July 31, 2019

On Sunday, July 28, the Colombian cyclist Egan Bernal raced to his first victory in the Tour de France (Tour de Francia in Bernal’s native Spanish). Bernal is the first Colombian cyclist to win the Tour de France, and at just 22-years old, he is the youngest champion since 1909. Bernal completed the race 1 minute and 11 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher and last year’s champion, the Welsh rider Geraint Thomas. The Dutch racer Steven Kruijswijk finished third, 20 seconds behind Thomas. The Tour de France, nicknamed la Grande Boucle (the Big Loop), is one of the most popular sporting events in the world.

Colombian cyclist Egan Bernal wears the yellow leader jersey as he rides by the Arc De Triomphe near the end of the Tour de France on July 28, 2019 in Paris, France. Credit: © Justin Setterfield, Getty Images

In the race’s largely ceremonial 21st and final stage on Sunday, Bernal entered Paris wearing the leader’s distinctive yellow jersey as he coasted in a comfortable peloton (pack of riders) amid thousands of cheering fans and multiple layers of police and other security. After crossing the finish line on the famous Avenue des Champs-Élysées, a jubilant Bernal saluted his home country, which was well represented in the race: the Colombians Rigoberto Uran and Nairo Quintana also finished in the top ten.

Tour de France racers pedal through the tough mountain stages in the Alps of southeastern France. Credit: © Bogdan Cristel, Reuters

In 2019—the 106^th Tour de France—Belgium hosted the Grand Départ (Big Start) on July 6 and 7 with stages that began and ended in Brussels, the Belgian capital. The racers then biked into northern France, passing through Épernay on the way to Reims and Nancy. The racers chugged through Alsace-Lorraine before angling 143 miles (230 kilometers, the longest daily stage) to Chalon-sur-Saône on July 12. A transfer to Mâcon sent the cyclists through the regions of Auvergne and Occitanie, where the racers took a well-earned rest day in the picturesque town of Albi on July 16.

A pass through the city of Toulouse preceded the tough mountain stages in the Pyrenees along the Spanish border. A transfer to Nîmes gave the riders another rest day on July 22 ahead of a race to the Alpine town of Gap and further mountain stages to Albertville. On July 27, an air transfer took the riders to the Parisian suburb of Rambouillet, where the riders ceremoniously pedaled their way to the big finish in central Paris.

Bernal ran steadily through race, slowly advancing through the front ten. In the mountainous stage 18, Bernal crept into second behind the French cyclist Julian Alaphilippe, who had thrilled the home crowds by wearing the yellow jersey for 14 of the first 18 stages. Alaphilippe’s bid to become the first French champion since 1985 ended during the weather-shortened 19th stage, however, when he permanently fell behind Bernal (Alaphilippe finished fifth). Bernal clung to the overall lead through the tenacious 20th stage and eventually crossed the finish line with the best time of 82 hours and 57 minutes. The 2019 Tour de France began with 176 riders from all over the world, and 155 cyclists completed the grueling 2,162-mile (3,480-kilometer) race.

The Tour de France leader wears the maillot jaune (yellow jersey) for each stage he maintains the overall advantage. (This year marked the yellow jersey’s 100th anniversary—the first race took place in 1903, but the tradition of the leader’s yellow jersey did not begin until 1919.) Bernal earned the yellow jersey as well as the maillot blanc (white jersey), worn by the race’s best young rider. Romain Bardet of France earned the maillot à pois (polka dot jersey) as the race’s best climber in the tough mountain stages. The maillot vert (green jersey) went to Slovakia’s Peter Sagan as the overall leader in points (awarded for consistently high stage finishes).

The Tour de France is one of three major touring races of cycling; the others are the Giro d’Italia (every May to June in Italy) and the Vuelta a España (every August to September in Spain).

July 27, 2015,

The pack, with Britain’s Chris Froome wearing the overall leader’s yellow jersey, rides down the Champs Elysees in Paris during the 102nd Tour de France cycling race. Credit: © Christophe Ena, AP Photo

Cyclist Chris Froome of Team Sky won his second Tour de France yesterday, making him the first British cyclist to win the Tour twice. The race is run each year for more than 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers). This year, the 102nd edition of the race,  began on July 4 in Utrecht, the Netherlands. The race always ends on the Champs Elysees, a famous avenue in Paris. The Tour de France is one of three major touring races of cycling, the others being the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta a España.

The Tour de France race is divided into 20 days, called stages. The 21st stage of the Tour, in Paris, is ceremonial and not actually part of the race. The rider who leads at the end of a racing stage wears a yellow jersey for the next stage and continues to wear it until he loses the lead. Chris Froome captured the yellow jersey for stage 4, and again at stage 7. After stage 7, Froome held the yellow jersey to the end of the race.

Froome was challenged in the last few stages by a 25-year-old from Colombia, Nairo Quintana, riding for Team Movistar. Quintana’s time was 1 minute 12 seconds behind Froome’s time of 84 hours 46 minutes 14 seconds.

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• Bicycle racing

August 24, 2012

American cyclist Lance Armstrong’s long battle to clear his name of doping charges came to a sudden conclusion yesterday when he announced he would not enter into an arbitration process that was his final option in his defense against using performance-enhancing drugs. In making the announcement, Armstrong insisted, as he has during the entire investigation, that he is innocent of taking such drugs during his career as a cyclist. He said he was ending his defense because he was tired of fighting the endless accusations.

Lance Armstrong, who won the Tour de France bicycle race from 1999 through 2005, is being stripped of his titles because of doping charges. (AP/Wide World)

The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) subsequently announced that it would strip Armstrong of the seven Tour de France titles he won from 1999 to 2005. The annual Tour de France is international cycling’s most famous event. The USADA also stated that Armstrong would be banned for life from competitive cycling and would lose the bronze medal he won at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games as well as other awards and titles.

Armstrong’s case could still be revived if the International Cycling Union (ICU), the sport’s governing body, decides to take the matter before the International Court of Arbitration for Sport. However, a USADA official said the ICU was bound to recognize the USADA decision because the ICU is a signer of the World Anti-Doping Code.

Rumors about Armstrong’s alleged use of drugs date back to 1996 and intensified after he became world famous for winning the Tour de France. He always defended himself against the doping charges, stating that over the years he had passed hundreds of tests designed to detect illegal drugs. Armstrong retired from cycling in 2011.