The

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. 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 ...

is a

road cycling Road cycling is the most widespread form of cycling in which cyclists ride on paved roadways. It includes recreational, racing, commuting, and utility cycling. As users of the road, road cyclists are generally expected to obey the same laws a ...

stage race held since

1903 Events January * January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India. * January 10 – The Aceh Sultanate was fully annexed by the Dutch forces, deposing the last sultan, marking the end of the Aceh War that have lasted for al ...

over a current period of three weeks, although it was not staged from 1915 to 1918 and from 1940 to 1946, because of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

respectively. The winner of the Tour de France is determined by the general classification. In addition, there are some secondary classifications. The mountains classification, first calculated in 1933 and first associated with the polkadot jersey in 1975; To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the race in

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito ...

, the points classification was reintroduced, having previously been the main classification from 1905 to 1912 inclusive. It rewarded the consistent finishers in individual stages by awarding points depending on the placing at the end of the stage and, from 1966 onwards, at any designated intermediate points along the route. From 1966 to 1989 inclusive, a separate classification was included solely for points awarded at these intermediate 'hot spots' or 'sprints' and from 1984 onward associated with the award of a red jersey. In

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

, the Tour organisers launched the young rider classification, replacing the 'combination' classification run since 1968 for 'overall best rider' based on points awarded from the general, mountain and points classification- although the combination classification was subsequently reintroduced from 1980 to 1989 inclusive.

Eddy Merckx Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (born 17 June 1945), known as Eddy Merckx (, ), is a Belgian former professional road and track cyclist racer who is the most successful rider in the history of competitive cycling. His victories include an ...

in 1969 is the only rider to win the King of the Mountains, the points and the overall title in the same year.

By year

By country

References