The very first Tour De France left Paris on July 1st 1903. The uninitiated balk at the distances the modern day Tour riders cover, which can be over 200km a day. Imagine, then, the strength and determination required to ride the very first stage of that very first Tour, which incredibly started in Paris and finished in Lyon: A staggering 467km. More remarkable when one considers that roads in turn of the century France are not as they are now, and that bikes in the early 1900s did not have gears!

The inaugural Tour was ridden by 73 riders over eighteen days, six stages and 2,428km and proved a huge success. Boosting sales for L’auto and cycle manufacturers Le Francais, whose team won it, the Tour had also captured the imagination of the French public. Over a hundred years later it is more popular than ever, drawing a world-wide audience, and whilst the founding ethos remains the same, the race has changed somewhat.

The Modern Tour De France

The Tour De France comprises four different competitions, the leaders of which are awarded different coloured jerseys at the end of each day’s racing or stage. The overall leader wears the famed Yellow Jersey or Maillot Jaune, the heroic King of the Mountains is in the equally prestigious Polka Dot Jersey, whilst the points leader and best young rider wear the Green and White Jerseys respectively. To wear the Yellow Jersey, even if only for a day, represents for many riders the pinnacle of their career.