The Tour de France is a bicycle race over more than 3,500 kilometres (2,200 mi). It is held every year. It is held in France and visits a bordering

The Tour de France is a bicycle race over more than 3,500 kilometres (2,200 mi). It is held every year. It is held in France and visits a bordering country every year. It usually lasts 23 days. Cyclists from all over the world take part. The race is broken down into day-long segments, called stages. Individual times to finish each stage are totaled to determine the overall winner for the race. The rider with the least elapsed time each day wears a yellow jersey[1] The course changes every year but it has always finished in Paris. There are similar races in Italy and Spain but the Tour de France is the oldest, the most prestigious and the best known.




The Tour is a stage race, each stage a one-day race, the time each day accumulated to find a winner. It is possible to win without winning a stage, as Greg LeMond did in 1990. Although the number of stages varies, the modern Tour typically has 20, with a total length of 3,000 to 4,000 kilometres (1,800 to 2,500 mi). The shortest Tour was in 1904 at 2,420 km, the longest in 1926 at 5,745 km. The 2007 Tour was 3,569.9 km long. The three weeks usually include two rest days, sometimes used to transport riders between stages. The race alternates between clockwise and counter-clockwise circuits of France. The combination of endurance and strength needed led the New York Times to say in 2006 that the "Tour de France is arguably the most physiologically demanding of athletic events." The effort was compared to "running a marathon several days a week for nearly three weeks", while the total elevation of the climbs was compared to "climbing three Everests."


The 2004 Tour rides the Champs Élysées.The number of riders varies annually. There are usually 20 to 22 teams of nine riders. Entry is by invitation. The organizers have used UCI points to give some teams automatic entry. Others are invited to make up the numbers. Each team, named after its sponsor, wears a distinctive jersey. Team members help each other and are followed by managers and mechanics.

Riders are judged by accumulated time, known as the general classification. Riders are often awarded time bonuses as well as prizes. There are subsidiary competitions (see below), some with distinctive jerseys for the best rider.

Most stages are in France though it is common to visit Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Great Britain. Stages can be flat, undulating or mountainous. Riders generally start each day together with the first over the line winning, but stages can also be time trials for individuals or teams. The overall winner is usually a master of the mountains and time trials. The three weeks usually include two rest days.

Since 1975 the finish has been on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. Before 1975, the race finished at the Parc des Princes stadium in western Paris and at the Piste Municipale.