broadcasters around the world.

The stations use a staff of 300 with four helicopters, two aircraft, two motorcycles, 35 other vehicles including trucks, and 20 podium cameras.<ref group="n">A podium camera is not one focused on the winner's podium but a full-scale camera on a mount, or podium.</ref>

French aviation company Hélicoptères de France (HdF) has provided aerial filming services for the Tour since 1999. HdF operates [[Eurocopter]] [[Eurocopter AS355 Écureuil 2|AS355 Écureuil 2]] and [[Eurocopter AS350 Écureuil|AS350 Écureuil]] helicopters for this purpose, and the pilots undergo training along the course for six months before the race.<ref name="ars-tegler">{{cite web |last1=Tegler |first1=Eric |title=The helicopter team that films the Tour de France is one of a kind |url=https://arstechnica.com/cars/2019/07/how-helicopters-bring-us-amazing-views-of-the-tour-de-france/ |publisher=Ars Technica |access-date=17 July 2019 |date=11 July 2019}}</ref><ref name="hdf-news">{{cite web |title=News |url=http://hdf.fr/en/actualites |work=Hélicoptères de France |access-date=17 July 2019 |archive-date=17 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190717024835/http://hdf.fr/en/actualites |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Domestic television covers the most important stages of the Tour, such as those in the mountains, from mid-morning until early evening. Coverage typically starts with a survey of the day's route, interviews along the road, discussions of the difficulties and tactics ahead, and a 30-minute archive feature. The biggest stages are shown live from start to end, followed by interviews with riders and others and features such an edited version of the stage seen from beside a team manager following and advising riders from his car. Radio covers the race in updates throughout the day, particularly on the national news channel, [[France Info]], and some stations provide continuous commentary on long wave. The 1979 Tour was the first to be broadcast in the United States.{{sfn|Thompson|2008|p=48}}

In the United Kingdom, [[ITV Sport|ITV]] obtained the [[Sports broadcasting contracts in the United Kingdom|rights]] to the Tour de France in 2002, replacing [[Channel 4]] as the UK terrestrial broadcaster. Channel 4 coverage had been broadcast for the previous 15 years<ref>{{cite web|url=https://edm.parliament.uk/early-day-motion/19257/channel-4-and-the-tour-de-france |title=CHANNEL 4 AND THE TOUR DE FRANCE |website=UK Parliament Early Day Motions |access-date=9 July 2023}}</ref> with episodes introduced with a theme written by [[Pete Shelley]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Murray |first1=Scott |title=The Joy of Six: sporting theme tunes |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2011/oct/28/joy-of-six-sport-theme-tunes-bbc |access-date=6 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |date=28 October 2011}}</ref> The coverage is shown on [[ITV4]], having aired in previous years on [[ITV2]] and [[ITV3]]. Initially, live coverage was only broadcast at the weekend but since the 2010 Tour de France, [[ITV4]] has broadcast daily live coverage of every stage except the final which is shown on [[ITV1]], ITV4 have the nightly highlights show.

It was reported in January 2025 that the 2025 Tour de France would be the last to be broadcast on ITV, and the last to be broadcast live on [[free-to-air]] television in the UK, with [[Warner Bros. Discovery]] (WBD)'s [[pay television]] channel group [[TNT Sports (United Kingdom)|TNT Sports]] having acquired the Tour's UK broadcasting rights from 2026 onwards.<ref name="cyclingweekly2025"/> As part of the change, the highlights show would move to WBD's free-to-air channel [[Quest (British TV channel)|Quest]].<ref name="cyclingweekly2025">{{Cite news |last=Davidson |first=Tom |date=2025-01-28 |title=No free-to-air live coverage of Tour de France in UK from 2026, broadcaster confirms |url=https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/no-free-to-air-live-coverage-of-tour-de-france-in-uk-from-2026-broadcaster-confirms |access-date=2025-04-04 |work=[[Cycling Weekly]] |language=en-GB}}</ref>

In the United States, the Tour de France has been [[Cycling on NBC|broadcast]] by the [[NBC Sports Group]] since 1999, under a contract most recently renewed in 2023 to last through 2029. Currently, all stages stream exclusively on its streaming platform [[Peacock (streaming service)|Peacock]], with selected stages simulcast on the [[NBC]] broadcast network.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lucia |first=Joe |date=2023-02-15 |title=NBC Sports renews with Tour de France through 2029, with all stages exclusively airing on Peacock in 2024 |url=https://awfulannouncing.com/nbc/nbc-sports-renews-with-tour-de-france-through-2029-with-all-stages-exclusively-airing-on-peacock-in-2024.html |access-date=2024-03-31 |website=Awful Announcing |language=en-US}}</ref> The rights were first acquired by [[NBCSN|Outdoor Life Network]] (OLN) in 1999; buoyed by Lance Armstrong's performance in the race, OLN considered the Tour to be its flagship program,<ref name="sbd-oln-tdf">{{Cite web |last=Bernstien |first=Andy |title=No word could describe the Tour de France, so OLN made one up |url=http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2004/05/20040531/Media/No-Word-Could-Describe-The-Tour-De-France-So-OLN-Made-One-Up.aspx?hl=YES%20Network&sc=0 |access-date=2 January 2012 |publisher=Sports Business Journal}}</ref> and its coverage helped expand the then-fledging cable channel to over 60 million households. However, critics raised concerns over the extensive focus OLN placed on Armstrong during its coverage, with some jokingly stating that "OLN" stood for "Only Lance Network". The Tour would remain part of its programming through OLN's relaunch as mainstream sports channel Versus, and became integrated with NBC Sports after Versus parent company [[Comcast]] acquired [[NBC Universal]] (rebranding Versus as the NBC Sports Network afterward),<ref name="nyt-sizingup">{{Cite news |last=Sandomir |first=Richard |date=7 July 2006 |title=OLN Sizing Up Impact of the Post-Lance Era |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/07/sports/othersports/07sandomir.html |access-date=7 May 2012 |work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref name="oln-nhl-nyt">{{Cite news |last=Sandomir |first=Richard |date=28 July 2005 |title=With Armstrong Out, N.H.L. May Be in at OLN |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/28/sports/hockey/28sandomir.html |access-date=2 January 2012 |work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Live from Tour de France: NBC Sports Network tells story of Stage 7 to Nuits-Saint-Georges |url=https://www.svgeurope.org/blog/headlines/live-from-tour-de-france-nbc-sports-network-tells-story-of-stage-7-to-nuits-saint-georges/ |access-date=2024-03-31 |website=SVG Europe |language=en}}</ref><ref name="mp-csnnbcrebrand2">{{cite news |last=Friedman |first=Wayne |date=9 May 2011 |title=NBC Steps Up Branding For Comcast Sports Nets |url=http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=150158 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511223213/http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=150158 |archive-date=11 May 2011 |access-date=10 May 2011 |work=MediaPost}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=John Ourand |title=SBJ: Exit Versus, enter the NBC Sports Network |url=http://aol.sportingnews.com/nhl/story/2011-08-01/sbj-exit-versus-enter-the-nbc-sports-network |access-date=2 August 2011 |publisher=The Sporting News |archive-date=28 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120928092911/http://aol.sportingnews.com/nhl/story/2011-08-01/sbj-exit-versus-enter-the-nbc-sports-network |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The combination of unprecedented rigorous doping controls and almost no positive tests helped restore fans' confidence in the 2009 Tour de France. This led directly to an increase in global popularity of the event. The most watched stage of 2009 was stage 20, from Montélimar to Mont Ventoux in Provence, with a global total audience of 44&nbsp;million, making it the 12th most watched sporting event in the world in 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://initiative.com/sites/default/files/ViewerTrack_2010.pdf |title=ViewerTrack, The most watched TV sporting events of 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111017063843/http://initiative.com/sites/default/files/ViewerTrack_2010.pdf |archive-date=17 October 2011 }}</ref>

==Culture==
[[File:Stage 20 Tour de France 2024 Col de la Couillole 42.jpg|thumb|300px|[[Quentin Pacher]] climbing [[Route des Grandes Alpes|Col de la Couillole]] on Tour de France 2024. The roads become narrow corridors with the spectators on the mountain stages.]]
The Tour is an important cultural event for fans in Europe. Millions<ref>{{cite web |url=http://gofrance.about.com/od/tourdefrance/ss/06tourdefrance_2.htm |title=Tour de France Facts, Figures and Trivia |publisher=[[About.com]] |access-date=4 November 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914071106/http://gofrance.about.com/od/tourdefrance/ss/06tourdefrance_2.htm |archive-date=14 September 2008 }}</ref> line the route, some having camped for a week to get the best view.

The Tour de France appealed from the start not just for the distance and its demands but because it played to a wish for national unity,{{sfn|Boeuf|Léonard|2003|p=67}} a call to what [[Maurice Barrès]] called the France "of earth and deaths" or what Georges Vigarello called "the image of a France united by its earth".<ref>''L'image d'une France unifiée par le sol'', Vigarello, Georges, Le Tour de France, p.&nbsp;3807, cited Boeuf, p.&nbsp;67.</ref>

[[File:G.Bruno01.jpg|left|thumb|School book by Augustine Fouillée under the pen name G.&nbsp;Bruno]]
The image had been started by the 1877 travel/school book {{lang|fr|[[Le Tour de la France par deux enfants]]}}.<ref group="n">A school book written by [[Augustine Tuillerie|Augustine Fouillée]] under the name G.&nbsp;Bruno and published in 1877, it sold 6&nbsp;million by 1900, 7&nbsp;million by 1914 and 8.4&nbsp;million by 1976. It was used in schools until the 1950s and is still available.</ref> It told of two boys, André and Julien, who "in a thick September fog left the town of [[Phalsbourg]] in [[Lorraine (region)|Lorraine]] to see France at a time when few people had gone far beyond their nearest town".

The book sold six million copies by the time of the first Tour de France,{{sfn|Boeuf|Léonard|2003|p=67}} the biggest selling book of 19th-century France (other than the Bible).<ref>{{cite book |url=https://oyc.yale.edu/history/hist-276/lecture-9 |title=France Since 1871: Lecture 9 |chapter=Developments in Mass Politics: The Spread of Images and ''Imaginaire'' |last=Merriman |first=John M. |author-link=John M. Merriman |publisher=[[Open Yale Courses]] |date=3 October 2007}}</ref> It stimulated a national interest in France, making it "visible and alive", as its preface said. There had already been a car race called the Tour de France but it was the publicity behind the cycling race, and Desgrange's drive to educate and improve the population,{{sfn|Boeuf|Léonard|2003|p=70}} that inspired the French to know more of their country.{{sfn|Boeuf|Léonard|2003|p=74}}

The academic historians Jean-Luc Boeuf and Yves Léonard say most people in France had little idea of the shape of their country until {{lang|fr|L'Auto}} began publishing maps of the race.{{sfn|Boeuf|Léonard|2003|p=75–76}}

===Arts===
The Tour has inspired several popular songs in France, notably {{lang|fr|P'tit gars du Tour}} (1932), {{lang|fr|Les Tours de France}} (1936) and {{lang|fr|Faire le Tour de France}} (1950). German electronic group [[Kraftwerk]] composed "[[Tour de France (song)|Tour de France]]" in 1983&nbsp;– described as a minimalistic "melding of man and machine"<ref name="kraftwerk">Chris Jones, [https://web.archive.org/web/20030811223203/http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/classicpop/reviews/kraftwerk_france.shtml Kraftwerk, Tour De France Soundtracks] (), BBC, 4 August 2003.</ref>&nbsp;– and produced an album ''[[Tour de France Soundtracks]]'' in 2003, the centenary of the Tour.

In 1963, Rene Goscinny published the Asterix comic band "Asterix and the Banquet" (Asterix et le tour de Gaule) which featured many cultural references to France and the various regions, along with its culture. The plot of the comic was deeply inspired by the Tour de France bicycle race.

The Tour and its first Italian winner, [[Ottavio Bottecchia]], are mentioned at the end of [[Ernest Hemingway]]'s ''[[The Sun Also Rises]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://gilhaney.wordpress.com/2009/11/16/a-splendid-thing/ |title=A splendid thing |date=16 November 2009}}</ref>

From 2011 to 2015, American [[letterpress]] studio [[Lead Graffiti]] experimented with handset wood and [[metal type]] to print same-day posters documenting events of each stage of the Tour de France. The designers called the project "endurance letterpress". A 2013 article on the poster series appeared in ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' magazine's "Sports in Media" issue.<ref>{{cite magazine | first=Alexander | last=Wolff | title=Tour de Lead Graffiti | magazine=Sports Illustrated | date=16 December 2013}}</ref> In 2014 the [[British Library]] celebrated the Tour's fourth ''[[Grand Départ]]'' from the  U.K. with an exhibition of ''Tour de Lead Graffiti'' posters.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://blogs.bl.uk/americas/2014/07/tour-de-lead-graffiti-23-posters-in-23-days.html | title=Tour de Lead Graffiti: 23 posters in 23 days }}</ref>

In films, the Tour was background for ''[[Five Red Tulips]]'' (1949) by [[Jean Stelli]], in which five riders are murdered. A burlesque in 1967, {{lang|fr|Les Cracks}} by [[Alex Joffé]], with [[Bourvil]] and Monique Tarbès, also featured it. Footage of the 1970 Tour de France is shown in [[Jorgen Leth]]'s experimental short ''[[Eddy Merckx in the Vicinity of a Cup of Coffee]]''. Patrick Le Gall made {{lang|fr|Chacun son Tour}} (1996). The comedy, {{lang|fr|[[Le Vélo de Ghislain Lambert]]}} (2001), featured the Tour of 1974.

In 2005, three films chronicled a team. The German {{lang|de|Höllentour}}, translated as ''[[Hell on Wheels (2004 film)|Hell on Wheels]]'', recorded 2003 from the perspective of [[Team Columbia|Team Telekom]]. The film was directed by Pepe Danquart, who won an Academy Award for live-action short film in 1993 for ''Black Rider'' ({{lang|de|Schwarzfahrer}}).<ref>{{cite news
|title =Blood, sweat and gears
|work=Sydney Morning Herald
|date =27 May 2005
|url =http://www.smh.com.au/news/Film/Blood-sweat-and-gears/2005/05/26/1116950807781.html
|access-date =27 May 2007}}</ref> The Danish film ''Overcoming'' by Tómas Gislason recorded the 2004 Tour from the perspective of [[Team CSC]].

''Wired to Win'' chronicles [[Française des Jeux (cycling team)|Française des Jeux]] riders [[Baden Cooke]] and Jimmy Caspar in 2003. By following their quest for the points classification, won by Cooke, the film looks at the working of the brain. The film, made for IMAX theaters, appeared in December 2005. It was directed by Bayley Silleck, who was nominated for an Academy Award for documentary short subject in 1996 for ''[[Cosmic Voyage (1996 film)|Cosmic Voyage]]''.<ref>{{cite news
|title ="Wired" is winning tour of race, brain
|work=[[The Boston Globe]]
|date =30 December 2005
|url =http://www.boston.com/movies/display?display=movie&id=8598
|access-date =11 July 2008
|first=Wesley
|last=Morris}}</ref>

A fan, Scott Coady, followed the 2000 Tour with a handheld video camera to make ''The Tour Baby!''<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thetourbaby.com/ |title=The Tour Baby |publisher=Big Ring Films|work=TheTourBaby.com |access-date=29 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130720132543/http://thetourbaby.com/ |archive-date=20 July 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> which raised $160,000 to benefit the [[Lance Armstrong Foundation]],<ref>{{cite web
 |last        = Melvin
 |first       = Ian
 |title       = The Tour Baby!
 |publisher   = RoadCycling.com
 |date        = 8 October 2004
 |url         = http://www.roadcycling.com/news-results/tour-baby
 |access-date = 17 August 2014
 |url-status  = dead
 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150211021326/http://www.roadcycling.com/news-results/tour-baby
 |archive-date = 11 February 2015
 |df          = dmy-all
}}</ref> and made a 2005 sequel, ''Tour Baby Deux!''<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tourbabydeuxmovie.com/ |title=Tour Baby Deux Movie |publisher=Big Ring Films |access-date=29 June 2013 |archive-date=19 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130719044739/http://tourbabydeuxmovie.com/ |url-status=dead}}</ref>

{{lang|fr|Vive Le Tour}} by [[Louis Malle]] is an 18-minute short of 1962. The 1965 Tour was filmed by [[Claude Lelouch]] in {{lang|fr|Pour un Maillot Jaune}}. This 30-minute documentary has no narration and relies on sights and sounds of the Tour.

In fiction, the 2003 animated feature {{lang|fr|Les Triplettes de Belleville}} (''[[The Triplets of Belleville]]'') ties into the Tour de France.

[[Netflix]], partnered with the organizer Amaury Sport Organisation, has produced a documentary series about the eight major teams across the [[2022 Tour de France]] named ''[[Tour de France: Unchained]]''.<ref>{{cite news |title=ASO confirms new details of Netflix-Tour de France deal with eight major teams |url=https://www.velonews.com/news/road/aso-confirms-new-details-of-netflix-tour-de-france-deal-with-eight-major-teams/ |work=[[VeloNews]] |first=Andrew |last=Hood |date=31 March 2022}}</ref> It was released in June 2023.<ref>{{cite news |title=5 juicy moments from Tour de France: Unchained |url=https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-culture/5-juicy-moments-from-unchained-tour-de-france/ |work=[[VeloNews]] |first=Fred |last=Dreier |date=8 June 2023}}</ref>

===Post-Tour criteriums===
After the Tour de France there are [[criterium]]s in the Netherlands and Belgium. These races are public spectacles where thousands of people can see their heroes from the Tour de France race. The budget of a criterium is over 100,000 euros, with most of the money going to the riders. Jersey winners or big-name riders earn between 20 and 60 thousand euros per race in start money.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ftp.cyclingnews.com/features/?id=post_tour_crits |title=Fixed for the fans – the post-TdF criteriums |publisher=cyclingnews.com |access-date=21 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201162217/http://ftp.cyclingnews.com/features/?id=post_tour_crits |archive-date=1 February 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Doping==
{{Main|Doping at the Tour de France}}
{{See also|Festina affair|Doping at the 1998 Tour de France|Doping at the 1999 Tour de France|Floyd Landis doping case|Doping at the 2007 Tour de France|Lance Armstrong doping case}}
[[File:Tour de Doping.jpg|thumb|left|Spectators' banner during the [[2006 Tour de France]]]]
Allegations of [[Doping in sport|doping]] have plagued the Tour almost since it began in 1903. Early riders consumed [[ethanol|alcohol]] and used [[diethyl ether|ether]] to dull the pain.<ref>{{cite journal| url = https://www.academia.edu/7065151| author = Mika Rissanen| title = Beer Breaks during the Tour de France. Some observations on beer and cycling in the early 1900s | journal = Ludica, Annali di Storia e Civiltà del Gioco, 17–18 (2011–2012), Pp. 188–190.| date = May 2014|publisher= Ludica, annali di storia e civiltà del gioco |access-date = 27 September 2016}}</ref> Over the years they began to increase performance and the [[Union Cycliste Internationale]] and governments enacted policies to combat the practice.

In 1924, [[Henri Pélissier]] and his brother [[Charles Pélissier|Charles]] told the journalist [[Albert Londres]] they used [[strychnine]], [[cocaine]], [[chloroform]], [[aspirin]], "horse ointment" and other drugs.<ref>''Tour de France, 100 ans, 1903–2003'', L'Équipe, France 2003, p149</ref> The story was published in ''[[Le Petit Parisien]]'' under the title ''Les Forçats de la Route'' ('The Convicts of the Road'){{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=}}{{sfn|de Mondenard|2003|p=}}<ref name="abcc01">{{cite web|url=http://www.abcc.co.uk/Articles/DrgsTdeF.html |title=Association of British Cycling Coaches (ABCC), Drugs and the Tour De France by Ramin Minovi |publisher=ABCC |date=1 June 1965 |access-date=18 July 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070627210659/http://www.abcc.co.uk/Articles/DrgsTdeF.html |archive-date=27 June 2007 }}</ref>{{sfn|Moore|2011|p=145}}

On 13 July 1967, British cyclist [[Tom Simpson]] died climbing [[Mont Ventoux]] after taking [[amphetamine]].

In 1998, the "Tour of Shame", [[Willy Voet]], [[soigneur]] for the [[Festina (cycling team)|Festina]] team, was arrested with [[erythropoietin]] (EPO), [[growth hormone]]s, [[Testosterone (medication)|testosterone]] and amphetamine. Police raided team hotels and found products in the possession of the cycling team [[TVM (cycling team)|TVM]]. Riders went on strike. After mediation by director [[Jean-Marie Leblanc]], police limited their tactics and riders continued. Some riders had dropped out and only 96 finished the race. It became clear in a trial that management and health officials of the Festina team had organised the doping.

Further measures were introduced by race organisers and the [[Union Cycliste Internationale|UCI]], including more frequent testing and tests for [[blood doping]] ([[blood transfusion|transfusions]] and [[erythropoietin|EPO]] use). This would lead the UCI to becoming a particularly interested party in an [[International Olympic Committee]] initiative, the [[World Anti-Doping Agency]] (WADA), created in 1999. In 2002, the wife of [[Raimondas Rumšas]], third in the [[2002 Tour de France]], was arrested after [[erythropoietin|EPO]] and [[anabolic steroids]] were found in her car. Rumšas, who had not failed a test, was not penalised. In 2004, [[Philippe Gaumont]] said doping was endemic to his [[Cofidis]] team. Fellow Cofidis rider [[David Millar]] confessed to [[erythropoietin|EPO]] after his home was raided. In the same year, [[Jesús Manzano]], a rider with the Kelme team, alleged he had been forced by his team to use banned substances.<ref>{{cite news
 |title=Ex-Kelme rider promises doping revelations
 |publisher=VeloNews
 |date=20 March 2004
|url=http://velonews.com/article/5743
 |access-date=27 May 2007
|url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080319010616/http://www.velonews.com/article/5743
 |archive-date=19 March 2008
}}</ref>

From 1999 to 2005, seven successive tours were declared as having been won by [[Lance Armstrong]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/23/sports/cycling/armstrong-stripped-of-his-7-tour-de-france-titles.html|title=Lance Armstrong Stripped of 7 Tour de France Titles|last=Macur|first=Juliet|date=22 October 2012|work=The New York Times|access-date=31 January 2019|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> In August 2005, one month after Armstrong's seventh apparent victory, ''L'Équipe'' published documents it said showed Armstrong had used EPO in the 1999 race.<ref>L'Équipe, France, 23 August 2005, p1</ref><ref>{{cite news
 |title=''L'Équipe'' alleges Armstrong samples show EPO use in 99 Tour
 |publisher=VeloNews
 |date=23 August 2005
|url=http://velonews.com/article/8740
 |access-date=27 May 2007
|url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080508010255/http://velonews.com/article/8740
 |archive-date=8 May 2008
}}</ref> At the same Tour, Armstrong's urine showed traces of a glucocorticosteroid hormone, although below the positive threshold. He said he had used skin cream containing [[triamcinolone]] to treat [[saddle sores]].<ref>{{cite news
|title =Armstrong's journey : Tour leader rides from Texas plains to Champs-Élysées
|publisher = CNN Sports Illustrated
|date =22 July 2000
|url =http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/cycling/2000/tour_de_france/news/2000/07/22/amstrong_journey_ap/
|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20000824153915/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/cycling/2000/tour_de_france/news/2000/07/22/amstrong_journey_ap/
|url-status =dead
|archive-date =24 August 2000
|access-date =27 May 2007}}</ref> Armstrong said he had received permission from the UCI to use this cream.{{sfn|Armstrong|Jenkins|2001|p=}} [[History of Lance Armstrong doping allegations|Further allegations]] ultimately culminated in the United States Anti Doping Agency ([[USADA]]) disqualifying him from all his victories since 1 August 1998, including his seven consecutive Tour de France victories, and a lifetime ban from competing in professional sports.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usada.org/media/sanction-armstrong8242012 |title=Lance Armstrong Receives Lifetime Ban And Disqualification Of Competitive Results For Doping Violations Stemming From His Involvement In The United States Postal Service Pro-Cycling Team Doping Conspiracy |date=24 August 2012 |publisher=U.S. Anti-Doping Agency|access-date=29 June 2013}}</ref> The ASO declined to name any other rider as winner in Armstrong's stead in those years.

The [[2006 Tour de France|2006 Tour]] had been plagued by the [[Operación Puerto doping case]] before it began. Favourites such as [[Jan Ullrich]] and [[Ivan Basso]] were banned by their teams a day before the start. Seventeen riders were implicated. American rider [[Floyd Landis]], who finished the Tour as holder of the overall lead, had tested positive for [[Testosterone (medication)|testosterone]] after he won stage 17, but this was not confirmed until some two weeks after the race finished. On 30 June 2008 Landis lost his appeal to the [[Court of Arbitration for Sport]], and [[Óscar Pereiro]] was named as winner.<ref>{{cite news
|title = Landis loses appeal, must forfeit Tour de France title
|work=Houston Chronicle
|date =30 June 2008
|url = http://www.chron.com/disp/commnts.mpl/sports/5863703.html
|access-date =30 June 2008}}</ref>

On 24 May 2007, [[Erik Zabel]] admitted using EPO during the first week of the 1996 Tour,<ref>{{cite news
 |first=Susan
 |last= Westemeyer
 |title= Zabel and Aldag confess EPO usage
 |url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2007/may07/may24news2
 |work=CyclingNews
 |date=24 May 2007
|access-date=27 May 2007}}</ref> when he won the points classification. Following his plea that other cyclists admit to drugs, former winner [[Bjarne Riis]] admitted in [[Copenhagen]] on 25 May 2007 that he used EPO regularly from 1993 to 1998, including when he won the 1996 Tour.<ref>{{cite news
|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=aG.4N3TyZIVM&refer=europe
|title=Riis, Tour de France Champ, Says He Took Banned Drugs
|publisher=Bloomberg
|date=25 May 2007
|access-date=26 May 2007}}</ref> His admission meant the top three in 1996 were all linked to doping, two admitting cheating. On 24 July 2007 [[Alexander Vinokourov]] tested positive for a blood transfusion ([[blood doping]]) after winning a time trial, prompting his Astana team to pull out and police to raid the team's hotel.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/24/AR2007072400938.html Astana Pulls Out of Tour de France] Washington Post, 24 July 2007</ref> The next day [[Cristian Moreni]] tested positive for [[Testosterone (medication)|testosterone]]. His Cofidis team pulled out.<ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/6915683.stm Tour hit by second doping result] BBC Sport, 25 July 2007</ref>

The same day, leader [[Michael Rasmussen (cyclist)|Michael Rasmussen]] was removed for "violating internal team rules" by missing random tests on 9 May and 28 June. Rasmussen claimed to have been in Mexico. The Italian journalist [[Davide Cassani]] told Danish television he had seen Rasmussen in Italy. The alleged lying prompted Rasmussen's firing by Rabobank.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601079&sid=aIr0zYGwnFr8&refer=home |title=Rasmussen, Tour de France Leader, is Expelled by Team |publisher=Bloomberg |date=26 July 2007 |access-date=18 July 2009}}</ref>

On 11 July 2008, [[Manuel Beltrán]] tested positive for EPO after the first stage.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5j99v8lGDDLVr7JnBjqOPuu0iupiwD91RQJG01 |title=Doping agency: Beltran positive for EPO |access-date=7 November 2008 |agency=Associated Press |via=Google News }}{{dead link|date=July 2018|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> On 17 July 2008, [[Riccardo Riccò]] tested positive for [[Methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta|continuous erythropoiesis receptor activator]], a variant of EPO,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/7511518.stm |title=Tour 'winning war against doping' |publisher=BBC Sport|date=17 July 2008|access-date=4 November 2008}}</ref> after the fourth stage. In October 2008, it was revealed that Riccò's teammate and [[2008 Tour de France, Stage 1 to Stage 11#Stage 10|Stage 10]] winner [[Leonardo Piepoli]], as well as [[Stefan Schumacher]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2008/oct08/oct07news |title=Piepoli and Schumacher Tour de France samples positive for CERA |work=Cycling News|date=7 October 2008 |access-date=18 July 2009|publisher=Immediate Media}}</ref>&nbsp;– who won both time trials&nbsp;– and [[Bernhard Kohl]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2008/oct08/oct14news |title=Kohl positive confirmed |publisher= Immediate Media|work=Cyclingnews.com |access-date=18 July 2009}}</ref>&nbsp;– third on general classification and King of the Mountains&nbsp;– had tested positive.

After winning the [[2010 Tour de France]], it was announced that [[Alberto Contador]] had tested positive for low levels of [[clenbuterol]] on 21 July rest day.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/09/news/contador-tests-positive-for-clenbuterol_143791 |title=Contador tests positive for low levels of clenbuterol |publisher=VeloNews|date=30 September 2010 |access-date=7 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110710071433/http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/09/news/contador-tests-positive-for-clenbuterol_143791 |archive-date=10 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> On 26 January 2011, the [[RFEC|Spanish Cycling Federation]] proposed a 1-year ban<ref>{{cite web |url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2011/01/news/spanish-federation-proposes-one-year-ban-for-contador_157185 |title=Spanish federation proposes one-year suspension for Contador |publisher=VeloNews |date=27 January 2011 |access-date=7 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110627155824/http://velonews.competitor.com/2011/01/news/spanish-federation-proposes-one-year-ban-for-contador_157185 |archive-date=27 June 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> but reversed its ruling on 15 February and cleared Contador to race.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2011/02/news/it%E2%80%99s-official-spanish-fed-clears-contador_159920 |title=Spanish fed clears Alberto Contador, Contador plans to start Algarve |publisher=VeloNews |date=15 February 2011 |access-date=7 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110710074744/http://velonews.competitor.com/2011/02/news/it%E2%80%99s-official-spanish-fed-clears-contador_159920 |archive-date=10 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Despite a pending appeal by the [[Union Cycliste Internationale|UCI]], Contador finished fifth overall in the [[2011 Tour de France]], but in February 2012, Contador was suspended and stripped of his 2010 victory.<ref name="cascontador">{{cite news|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/cas-sanction-contador-with-two-year-ban-in-clenbuterol-case|title=CAS sanctions Contador with two-year ban in clenbutorol case|date=6 February 2012|access-date=6 February 2012|publisher=Future Publishing|work=Cyclingnews}}</ref>

During the 2012 Tour, the 3rd placed rider from 2011, [[Fränk Schleck]], tested positive for the banned diuretic [[Xipamide]] and was immediately disqualified from the Tour.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/cycling/18880417 |title=Frank Schleck fails drugs test at Tour de France |publisher=BBC Sport |date=18 July 2012 |access-date=28 July 2021 }}</ref>

In October 2012, the [[United States Anti-Doping Agency]] released a report on doping by the [[U.S. Postal Service cycling team]], implicating, amongst others, Armstrong. The report contained [[affidavit]]s from riders including [[Frankie Andreu]], [[Tyler Hamilton]], [[George Hincapie]], [[Floyd Landis]], [[Levi Leipheimer]], and others describing widespread use of [[Erythropoietin]] (EPO), blood transfusion, testosterone, and other banned practices in several Tours.<ref>[http://cyclinginvestigation.usada.org/ U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team Investigation], USADA, 2012 October, retr 2012 10 14</ref> In October 2012 the UCI acted upon this report, formally stripping Armstrong of all titles since 1 August 1998, including all seven Tour victories,<ref name="BBCArmstrong">{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/20008520 | title=Lance Armstrong stripped of all seven Tour de France wins by UCI | publisher=BBC Sport| date=22 October 2012 | access-date=22 October 2012}}</ref> and announced that his Tour wins would not be reallocated to other riders.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/20103406 | title=Lance Armstrong's Tour de France victories will not be reallocated | publisher=BBC Sport| date=26 October 2012 | access-date=26 October 2012}}</ref>

While no Tour winner has been convicted, or even seriously accused of doping in order to win the Tour in the past decade, due to the previous era, questions frequently arise when a strong performance exceeds expectations. While four-time champion Froome has been involved in a doping case, it is out of an abundance of caution that modern riders are kept under a microscope with bike inspections to check for "mechanical doping"<ref>{{cite web|title=Mechanical Doping Cycling Probe Closes
|publisher=Dan Fletcher |date=28 June 2020 |url=https://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1095748/mechanical-doping-cycling-probe-closes
}}</ref> as well as [[Biological passport|Biological Passports]] as officials try not to have a repeat of EPO with 'H7379 Haemoglobin Human'.<ref>{{cite web|title=Operation Aderlass Investigators Discover New Doping Product
|publisher=cyclingnews.com |date=25 September 2020 |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/operation-aderlass-investigators-discover-new-doping-product/
}}</ref> Despite initially beginning as an operation to investigate the winter sport of Nordic Skiing, [[Operation Aderlass]] is of particular interest to this sport because it involved people formerly and presently involved in cycling. Including the since vacated 2008 podium finisher [[Bernhard Kohl]], who made accusations that a team doctor instructed riders how to dope, which prompted further investigation into this matter by authorities.<ref>{{cite web|title=Kohl Accuses Gerolsteiner Doctor of Doping Involvement
|publisher=Gregor Brown |date=12 October 2009 |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/kohl-accuses-former-gerolsteiner-doctor-of-doping-involvement/
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Doctor at Centre of Aderlass Scandal Admits to Doping Athletes
|publisher=Alex Ballinger |date=30 September 2020 |url=https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/latest-news/doctor-at-centre-of-operation-aderlass-scandal-admits-to-doping-athletes-471127
}}</ref>

==Deaths==
{{See also|List of professional cyclists who died during a race}}
[[File:Tom Simpson memorial, Mont Ventoux, 2 May 2009.jpg|thumb|Memorial of [[Tom Simpson]] on [[Mont Ventoux]], who died near the summit during the [[1967 Tour de France]], aged 29.]]
Cyclists who have died during the Tour de France:
* 1910: French racer [[Adolphe Hélière]] drowned at the [[French Riviera]] during a rest day.
* 1935: Spanish racer [[Francisco Cepeda (cyclist)|Francisco Cepeda]] plunged down a ravine on the [[Col du Galibier]].
* 1967: 13 July, Stage 13: [[Tom Simpson]] died of heart failure during the ascent of Mont Ventoux. [[Amphetamine]]s were found in Simpson's jersey and blood.
* 1995: 18 July, Stage 15: [[Fabio Casartelli]] crashed at {{convert|88|km/h|mph|abbr=on}} while descending the [[Col de Portet d'Aspet]].

Another seven fatal accidents have occurred:
* 1934: A motorcyclist giving a demonstration in the velodrome of La Roche-sur-Yon, to entertain the crowd before the cyclists arrived, died after he crashed at high speed.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://hemeroteca.elmundodeportivo.es/preview/1934/07/28/pagina-2/621791/pdf.html|date=28 July 1934|page=2|language=es|publisher=El Mundo Deportivo|title=Ultimas Informaciones&nbsp;– La XXVIII Vuelta a Francia}}</ref>
* 1957: 14 July: Motorcycle rider Rene Wagner and passenger [[Alex Virot]], a journalist for Radio Luxembourg, went off a mountain road in the Spanish Pyrenees.<ref name=Eurosport>{{cite web| url=http://www.eurosport.co.uk/cycling/tour-de-france/2017/the-remarkable-tale-of-alex-virot-the-tragic-tintin-of-the-tour-de-france_sto6242316/story.shtml| title=The remarkable tale of Alex Virot, the tragic Tintin of the Tour de France| last=Lowe| first=Alex| work=[[Eurosport]]| date=2017| access-date=24 September 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170924135801/http://www.eurosport.co.uk/cycling/tour-de-france/2017/the-remarkable-tale-of-alex-virot-the-tragic-tintin-of-the-tour-de-france_sto6242316/story.shtml| archive-date=24 September 2017| url-status=live}}</ref>
* 1958: An official, Constant Wouters, died from injuries received after sprinter [[André Darrigade]] collided with him at the [[Parc des Princes]].{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=105}}
* 1964: Nine people died when a supply van hit a bridge in the [[Dordogne]] region, resulting in the highest tour-related death toll.<ref>[http://www.sudouest.fr/2013/10/23/le-11-juillet-1964-a-lalinde-24-neuf-morts-sur-le-tour-de-france-1208590-1889.php Tour de France : il y a 50 ans, neuf personnes étaient tuées en Dordogne] – Sud-Ouest, 10. Juli 2014</ref>
* 2000: A 12-year-old from [[Ginasservis]], known as Phillippe, was hit by a car in the Tour de France publicity caravan.{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=80}}
* 2002: A seven-year-old boy, Melvin Pompele, died near [[Retjons]] after running in front of a car in the publicity caravan.{{sfn|Woodland|2007|p=80}}
* 2009: 18 July, Stage 14: A spectator in her 60s was struck and killed by a police motorcycle while crossing a road along the route near [[Wittelsheim]].<ref name="autogenerated3"/>

==Records and statistics==
{{Main|Tour de France records and statistics|Yellow jersey statistics}}
One rider has been [[King of the Mountains]], won the combination classification, combativity award, the points competition, and the Tour in the same year—[[Eddy Merckx]] in 1969, which was also the first year he participated.<ref>[http://memoire-du-cyclisme.net/eta_tdf_1947_1977/tdf1969.php Memoire du cyclisme]. Retrieved 13 July 2012</ref> [[1970 Tour de France|The following year]] he came close to repeating the feat, but was five points behind the winner in the points classification. The only other riders to come close to this achievement are Bernard Hinault in [[1979 Tour de France|1979]], who won the overall and points competitions and placed second in the mountains classification, and Tadej Pogačar in [[2025 Tour de France|2025]], who won the overall and mountains classifications and placed second in the points competition.

Twice the Tour was won by a racer who never wore the yellow jersey until the race was over. In 1947, [[Jean Robic]] overturned a three-minute deficit on the {{convert|257|km}} final stage into Paris. In 1968, [[Jan Janssen]] of the Netherlands secured his win in the individual time trial on the last day.

The Tour has been won three times by racers who led the general classification on the first stage and holding the lead all the way to Paris. [[Maurice Garin]] did it during the Tour's first edition, 1903; he repeated the feat the next year, but the results were nullified by the officials as a response to widespread cheating. [[Ottavio Bottecchia]] completed a GC start-to-finish sweep in 1924. And in 1928, [[Nicolas Frantz]] held the GC for the entire race, and at the end, the podium consisted solely of members of his racing team. While no one has equalled this feat since 1928, four times a racer has taken over the GC lead on the second stage and carried that lead all the way to Paris. [[Jacques Anquetil]] predicted he would wear the yellow jersey as leader of the general classification from start to finish in 1961, which he did. That year, the first day had two stages, the first part from Rouen to Versailles and the second part from Versailles to Versailles. [[André Darrigade]] wore the yellow jersey after winning the opening stage but Anquetil was in yellow at the end of the day after the time trial.<ref>{{Cite AV media|url=https://www.ina.fr/video/CAF97505335|title=Tour de France : 1ère étape Rouen – Versailles|date=25 June 1961|language=fr|publisher=ina.fr|time=3:45|access-date=18 August 2020}}</ref>

The most appearances record is held by [[Sylvain Chavanel]], who rode his 18th and final Tour in 2018. Prior to Chavanel's final Tour, he shared the record with [[George Hincapie]] with 17. In light of Hincapie's suspension for use of performance-enhancing drugs, before which he held the mark for most consecutive finishes with sixteen, having completed all but his first, [[Joop Zoetemelk]] and Chavanel share the record for the most finishes at 16, with Zoetemelk having completed all 16 of the Tours that he started. Of these 16 Tours Zoetemelk came in the top five 11 times, a record, finished 2nd six times, a record, and won the [[1980 Tour de France]].

Between 1920 and 1985, [[Jules Deloffre]] (1885–1963)<ref>{{Cite book|last=Duino|first=Michel|title=Ça c'est le tour de France|publisher=Marabout|year=1955|location=Paris|pages=76}}</ref> was the record holder for the number of participations in the Tour de France, and even sole holder of this record until 1966,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Mondenard|first=Jean-pierre de|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IRc3AAAAQBAJ|title=Les grandes premières du tour de France|date=8 August 2013|publisher=Hugo Publishing|isbn=978-2-7556-1396-4|language=fr}}</ref> when [[André Darrigade]] rode in his 14th Tour.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Goy|first=Gérard|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lWjhCgAAQBAJ&q=Jules+Deloffre&pg=PA313|title=Tours 1914 à 1925|date=29 October 2015|publisher=Editions Publibook|isbn=978-2-342-04401-0|language=fr}}</ref>

In the early years of the Tour, cyclists rode individually, and were sometimes forbidden to ride together. This led to large gaps between the winner and the number two. Since the cyclists now tend to stay together in a [[peloton]], the margins of the winner have become smaller, as the difference usually originates from time trials, breakaways or on mountain top finishes, or from being left behind the peloton. The smallest margins between the winner and the second placed cyclists at the end of the Tour is 8 seconds between winner [[Greg LeMond]] and [[Laurent Fignon]] in [[1989 Tour de France|1989]]. The largest margin, by comparison, remains that of the first Tour in 1903: 2h 49m 45s between Maurice Garin and [[Lucien Pothier]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.letour.fr/2009/TDF/COURSE/us/histoire_statistiques.html |title=Tour de France 2009&nbsp;– Stats |publisher=Letour.fr |access-date=18 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019082114/http://www.letour.fr/2009/TDF/COURSE/us/histoire_statistiques.html |archive-date=19 October 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The most podium places by a single rider is eight by [[Raymond Poulidor]], followed by Bernard Hinault and Joop Zoetemelk with seven. Poulidor never finished in 1st place and neither Hinault nor Zoetemelk ever finished in 3rd place.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdfindex.html |title= Tour de France Index |publisher=McGann Publishing|work=Bike Race Info}}</ref>

[[Lance Armstrong]] finished on the podium eight times, and [[Jan Ullrich]] seven times, however they both had results voided and now officially have zero and six podiums respectively.

Three riders have won 8 stages in a single year: [[Charles Pélissier]] ([[1930 Tour de France|1930]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Charles Pélissier|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/coureur/2534.html|work=Results history|publisher=letour.fr|access-date=23 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020075646/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/coureur/2534.html|archive-date=20 October 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>), [[Eddy Merckx]] ([[1970 Tour de France|1970]], [[1974 Tour de France|1974]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Eddy Merckx|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/coureur/4004.html|work=Results history|publisher=letour.fr|access-date=23 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120817032314/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/coureur/4004.html|archive-date=17 August 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>), and [[Freddy Maertens]] ([[1976 Tour de France|1976]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Freddy Maertens|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/coureur/4314.html|work=Results history|publisher=letour.fr|access-date=23 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121027134426/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/coureur/4314.html|archive-date=27 October 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>). [[Mark Cavendish]] has the most mass finish stage wins with 35 as of 2024, ahead of [[André Darrigade]] and [[André Leducq]] with 22, [[François Faber]] with 19, and Eddy Merckx with 18.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.letour.fr/le-tour/2012/docs/Historique-VERSION_INTEGRALE-fr.pdf|title=Letour Guide Historique 2012|date=10 July 2012|publisher=Letour.fr|access-date=23 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120804000900/http://www.letour.fr/le-tour/2012/docs/Historique-VERSION_INTEGRALE-fr.pdf|archive-date=4 August 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> The youngest Tour de France stage winner is [[Fabio Battesini]], who was 19 when he won one stage in the [[1931 Tour de France]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Peter Sagan captures Stage 1|url=https://www.espn.com/olympics/tdf2012/story/_/id/8119085/2012-tour-de-france-slovakia-peter-sagan-wins-stage-1-fabian-cancellara-keeps-lead|agency=Associated Press |publisher=ESPN |date=1 July 2012 |access-date=8 July 2012}}</ref>

The fastest massed-start stage was in 1999 from Laval to Blois ({{convert|194.5|km}}), won by [[Mario Cipollini]] at {{convert|50.4|km/h}}.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-jul-08-sp-54125-story.html |title=Cipollini Sprints to Record Win|work= Los Angeles Times |date=8 July 1999 |access-date=18 July 2009}}</ref> The fastest time-trial is [[Rohan Dennis]]'s [[2015 Tour de France, Stage 1 to Stage 11#Stage 1|stage 1 of the 2015 Tour de France]] in [[Utrecht]], won at an average of {{convert|55.446|km/h}}.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/tour-de-france/rohan-dennis-beats-boardmans-tour-de-france-time-trial-record-180499|title=Rohan Dennis beats Boardman's Tour de France time trial speed record|work=Cycling Weekly|publisher=TI Media| date=4 July 2015|access-date=4 July 2015|last=Wynn|first=Nigel}}</ref><ref name="CN1">{{cite news|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/tour-de-france/stage-1/results |title=Tour de France: Dennis sets record speed to claim first maillot jaune in Utrecht |work=Cyclingnews.com |publisher=Immediate Media|date=4 July 2015 |access-date=4 July 2015 |last=Zeb |first=Woodpower |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150706052533/http://www.cyclingnews.com/tour-de-france/stage-1/results |archive-date=6 July 2015 }}</ref> The fastest stage win was by the 2013 Orica GreenEDGE team in a team time-trial. It completed the {{convert|25|km}} in Nice (stage 5) at {{convert|57.8|km/h}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://velonews.com/article/8393 |title=Armstrong in yellow after Discovery powers through TTT |publisher=VeloNews |date=5 July 2005 |access-date=18 July 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091209211149/http://velonews.com/article/8393 |archive-date=9 December 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amd.com/us/press-releases/Pages/Press_Release_100065.aspx |title=Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team Breaking Records With Trek Bikes Designed On AMD64 Technology |publisher=AMD|access-date=18 July 2009}}</ref>

The longest successful post-war breakaway by a single rider was by [[Albert Bourlon]] in the [[1947 Tour de France]]. In the Carcassonne–Luchon stage, he stayed away for {{convert|253|km}}.<ref name=autogenerated9>Tour 09, Procycling (UK) summer 2009</ref> It was one of seven breakaways longer than {{convert|200|km}}, the last being [[Thierry Marie]]'s {{convert|234|km}} escape in 1991.<ref name=autogenerated9 /> Bourlon finished 16&nbsp;m 30s ahead. This is one of the biggest time gaps but not the greatest. That record belongs to [[José-Luis Viejo]], who beat the peloton by just over 23:00 and the second place rider by 22&nbsp;m 50s in the Montgenèvre-Manosque stage in 1976.<ref name=autogenerated9 /> He was the fourth and most recent rider to win a stage by more than 20 minutes.

The record for total number of days wearing the yellow jersey is 96, held by Eddy Merckx. Bernard Hinault, Miguel Induráin, Chris Froome, Jacques Anquetil and Tadej Pogačar are the only other riders who have worn it 50 days or more.

===Record winners===
Four riders have won five times: [[Jacques Anquetil]] (FRA), [[Eddy Merckx]] (BEL), [[Bernard Hinault]] (FRA), and [[Miguel Induráin]] (ESP). Induráin achieved the mark with a record five consecutive wins.

{| class="wikitable"
! Wins || Rider || Editions
|-
| align=center rowspan= 4 | 5 || {{flagathlete|[[Jacques Anquetil]]|FRA}} || [[1957 Tour de France|1957]], [[1961 Tour de France|1961]], [[1962 Tour de France|1962]], [[1963 Tour de France|1963]], [[1964 Tour de France|1964]]
|-
|{{flagathlete|[[Eddy Merckx]]|BEL}} || [[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1970 Tour de France|1970]], [[1971 Tour de France|1971]], [[1972 Tour de France|1972]], [[1974 Tour de France|1974]]
|-
|{{flagathlete|[[Bernard Hinault]]|FRA}} || [[1978 Tour de France|1978]], [[1979 Tour de France|1979]], [[1981 Tour de France|1981]], [[1982 Tour de France|1982]], [[1985 Tour de France|1985]]
|-
|{{flagathlete|[[Miguel Induráin]]|ESP}} || [[1991 Tour de France|1991]], [[1992 Tour de France|1992]], [[1993 Tour de France|1993]], [[1994 Tour de France|1994]], [[1995 Tour de France|1995]]
|-
| align=center rowspan= 2 | 4 || |{{flagathlete|[[Chris Froome]]|GBR}} || [[2013 Tour de France|2013]], [[2015 Tour de France|2015]], [[2016 Tour de France|2016]], [[2017 Tour de France|2017]]
|-
|{{flagathlete|[[Tadej Pogačar]]|SVN}} || [[2020 Tour de France|2020]], [[2021 Tour de France|2021]], [[2024 Tour de France|2024]], [[2025 Tour de France|2025]] 
|-
| align=center rowspan=3 | 3 || {{flagathlete|[[Philippe Thys (cyclist)|Philippe Thys]]|BEL}} || [[1913 Tour de France|1913]], [[1914 Tour de France|1914]], [[1920 Tour de France|1920]]
|-
|{{flagathlete|[[Louison Bobet]]|FRA}} || [[1953 Tour de France|1953]], [[1954 Tour de France|1954]], [[1955 Tour de France|1955]]
|-
|{{flagathlete|[[Greg LeMond]]|USA}} || [[1986 Tour de France|1986]], [[1989 Tour de France|1989]], [[1990 Tour de France|1990]]
|}

==Related events==
[[L'Étape du Tour]] (French for 'stage of the Tour') is an organised mass participation [[cyclosportive]] event that allows amateur [[cyclist]]s to race over the same route as a Tour de France stage. First held in 1993, and now organised by the ASO, in conjunction with ''Vélo Magazine'', it takes place each July, normally on a Tour rest day.<ref>{{cite web |title=L'Étape du Tour de France – Presentation |url=https://www.letapedutourdefrance.com/en/event/presentation |access-date=28 February 2022 |website=L’Étape du Tour}}</ref>

Several different versions of a Tour de France for women were held between the 1980s and 2000s, however [[Grande Boucle Féminine Internationale|these races]] failed for a variety of reasons such as high costs, lack of sponsorship and inability to use the Tour de France branding.<ref>{{cite web |date=11 May 2021 |title=Tour de France organisers reveal women's race will be revived in 2022 |url=http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/may/11/tour-de-france-organisers-reveal-womens-race-will-be-revived-in-2022 |access-date=15 February 2022 |website=the Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Pretot |first=Julien |date=14 October 2021 |title=Cycling-Women's Tour de France organisers hoping the race will live long |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/sports/womens-tour-de-france-organisers-hoping-race-will-live-long-2021-10-14/ |access-date=15 February 2022}}</ref>

Following a campaign by the professional women's peloton,<ref>{{cite news |date=12 September 2013 |title=Women's Tour manifesto published |publisher=BBC Sport |url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/cycling/24062998 |access-date=15 February 2022 |quote=More than 93,000 have signed a petition by the group, led by cyclist and writer Kathryn Bertine, World Ironman champion Chrissie Wellington, and cyclists Marianne Vos and Emma Pooley.}}</ref> [[La Course by Le Tour de France]] was launched by ASO in 2014 as a one-day classic held in conjunction with the men's race.<ref name=":1">{{cite news |date=15 July 2014 |title=La Course to showcase women's cycling |publisher=BBC Sport |url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/cycling/28314738 |access-date=15 February 2022}}</ref> The first edition was held on the Champs-Élysées prior to the final stage of the men's race, with La Course subsequently using other stages of the Tour prior to the men's race – with locations such as [[Pau, Pyrénées-Atlantiques|Pau]], [[Col de la Colombière]] and [[Col d'Izoard]].<ref name=":2">{{cite web |date=17 July 2018 |title=Polarized opinions remain on La Course |url=https://www.velonews.com/events/tour-de-france/polarized-opinions-remain-on-la-course/ |access-date=15 February 2022 |website=VeloNews.com}}</ref> The race was part of the [[UCI Women's World Tour]].

From 2022, [[Tour de France Femmes]] – an 8-day stage race in the [[UCI Women's World Tour]] – was held following the Tour, replacing La Course.<ref>{{cite web |last=David |first=Maria |date=15 October 2021 |title=Tour de France Femmes: A jewel that we must cherish, says Marion Rousse |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/features/tour-de-france-femmes-a-jewel-that-we-must-cherish-says-marion-rousse/ |access-date=15 February 2022 |website=cyclingnews.com }}</ref> The Tour de France Femmes had its first stage on the Champs-Élysées prior to the final stage of the men's race.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=14 October 2021 |title=Tour de France 2022: women's race reborn as eight-stage route unveiled |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/oct/14/womens-tour-de-france-2022-reborn-with-route-unveiled-with-eight-stages |access-date=15 February 2022 |website=the Guardian }}</ref> The announcement of the race was praised by the professional peloton and campaigners.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |date=14 October 2021 |title=The women's peloton reacts to the Tour de France Femmes route |url=https://cyclingtips.com/2021/10/the-womens-peloton-reacts-to-the-tour-de-france-femmes-route/ |access-date=15 February 2022 |website=CyclingTips }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Benson |first=Daniel |date=14 October 2021 |title=Uttrup Ludwig: Racing Tour de France Femmes will make us part of history |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/uttrup-ludwig-racing-tour-de-france-femmes-will-make-us-part-of-history/ |access-date=15 February 2022 |website=cyclingnews.com }}</ref> The [[2022 Tour de France Femmes|first edition]] was won by Dutch rider [[Annemiek van Vleuten]], completing a Giro – Tour double in the same year.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |date=2022-07-31 |title=Annemiek van Vleuten claims Tour de France Femmes despite six bike changes |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2022/jul/31/annemiek-van-vleuten-claims-tour-de-france-femmes-after-final-stage-win |access-date=2022-08-01 |website=the Guardian }}</ref>

On the other hand, some events related to Tour de France have been held by ASO, around the world. Tour de France [[Saitama criterium]] has been held in [[Saitama (city)|Saitama]], [[Japan]] since 2013.<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 July 2023 |title=Tour de France Saitama criterium 2023 |url=https://saitama-criterium.jp/2023/eng/|access-date=17 July 2023 |website=Tour de France Saitama criterium}}</ref> 
After the success in Japan, Tour de France [[Singapore criterium]] has been held in [[Singapore]] since 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 July 2023 |title=Tour de France Singapore criterium 2023 |url=https://singaporecriterium.com/race-results-2022/|access-date=17 July 2023 |website=Tour de France Singapore criterium}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=n}}
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{Refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite book | last1=Allchin | last2=Bell | first1=Richard | first2=Adrian | title=Golden stages of the Tour de France : tales from the legendary stages of the world's greatest bike race | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7KsTAQAAIAAJ | year= 2003 | publisher=Mousehold Press | location=London | isbn=978-1-874739-28-9 }}
* {{cite book | last1=Armstrong | last2=Jenkins | first1=Lance | first2=Sally | author-link1=Lance Amstrong | author-link2=Sally Jenkins | title=It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5ATbkSDvfd0C | year= 2001 | orig-year=1st. pub. 2000 | publisher=[[Random House]] | location=New York City | isbn=978-0-224-06087-5 }}
* {{cite book | last=Augendre | first=Jacques | author-link=Jacques Augendre | title=Le Tour de France: panorama d'un siècle | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1fv5NAAACAAJ | year=1996 | publisher=Service Communication-presse de la Société du Tour de France }}
* {{cite book | last1=Boeuf | last2=Léonard | first1=Jean-Luc | first2=Yves | title=La République du Tour de France | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9NeBAAAAMAAJ | year= 2003 | publisher=[[Éditions du Seuil]] | isbn=978-2-02-058073-1 }}
* {{cite book | last1=Cazeneuve | last2=Chany | first1=Thierry | first2=Pierre | author-link2=Pierre Chany | title=La fabuleuse histoire du Tour de France | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u2KeSYyU_gsC | year=2011 | publisher=[[La Martinière Groupe|La Martinière]] | location=Paris | isbn=978-2-7324-4792-6 }}
* {{cite book | last1=Dauncey | last2=Hare | first1=Hugh | first2=Geoff | title=The Tour De France, 1903-2003: A Century of Sporting Structures, Meanings and Values | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8zXIYTnkxAIC | year=2013 | orig-year=1st. pub. 2003 | publisher=[[Routledge]] | location=London | isbn=978-1-135-76239-1 }}
* {{cite book | last=Goddet | first=Jacques | author-link=Jacques Goddet | title=L'équipée belle | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6gHYHAAACAAJ | year=1991 | publisher=[[Éditions Robert Laffont]] | isbn=978-2-221-07290-5 }}
* {{cite book | last=Harp | first=Stephen L. | title=Marketing Michelin: Advertising and Cultural Identity in Twentieth-Century France | url=https://archive.org/details/marketingmicheli00step | url-access=registration | year=2001 | publisher=[[Johns Hopkins University Press]] | location=Baltimore, Maryland | isbn=978-0-8018-6651-7 }}
* {{cite book | last=Masso | first=Benjamin | title=Het zweet der goden: legende van de wielersport | edition=4th | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=K3jGZwEACAAJ | year=2003 | publisher=Atlas | isbn=978-90-450-1126-4 }}
* {{cite book | last1=McGann | last2=McGann | first1=Bill | first2=Carol | title=The Story of the Tour de France, Volume 1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jxq20JskqMUC | year=2006 | publisher=Dog Ear Publishing | location=Indianapolis, Indiana | isbn=978-1-59858-180-5 }}
* {{cite book | last1=McGann | last2=McGann | first1=Bill | first2=Carol | title=The Story of the Tour De France: 1965–2007 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V8mlwItBhhcC | year=2008 | publisher=Dog Ear Publishing | location=Indianapolis, Indiana | isbn=978-1-59858-608-4 }}
* {{cite book | last=de Mondenard | first=Jean-Paul | title=Dopage: l'imposture des performances : mensonges et vérités sur l'école de la triche | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UxVwcgAACAAJ | year= 2003 | publisher=Chiron }}
* {{cite book | last=Moore | first=Tim | author-link=Tim Moore (writer) | title=French Revolutions: Cycling the Tour de France | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lFZ_3KWZ9f8C | year= 2011 | orig-year=1st. pub. 2001 | publisher=[[Random House]] | location=London | isbn=978-1-4464-1497-2 }}
* {{cite book | last=Nicholson | first=Geoffrey | title=Le Tour: The Rise and Rise of the Tour de France | url=https://archive.org/details/letourriseriseof0000nich | url-access=registration | year= 1991 | publisher=[[Hodder & Stoughton]] | location=London | isbn=978-0-340-54268-2 }}
* {{cite book | last=Ollivier | first=Jean-Paul | title=L'ABCdaire du Tour de France | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TdOoPAAACAAJ | year= 2001 | publisher=[[Groupe Flammarion]] | location=Paris | isbn=978-2-08-012727-3 }}
* {{cite book | last=Seray | first=Jacques | title=1904 Tour de France | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lFhrAAAACAAJ | year=2000 | publisher=Ann Arbor Press | isbn=978-0-9649835-2-6 }}
* {{cite book | last=Thompson | first=Christopher S. | title=The Tour de France: A Cultural History | edition=2nd | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UpzzPqexF00C | year=2008 | publisher=[[University of California Press]] | location=[[Berkeley, California]] | isbn=978-0-520-93486-3 }}
* {{cite book | last=Woodland | first=Les | title=The Yellow Jersey Companion to the Tour de France | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QdMSjfvjDhUC | year= 2007 | orig-year=1st. pub. 2003 | publisher=[[Random House]] | location=London | isbn=978-0-224-08016-3 }}
* {{cite book | last=Woodland | first=Les | title=The Unknown Tour De France: The Many Faces of the World's Biggest Bicycle Race | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zqXUAAAACAAJ | year= 2000 | publisher=Cycling Resources | isbn=978-1-892495-26-6 }}
{{Refend}}

==Further reading==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last= Delanzy |first= Eric|title= Inside the Tour de France: The Pictures, the Legends, and the Untold Stories|publisher=Rodale Books|isbn=1-59486-230-3|year= 2006}}
*{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=31jazQEACAAJ|title=Sprinting Through No Man's Land: Endurance, Tragedy, and Rebirth in the 1919 Tour de France|first=Adin|last=Dobkin|publisher=Little A|year=2021|isbn= 978-1-542018-82-1}}
* {{cite book | last=Nelsson | first=Richard | title=The Tour de France ... to the Bitter End | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZMGMzYS5eTYC | year= 2012 | publisher=Random House | location=London | isbn=978-0-85265-336-4 }}
* {{cite book|last=Wheatcroft|first=Geoffrey|title=Le Tour: A History of the Tour de France, 1903–2003|publisher=Simon & Schuster |isbn=0-684-02879-4|year=2004}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{sister project links|d=Q33881|c=Category:Tour de France|s=no|wikt=no|species=no|m=no|mw=no|b=no|v=no|voy=no|n=Category:Tour de France|q=no}}
* {{Official website}}
* {{Cycling archives race|846}}
*[https://www.wsj.com/sports/tadej-pogacar-tour-de-france-crash-mechanic-2da6796d The Tour de France neutral mechanics], [[Wall Street Journal]], July 22, 2025



{{Tour de France|state=expanded}}
{{Grand Tour}}
{{UCI World Tour}}
{{Road bicycle racing}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tour De France}}
[[Category:Tour de France| ]]
[[Category:Cycle races in France]]
[[Category:Grand Tour (cycling)]]
[[Category:Recurring sporting events established in 1903]]
[[Category:UCI ProTour races]]
[[Category:UCI World Tour races]]
[[Category:1903 establishments in France]]
[[Category:Annual sporting events in France]]
[[Category:July in sports]]
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[[Category:Challenge Desgrange-Colombo races]]
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