It is the premiere cycle race in the world. A race that is the greatest test of endurance, speed and skill and it is the one that every top cyclist wants to win.
That race is the Tour de France. Or as it is known in France, Le Tour.
In this post, we are going to take a look at this famous event in more detail. This includes a look at its history, some of its biggest winners and controversies.
Finally, we will then look at this yearβs event and give you a heads up on the cyclists you could back if you fancy a bet on the race with bet365 Sport.
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So letβs begin with a look back at the history of this famous event.
The first Le Tour took place in 1903. Since then, there have been 109 editions held with 2023 being the 110th race.
Over time, the race turned from being a small, provincial, mainly French rider-contested event, into the biggest cycle race in the world. It is also the most prestigious Grand Tour race on the calendar.
Around 20-22 teams compete in the race, each with eight riders. All stages are timed and the rider with the shortest cumulative finishing time is the Tour de France winner. This is the General Classification category in the race.
However, there are also other mini-races within the event which can be won. Sprinters can win the Points Classification, climbers can win the Mountains Classification and for riders under the age of 26, they can win the Young Rider Classification.
There is also a Teams Classification, which uses the best three finishers from each team on each stage.
Four cyclists have won the Tour de France five times and just eight have won the race three times or more.
Some of the biggest names to land single victories in the race include:
Doping has been the biggest controversy in the history in the race. While the issue has been around since the first Le Tour, it was in the late 1990s when the scale of the problem became apparent.
The 1998 Tour of Shame, the Festina team and TVM teams both were doing guilty of doping but that proved only to be the tip of the iceberg.
Over the next few years, further doping scandals came to light but none bigger than that involving Lance Armstrong. The American had won seven successive tours after recovering from cancer.
However, LβEquipe newspaper published evidence that Armstrong had tested positive for EPO in the first race he won in 1999. Eventually, Armstrong was found guilty of widespread doping and had all his race wins removed and a lifetime ban imposed in the sport.
Doping continued to hit the headlines in 2006, when top contenders Jan Ullrich and Ivan Basso were banned from competing by their teams just a day before the race started.
In total 17 riders were involved, including Floyd Landis, who won the race, but who lost his title to Oscar Pereiro after the Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected his appeal at his disqualification.
A United States Anti Coping Agency report in 2012 revealed the widespread use of EPO and other banned substances and practices. Since then, doping has diminished, at least it seems.
There are 21 stages in the 2023 Tour de France, with two rest days scheduled for Day 10 and Day 16 of the race.
Image courtesy of Gavin Anderson β CC By SA Unported 3.0
Vingegaardβs professional career came alive in 2021, after two inauspicious years in 2019 and 2020. That year he finished second in both the Tour of the Basque Country and the Tour de France. Last year, he added second place finishes in the Tirreno-Adriatico and Criterium du Dauphine races alongside a sixth-place finish in the Tour of the Basque Country. However, it was his win in the Tour de France that catapulted him into the elite. This year he has a 3rd place finish in the Paris-Nice race, as well as two wins in the Tour of the Basque Country and Criterium du Dauphine, setting him up nicely to defend his Tour de France title in July. The undoubted superstar of cycling, Pogacar has won Le Tour twice (in 2020 and 2021) and finished second last year to Vingegaard. His feat of winning three different Jerseys in both his 2020 and 2021 victories (King of the Mountains, Young Rider & General Classification) was the first time any rider had achieved that treble. He has already won the Paris-Nice Major Stage race this year, as well as the Monument race Tour of Flanders and two Classic Races, the Amstel Gold Race and La Fleche Wallonne. Β Jai Hindley burst onto the scene in 2020 when he finished 2nd in the Giro Italia. He then followed that with a win in the same race in 2022. That year also saw him finish 10th in the Vuelta a Espana. The Australian has not yet competed in Le Tour. Despite that, he is rated as the best odds option outside of Vingegaard and Pogacar to win the race. He would be only the second Australian, following Cadel Evans, to win the Tour de France should be be successful this year. Our Tip β Hindleyβs an interesting prospect but its hard to see him winning in his first attempt. Itβs almost 50/50 between Windegaard and Pogacar, but we are backing the Slovenian to land the win here at 11/10 with bet365.
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