Grand Tour (cycling)

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The seven cyclists who have won all three tours. Of them, only Contador and Hinault have won each Grand Tour at least twice, and only Merckx, Hinault and Froome have won all three tours consecutively.

In road bicycle racing, a Grand Tour is one of the three major European professional cycling stage races: Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and Vuelta a España. Collectively they are termed the Grand Tours, and all three races are similar in format, being three-week races with daily stages. They have a special status in the UCI regulations: more points for the UCI World Tour are distributed in Grand Tours than in other races,[1] and they are the only stage races allowed to last longer than 14 days,[2] and these differ from major stage races more than one week in duration.

All three races have a substantial history, with the Tour de France first held in 1903, Giro d'Italia first held in 1909 and the Vuelta a España first held in 1935. The Giro is generally run in May, the Tour in July, and the Vuelta in late August and September. The Vuelta was originally held in the spring, usually late April, with a few editions held in June in the 1940s. In 1995, however, the race moved to September to avoid direct competition with the Giro d'Italia.

The Tour de France is the oldest and most prestigious in terms of points accrued to racers of all three,[1] and is the most widely attended annual sporting event in the world.[3] The Tour, the Giro and the Road World Cycling Championship make up the Triple Crown of Cycling.

The three Grand Tours are men's events, and as of 2023, no three week races currently exist on the women's road cycling circuit. The Vuelta Femenina, Giro d'Italia Women and Tour de France Femmes are sometimes considered to be equivalent races for women – taking place over shorter, smaller routes around a week in length. The Vuelta Femenina was first held under that name in 2023, the Giro d'Italia Women was first held in 1988, and various women's Tour de France events have taken place since 1984 – with the Tour de France Femmes having its first edition in 2022.

Description[edit]

In their current form, the Grand Tours are held over three consecutive weeks and typically include two rest days near the beginning of the second and third weeks. If the opening stages are in a country not neighbouring the home nation of the race, there is sometimes an additional rest day after the opening weekend to allow for transfers. The stages are a mix of long massed start races (sometimes including mountain and hill climbs and descents; others are flat stages favoring those with a sprint finish) and individual and team time trials. Stages in the Grand Tours are generally under 200 kilometres in length.

UCI rules regarding 'Grand Tours'[edit]

Grand Tour events have specific rules and criteria as part of Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) regulations. For the UCI World Tour, more points are given in grand tours than in other races; the winner of the Tour de France receives 1000 points, and the winners of the Giro and Vuelta receive 850 points. Depending on the nature of other races, points vary for the winner of the overall classification[1] The grand tours have a special status for the length: they are allowed to last between 15 and 23 days – whereas other stage races are not allowed to last longer than 14 days.[2]

Teams[edit]

Historically, controversy surrounds which teams are invited to the event by the organiser. Typically, the UCI prefers top-rated professional teams to enter, while operators of the Grand Tours often want teams based in their country or those unlikely to cause controversy. Between 2005 and 2007, organisers had to accept all ProTour teams, leaving only two wildcard teams per Tour. However, the Unibet team, a ProTour team normally guaranteed entry, was banned from the three Grand Tours for violating gambling advertising laws. In 2008, following numerous doping scandals, some teams were refused entry to the Grand Tours: Astana did not compete at the 2008 Tour de France and Team Columbia did not compete at the 2008 Vuelta a España.

Since 2011, under the UCI World Tour rules, all UCI WorldTeams are guaranteed a place in all three events, and obliged to participate, and the organisers are free to invite wildcard teams of UCI ProContinental status to make up the 22 teams that usually compete.[citation needed]

Competitions[edit]

The main competition is the individual general classification, decided on aggregate time (sometimes after allowance of time bonuses). There are also classifications for teams and young riders, and based on climbing and sprinting points, and other minor competitions. Five riders have won three individual classifications open to all riders (general, mountains, young and points classifications) in the same race: Eddy Merckx in the 1968 Giro d'Italia and 1969 Tour de France and 1973 Vuelta a España, Tony Rominger in the 1993 Vuelta a España, Laurent Jalabert in the 1995 Vuelta a España, Marco Pantani in the 1998 Giro d'Italia, and Tadej Pogačar in the 2020 Tour de France and 2021 Tour de France.

Riders[edit]

It is rare for cyclists to ride all grand tours in the same year; in 2004, 474 cyclists started in at least one of the grand tours, 68 of them rode two Grand Tours and only two cyclists started in all three grand tours.[4] It is not unusual for sprinters to start each of the Grand Tours and aim for stage wins before the most difficult stages occur. Alessandro Petacchi and Mark Cavendish started all three Grand Tours in 2010 and 2011, respectively, as did some of their preferred support riders. For both riders in both years, only the Tour de France was ridden to its conclusion.

Over the years, 34 riders have completed all three Grand Tours in one year: Adam Hansen did so six years in a row. The only riders to have finished in the top 10 in each of the three tours during the same year are Raphaël Géminiani in 1955 and Gastone Nencini in 1957.

Riders from the same country winning all three Grand Tours in a single year has happened only on three occasions. It first occurred in 1964 with French riders Jacques Anquetil and Raymond Poulidor, with the second occurrence in 2008 with Spanish riders Alberto Contador and Carlos Sastre. 2018 marked the only time three different riders from the same country won all three Tours, these being British riders Chris Froome, Geraint Thomas and Simon Yates.

On four occasions, each of the three Grand Tours in the same year was won by a home rider, that is, an Italian winning the Giro, a Frenchman winning the Tour and a Spaniard winning the Vuelta. The last occasion this occurred was 1975.

Women's Grand Tour events[edit]

As of 2023, no three week races currently exist on the women's road cycling circuit. Historically, women have participated in three week long stages races, with various women's Tour de France events taking place since 1984.[5][6] In the contemporary UCI Women's World Tour, the Giro d'Italia Women (first held in 1988), the Tour de France Femmes (first held in 2022) and the Vuelta Femenina (started in 2015, gaining its current name in 2023) are sometimes considered to be equivalent races for women – taking place over shorter, smaller routes around a week in length.[7][8] The Vuelta Femenina takes place in May, the Giro d'Italia Women is generally run in late June / early July and the Tour de France Femmes is held in late July following the men's Tour de France.

Some media and teams have referred to these women's events as Grand Tours, as they are the biggest events in the women's calendar.[9][8][10] However, they are not three week stage races, they do not have a special status in the rules and regulations of cycling (such as more points in the UCI Women's World Tour, or allowing an increased number of stages),[11][12] and some have argued that the races need to visit high mountains (such as the Alps) or contain time trial stages to be considered an equivalent event.[9][13]

Campaign groups such as Le Tour Entier and The Cyclists' Alliance continue to push organisers and the UCI to allow for longer stage races for women,[12] as well as to improve the quality and economic stability of the women's peloton to allow for three week long races in future.[13][14]

General Classification winners[edit]

Wins per year[edit]

Legend
Rider won 3 Grand Tours in the same year
Rider won 2 Grand Tours in the same year
Flag icon key: List of National Flags
Year Giro d'Italia Tour de France Vuelta a España
1903 started in 1909 France Maurice Garin (1/1) started in 1935
1904 France Henri Cornet (1/1)
1905 France Louis Trousselier (1/1)
1906 France René Pottier (1/1)
1907 France Lucien Petit-Breton (1/2)
1908 France Lucien Petit-Breton (2/2)
1909 Italy Luigi Ganna (1/1) Luxembourg François Faber (1/1)
1910 Italy Carlo Galetti (1/3) France Octave Lapize (1/1)
1911 Italy Carlo Galetti (2/3) France Gustave Garrigou (1/1)
1912 Italy Team Atala (Carlo Galetti (3/3),
Giovanni Micheletto (1/1) & Eberardo Pavesi (1/1))
Belgium Odile Defraye (1/1)
1913 Italy Carlo Oriani (1/1) Belgium Philippe Thys (1/3)
1914 Italy Alfonso Calzolari (1/1) Belgium Philippe Thys (2/3)
1915 Not contested during World War I
1916
1917
1918
1919 Italy Costante Girardengo (1/2) Belgium Firmin Lambot (1/2)
1920 Italy Gaetano Belloni (1/1) Belgium Philippe Thys (3/3)
1921 Italy Giovanni Brunero (1/3) Belgium Léon Scieur (1/1)
1922 Italy Giovanni Brunero (2/3) Belgium Firmin Lambot (2/2)
1923 Italy Costante Girardengo (2/2) France Henri Pélissier (1/1)
1924 Italy Giuseppe Enrici (1/1) Italy Ottavio Bottecchia (1/2)
1925 Italy Alfredo Binda (1/5) Italy Ottavio Bottecchia (2/2)
1926 Italy Giovanni Brunero (3/3) Belgium Lucien Buysse (1/1)
1927 Italy Alfredo Binda (2/5) Luxembourg Nicolas Frantz (1/2)
1928 Italy Alfredo Binda (3/5) Luxembourg Nicolas Frantz (2/2)
1929 Italy Alfredo Binda (4/5) Belgium Maurice De Waele (1/1)
1930 Italy Luigi Marchisio (1/1) France André Leducq (1/2)
1931 Italy Francesco Camusso (1/1) France Antonin Magne (1/2)
1932 Italy Antonio Pesenti (1/1) France André Leducq (2/2)
1933 Italy Alfredo Binda (5/5) France Georges Speicher (1/1)
1934 Italy Learco Guerra (1/1) France Antonin Magne (2/2)
1935 Italy Vasco Bergamaschi (1/1) Belgium Romain Maes (1/1) Belgium Gustaaf Deloor (1/2)
1936 Italy Gino Bartali (1/5) Belgium Sylvère Maes (1/2) Belgium Gustaaf Deloor (2/2)
1937 Italy Gino Bartali (2/5) France Roger Lapébie (1/1) Not contested during the Spanish Civil War
1938 Italy Giovanni Valetti (1/2) Italy Gino Bartali (3/5)
1939 Italy Giovanni Valetti (2/2) Belgium Sylvère Maes (2/2)
1940 Italy Fausto Coppi (1/7) Not contested during World War II
1941 Not contested during World War II Spain Julián Berrendero (1/2)
1942 Spain Julián Berrendero (2/2)
1943 Not contested during World War II
1944
1945 Spain Delio Rodríguez (1/1)
1946 Italy Gino Bartali (4/5) Spain Dalmacio Langarica (1/1)
1947 Italy Fausto Coppi (2/7) France Jean Robic (1/1) Belgium Edward Van Dijck (1/1)
1948 Italy Fiorenzo Magni (1/3) Italy Gino Bartali (5/5) Spain Bernardo Ruiz (1/1)
1949 Italy Fausto Coppi (3/7) Italy Fausto Coppi (4/7) Not contested for lack of interest
1950 Switzerland Hugo Koblet (1/2) Switzerland Ferdinand Kübler (1/1) Spain Emilio Rodríguez (1/1)
1951 Italy Fiorenzo Magni (2/3) Switzerland Hugo Koblet (2/2) Not contested for lack of interest
1952 Italy Fausto Coppi (5/7) Italy Fausto Coppi (6/7)
1953 Italy Fausto Coppi (7/7) France Louison Bobet (1/3)
1954 Switzerland Carlo Clerici (1/1) France Louison Bobet (2/3)
1955 Italy Fiorenzo Magni (3/3) France Louison Bobet (3/3) France Jean Dotto (1/1)
1956 Luxembourg Charly Gaul (1/3) France Roger Walkowiak (1/1) Italy Angelo Conterno (1/1)
1957 Italy Gastone Nencini (1/2) France Jacques Anquetil (1/8) Spain Jesús Loroño (1/1)
1958 Italy Ercole Baldini (1/1) Luxembourg Charly Gaul (2/3) France Jean Stablinski (1/1)
1959 Luxembourg Charly Gaul (3/3) Spain Federico Bahamontes (1/1) Spain Antonio Suárez (1/1)
1960 France Jacques Anquetil (2/8) Italy Gastone Nencini (2/2) Belgium Frans De Mulder (1/1)
1961 Italy Arnaldo Pambianco (1/1) France Jacques Anquetil (3/8) Spain Angelino Soler (1/1)
1962 Italy Franco Balmamion (1/2) France Jacques Anquetil (4/8) Germany Rudi Altig (1/1)
1963 Italy Franco Balmamion (2/2) France Jacques Anquetil (6/8) France Jacques Anquetil (5/8)
1964 France Jacques Anquetil (7/8) France Jacques Anquetil (8/8) France Raymond Poulidor (1/1)
1965 Italy Vittorio Adorni (1/1) Italy Felice Gimondi (1/5) Germany Rolf Wolfshohl (1/1)
1966 Italy Gianni Motta (1/1) France Lucien Aimar (1/1) Spain Francisco Gabica (1/1)
1967 Italy Felice Gimondi (2/5) France Roger Pingeon (1/2) Netherlands Jan Janssen (1/2)
1968 Belgium Eddy Merckx (1/11) Netherlands Jan Janssen (2/2) Italy Felice Gimondi (3/5)
1969 Italy Felice Gimondi (4/5) Belgium Eddy Merckx (2/11) France Roger Pingeon (2/2)
1970 Belgium Eddy Merckx (3/11) Belgium Eddy Merckx (4/11) Spain Luis Ocaña (1/2)
1971 Sweden Gösta Pettersson (1/1) Belgium Eddy Merckx (5/11) Belgium Ferdinand Bracke (1/1)
1972 Belgium Eddy Merckx (6/11) Belgium Eddy Merckx (7/11) Spain José Manuel Fuente (1/2)
1973 Belgium Eddy Merckx (9/11) Spain Luis Ocaña (2/2) Belgium Eddy Merckx (8/11)
1974 Belgium Eddy Merckx (10/11) Belgium Eddy Merckx (11/11) Spain José Manuel Fuente (2/2)
1975 Italy Fausto Bertoglio (1/1) France Bernard Thévenet (1/2) Spain Agustín Tamames (1/1)
1976 Italy Felice Gimondi (5/5) Belgium Lucien Van Impe (1/1) Spain José Pesarrodona (1/1)
1977 Belgium Michel Pollentier (1/1) France Bernard Thévenet (2/2) Belgium Freddy Maertens (1/1)
1978 Belgium Johan De Muynck (1/1) France Bernard Hinault (2/10) France Bernard Hinault (1/10)
1979 Italy Giuseppe Saronni (1/2) France Bernard Hinault (3/10) Netherlands Joop Zoetemelk (1/2)
1980 France Bernard Hinault (4/10) Netherlands Joop Zoetemelk (2/2) Spain Faustino Rupérez (1/1)
1981 Italy Giovanni Battaglin (2/2) France Bernard Hinault (5/10) Italy Giovanni Battaglin (1/2)
1982 France Bernard Hinault (6/10) France Bernard Hinault (7/10) Spain Marino Lejarreta (1/1)
1983 Italy Giuseppe Saronni (2/2) France Laurent Fignon (1/3) France Bernard Hinault (8/10)
1984 Italy Francesco Moser (1/1) France Laurent Fignon (2/3) France Éric Caritoux (1/1)
1985 France Bernard Hinault (9/10) France Bernard Hinault (10/10) Spain Pedro Delgado (1/3)
1986 Italy Roberto Visentini (1/1) United States Greg LeMond (1/3) Spain Álvaro Pino (1/1)
1987 Republic of Ireland Stephen Roche (1/2) Republic of Ireland Stephen Roche (2/2) Colombia Luis Herrera (1/1)
1988 United States Andrew Hampsten (1/1) Spain Pedro Delgado (2/3) Republic of Ireland Sean Kelly (1/1)
1989 France Laurent Fignon (3/3) United States Greg LeMond (2/3) Spain Pedro Delgado (3/3)
1990 Italy Gianni Bugno (1/1) United States Greg LeMond (3/3) Italy Marco Giovannetti (1/1)
1991 Italy Franco Chioccioli (1/1) Spain Miguel Induráin (1/7) Spain Melcior Mauri (1/1)
1992 Spain Miguel Induráin (2/7) Spain Miguel Induráin (3/7) Switzerland Tony Rominger (1/4)
1993 Spain Miguel Induráin (4/7) Spain Miguel Induráin (5/7) Switzerland Tony Rominger (2/4)
1994 Russia Eugeni Berzin (1/1) Spain Miguel Induráin (6/7) Switzerland Tony Rominger (3/4)
1995 Switzerland Tony Rominger (4/4) Spain Miguel Induráin (7/7) France Laurent Jalabert (1/1)
1996 Russia Pavel Tonkov (1/1) Denmark Bjarne Riis (1/1) Switzerland Alex Zülle (1/2)
1997 Italy Ivan Gotti (1/2) Germany Jan Ullrich (1/2) Switzerland Alex Zülle (2/2)
1998 Italy Marco Pantani (1/2) Italy Marco Pantani (2/2) Spain Abraham Olano (1/1)
1999 Italy Ivan Gotti (2/2) No winner[A] Germany Jan Ullrich (2/2)
2000 Italy Stefano Garzelli (1/1) No winner[A] Spain Roberto Heras (1/4)
2001 Italy Gilberto Simoni (1/2) No winner[A] Spain Ángel Casero (1/1)
2002 Italy Paolo Savoldelli (1/2) No winner[A] Spain Aitor González (1/1)
2003 Italy Gilberto Simoni (2/2) No winner[A] Spain Roberto Heras (2/4)
2004 Italy Damiano Cunego (1/1) No winner[A] Spain Roberto Heras (3/4)
2005 Italy Paolo Savoldelli (2/2) No winner[A] Spain Roberto Heras (4/4)
2006 Italy Ivan Basso (1/2) Spain Óscar Pereiro (1/1)[15] Kazakhstan Alexander Vinokourov (1/1)
2007 Italy Danilo Di Luca (1/1) Spain Alberto Contador (1/7) Russia Denis Menchov (1/2)
2008 Spain Alberto Contador (2/7) Spain Carlos Sastre (1/1) Spain Alberto Contador (3/7)
2009 Russia Denis Menchov (2/2) Spain Alberto Contador (4/7) Spain Alejandro Valverde (1/1)
2010 Italy Ivan Basso (2/2) Luxembourg Andy Schleck (1/1) Italy Vincenzo Nibali (1/4)
2011 Italy Michele Scarponi (1/1) Australia Cadel Evans (1/1) United Kingdom Chris Froome (1/7)[15]
2012 Canada Ryder Hesjedal (1/1) United Kingdom Bradley Wiggins (1/1) Spain Alberto Contador (5/7)
2013 Italy Vincenzo Nibali (2/4) United Kingdom Chris Froome (2/7) United States Chris Horner (1/1)
2014 Colombia Nairo Quintana (1/2) Italy Vincenzo Nibali (3/4) Spain Alberto Contador (6/7)
2015 Spain Alberto Contador (7/7) United Kingdom Chris Froome (3/7) Italy Fabio Aru (1/1)
2016 Italy Vincenzo Nibali (4/4) United Kingdom Chris Froome (4/7) Colombia Nairo Quintana (2/2)
2017 Netherlands Tom Dumoulin (1/1) United Kingdom Chris Froome (5/7) United Kingdom Chris Froome (6/7)
2018 United Kingdom Chris Froome (7/7) United Kingdom Geraint Thomas (1/1) United Kingdom Simon Yates (1/1)
2019 Ecuador Richard Carapaz (1/1) Colombia Egan Bernal (1/2) Slovenia Primož Roglič (1/4)
2020 United Kingdom Tao Geoghegan Hart (1/1) Slovenia Tadej Pogačar (1/2) Slovenia Primož Roglič (2/4)
2021 Colombia Egan Bernal (2/2) Slovenia Tadej Pogačar (2/2) Slovenia Primož Roglič (3/4)
2022 Australia Jai Hindley (1/1) Denmark Jonas Vingegaard (1/2) Belgium Remco Evenepoel (1/1)
2023 Slovenia Primož Roglič (4/4) Denmark Jonas Vingegaard (2/2) United States Sepp Kuss (1/1)
Year Giro d'Italia Tour de France Vuelta a España

A. a b c d e f g Lance Armstrong was declared the winner of seven consecutive Tours from 1999 to 2005. However, on 22 October 2012, he was stripped of all his titles by the UCI for his use of performance-enhancing drugs. The organizers of the Tour de France announced that the winner's slot would remain empty in the record books, rather than transfer the win to the second-place finishers each year.[16]

Wins per rider[edit]

Rank Rider Total Tour Giro Vuelta
1 Belgium Eddy Merckx 11 5 (1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974) 5 (1968, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974) 1 (1973)
2 France Bernard Hinault 10 5 (1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1985) 3 (1980, 1982, 1985) 2 (1978, 1983)
3 France Jacques Anquetil 8 5 (1957, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964) 2 (1960, 1964) 1 (1963)
4 Italy Fausto Coppi 7 2 (1949, 1952) 5 (1940, 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953)
Spain Miguel Indurain 7 5 (1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995) 2 (1992, 1993)
Spain Alberto Contador 7 2 (2007, 2009) 2 (2008, 2015) 3 (2008, 2012, 2014)
United Kingdom Chris Froome 7 4 (2013, 2015, 2016, 2017) 1 (2018) 2 (2011, 2017)
8 Italy Alfredo Binda 5 5 (1925, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1933)
Italy Gino Bartali 5 2 (1938, 1948) 3 (1936, 1937, 1946)
Italy Felice Gimondi 5 1 (1965) 3 (1967, 1969, 1976) 1 (1968)
11 Switzerland Tony Rominger 4 1 (1995) 3 (1992, 1993, 1994)
Spain Roberto Heras 4 4 (2000, 2003, 2004, 2005)
Italy Vincenzo Nibali 4 1 (2014) 2 (2013, 2016) 1 (2010)
Slovenia Primož Roglič 4 1 (2023) 3 (2019, 2020, 2021)
  • Active riders marked in bold.

Wins by country[edit]

Grand Tour general classification wins by country
Country Giro Tour Vuelta Total
 Italy 69 10 6 85
 France 6 36 9 51
 Spain 4 12 32 48
 Belgium 7 18 8 33
 Great Britain 2 6 3 11
  Switzerland 3 2 5 10
 Luxembourg 2 5 0 7
 Slovenia 1 2 3 6
 United States 1 3 2 6
 Netherlands 1 2 2 5
 Colombia 2 1 2 5
 Germany 0 1 3 4
 Russia 3 0 1 4
 Denmark 0 3 0 3
 Ireland 1 1 1 3
 Australia 1 1 0 2
 Sweden 1 0 0 1
 Canada 1 0 0 1
 Ecuador 1 0 0 1
 Kazakhstan 0 0 1 1

Winners of all three Grand Tours[edit]

Seven cyclists have won all three of the Grand Tours during their career:[17]

Hinault and Contador are the only cyclists to have won each Grand Tour at least twice.

Winners of three or more consecutive Grand Tours[edit]

During Fausto Coppi achievement, the Vuelta a España didn't run (1951–1954).

During Eddy Merckx and Bernard Hinault achievements, the Vuelta a España was the first Grand Tour of the season.

Winners of multiple Grand Tours in a single year[edit]

Ten riders have achieved a double by winning two grand tours in the same calendar year.

Seven cyclists have won the Tour and the Giro in the same calendar year:[17]

The Tour/Vuelta double has been achieved by three cyclists:[17]

The Giro/Vuelta double has been achieved by three cyclists:[17]

Of the above ten, Pantani, Roche and Battaglin's doubles were their only Grand Tour victories in their careers.

Finished in the top ten in all three Grand Tours in a single year[edit]

Few riders have finished all three in a single year, of whom two finished in the top ten in each: Raphaël Géminiani (4th, 6th and 3rd in the Giro, Tour and Vuelta in 1955) and Gastone Nencini (1st, 6th and 9th in 1957).

Smallest margin between 1st and 2nd placed rider[edit]

The margins between the winner of a Grand Tour and the runner-up are often narrow, and rarely larger than a few minutes.

As of 2021, there have been 54 Grand Tours with a winning margin less than one minute. The smallest margins are as follows:

Rank Winner Time Runner-up Margin Race
1 France Éric Caritoux 90h 08' 03"" Spain Alberto Fernández +00h 00' 06" Vuelta a España (1984)
2 United States Greg LeMond 87h 38' 35" France Laurent Fignon +00h 00' 08" Tour de France (1989)
3 Spain José Manuel Fuente 86h 48' 18" Portugal Joaquim Agostinho +00h 00' 11" Vuelta a España (1974)
Italy Fiorenzo Magni 124h 51' 52" Italy Ezio Cecchi Giro d'Italia (1948)
5 Belgium Eddy Merckx 113h 08' 13" Italy Gianbattista Baronchelli +00h 00' 12" Giro d'Italia (1974)
6 Italy Angelo Conterno 105h 37' 52" Spain Jesús Loroño +00h 00' 13" Vuelta a España (1956)
Italy Fiorenzo Magni 108h 56' 12" Italy Fausto Coppi Giro d'Italia (1955)
8 Spain Augustín Tamames 88h 00" 56' Spain Domingo Perurena +00h 00' 14" Vuelta a España (1975)
Slovenia Primož Roglič 85h 29" 02' United Kingdom Geraint Thomas Giro d'Italia (2023)
10 Canada Ryder Hesjedal 91h 39' 02" Spain Joaquim Rodríguez +00h 00' 16" Giro d'Italia (2012)

The biggest winning margin in a Grand Tour was 2h 59' 21" in Maurice Garin's win at the first Tour de France in 1903. The biggest margin in the history of Giro d'Italia was in 1914 when Alfonso Calzolari won by 1h 57' 26", and the biggest margin in the history of Vuelta a España was in 1945 when Delio Rodríguez finished 30' 08" clear.

Points classification winners[edit]

The Tour/Giro/Vuelta triple has been achieved by five riders – Djamolidine Abdoujaparov, Mark Cavendish, Laurent Jalabert, Eddy Merckx and Alessandro Petacchi.

Rank Rider Total Tour Giro Vuelta
1 Germany Erik Zabel 9 6 (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001) 0 3 (2002, 2003, 2004)
2 Republic of Ireland Sean Kelly 8 4 (1982, 1983, 1985, 1989) 0 4 (1980, 1985, 1986, 1988)
Slovakia Peter Sagan 8 7 (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019) 1 (2021) 0
4 France Laurent Jalabert 7 2 (1992, 1995) 1 (1999) 4 (1994, 1995, 1996, 1997)
5 Belgium Eddy Merckx 6 3 (1969, 1971, 1972) 2 (1968, 1973) 1 (1973)

Mountains classification winners[edit]

The Tour/Giro/Vuelta triple has been achieved by two riders – Federico Bahamontes and Luis Herrera.

Rank Rider Total Tour Giro Vuelta
1 Italy Gino Bartali 9 2 (1938, 1948) 7 (1935, 1936, 1937, 1939, 1940, 1946, 1947) 0
Spain Federico Bahamontes 9 6 (1954, 1958, 1959, 1962, 1963, 1964) 1 (1956) 2 (1957, 1958)
3 Belgium Lucien Van Impe 8 6 (1971, 1972, 1975, 1977, 1981, 1983) 2 (1982, 1983) 0
4 France Richard Virenque 7 7 (1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2004) 0 0
5 Spain Julio Jiménez 6 3 (1965, 1966, 1967) 0 3 (1963, 1964, 1965)

Young rider classification winners[edit]

The Tour/Giro double has been achieved by three riders – Egan Bernal, Nairo Quintana and Andy Schleck. The Giro/Vuelta double has been achieved by one rider – Miguel Ángel López. The Tour/Vuelta double has been achieved by one rider – Tadej Pogačar.

Rank Rider Total Tour Giro Vuelta
1 Slovenia Tadej Pogačar 5 4 (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023) 0 1 (2019)
2 Luxembourg Andy Schleck 4 3 (2008, 2009, 2010) 1 (2007) 0
3 Germany Jan Ullrich 3 3 (1996, 1997, 1998) 0 0
Colombia Nairo Quintana 3 2 (2013, 2015) 1 (2014) 0
Colombia Miguel Ángel López 3 0 2 (2018, 2019) 1 (2017)

Grand Tour stage wins[edit]

Three cyclists have won stages in all three of the Grand Tours in the same season: Miguel Poblet in 1956, Pierino Baffi in 1958 and Alessandro Petacchi in 2003.[18] The rider with the most Grand Tour stage wins in one season is Freddy Maertens who won 20 stages in 1977: 13 in the Vuelta a España and 7 in the Giro d'Italia.

Cyclists whose names are in bold are still active.
This list is complete up to and including the 2023 Tour de France.[19]
Rank Rider Total Tour Giro Vuelta Years
1 Belgium Eddy Merckx 64 34 24 6 1969–1975
2 Italy Mario Cipollini 57 12 42 3 1989–2003
3 United Kingdom Mark Cavendish 54 34 17 3 2008–2023
4 Italy Alessandro Petacchi 48 6 22 20 2000–2011
5 Italy Alfredo Binda 43 2 41 0 1925–1933
6 France Bernard Hinault 41 28 6 7 1978–1986
7 Italy Learco Guerra 39 8 31 0 1930–1937
Spain Delio Rodríguez 39 0 0 39 1941–1947
9 Belgium Rik Van Looy 37 7 12 18 1958–1969
10 Belgium Freddy Maertens 35 15 7 13 1976–1981
11 Italy Fausto Coppi 31 9 22 0 1940–1955
12 Italy Costante Girardengo 30 0 30 0 1919–1923
13 Italy Gino Bartali 29 12 17 0 1935–1954
14 Italy Marino Basso 27 6 15 6 1969–1975
Italy Francesco Moser 27 2 23 2 1973–1986
16 Italy Guido Bontempi 26 6 16 4 1981–1993
Italy Raffaele Di Paco 26 11 15 0 1930–1938
Spain Miguel Poblet 26 3 20 3 1955–1961
Italy Giuseppe Saronni 26 0 24 2 1978–1985
20 Italy Franco Bitossi 25 4 21 0 1964–1975
France Laurent Jalabert 25 4 3 18 1992–2001
France André Leducq 25 25 0 0 1927–1938
Belgium Rik Van Steenbergen 25 4 15 6 1949–1957
24 Belgium Roger De Vlaeminck 24 1 22 1 1970–1984
Australia Robbie McEwen 24 12 12 0 1999–2007
26 France André Darrigade 23 22 1 0 1953–1964
27 France Jacques Anquetil 22 16 5 1 1957–1964
Netherlands Jean Paul van Poppel 22 9 4 9 1986–1994
Germany André Greipel 22 11 7 4 2008–2017
30 Luxembourg Charly Gaul 21 10 11 0 1955–1961
Republic of Ireland Sean Kelly 21 5 0 16 1978–1988
Switzerland Tony Rominger 21 3 5 13 1988–1996

Grand Tour finishers[edit]

Only 35 riders have finished all three Grand Tours in one season. Adam Hansen has done this six times consecutively, Marino Lejarreta four times and Bernardo Ruiz achieved it in three different years, while Eduardo Chozas and Carlos Sastre have completed the accomplishment twice.[20][21]

The rider with most participations on Grand Tours is Matteo Tosatto with 34 (12 Tours, 13 Giros and 9 Vueltas). The rider who has finished most Grand Tours is also Matteo Tosatto, with 28 (12 Tours, 11 Giros and 5 Vueltas). Adam Hansen has finished the most consecutive Grand Tours: 20 tours from 2011 Vuelta a España till 2018 Giro d'Italia. Bernardo Ruiz was the first rider to ride every tour of a season on three occasions which he completed in 1957. Marino Lejarreta completed every grand tour of the season for the 4th time in 1991 and of these 12 tours he finished in the top 10 of eight of them. His record of 4 was not passed until Adam Hansen completed the Vuelta in 2016.

Gastone Nencini (1957) and Sepp Kuss (2023) are the only cyclists to both ride all three Grand Tours and win one in the same season. The best average finish was the first time three Grand Tours were finished in one season, when Raphaël Géminiani finished 4th, 6th and 3rd in the Giro, Tour and Vuelta, respectively.

Rider Year Final GC position
Giro Tour Vuelta
United States Sepp Kuss 2023 14 12 1
Belgium Thomas De Gendt 2019 51 60 56
Australia Adam Hansen (6) 2017 93 113 95
Spain Alejandro Valverde 2016 3 6 12
Australia Adam Hansen (5) 2016 68 100 110
France Sylvain Chavanel 2015 36 54 47
Australia Adam Hansen (4) 2015 77 114 55
Australia Adam Hansen (3) 2014 73 64 53
Australia Adam Hansen (2) 2013 72 72 60
Australia Adam Hansen 2012 94 81 123
Germany Sebastian Lang 2011 56 113 77
Spain Carlos Sastre (2) 2010 8 20 8
New Zealand Julian Dean 2009 136 121 132
Italy Marzio Bruseghin 2008 3 27 10
Germany Erik Zabel 2008 80 43 49
Belgium Mario Aerts 2007 20 70 28
Spain Carlos Sastre 2006 43 4 4
Italy Giovanni Lombardi 2005 88 118 114
Spain Jon Odriozola 2001 58 69 83
Italy Mariano Piccoli 1999 38 50 58
Italy Guido Bontempi 1992 40 75 62
Australia Neil Stephens 1992 57 74 66
Spain Eduardo Chozas (2) 1991 10 11 11
Italy Marco Giovannetti 1991 8 30 18
Spain Marino Lejarreta (4) 1991 5 53 3
Spain Inaki Gaston 1991 23 61 14
Spain Alberto Leanizbarrutia 1991 64 39 44
Russia Vladimir Poulnikov 1991 11 88 66
Italy Valerio Tebaldi 1991 47 89 87
Spain Eduardo Chozas 1990 11 6 33
Spain Marino Lejarreta (3) 1990 7 5 55
Spain Marino Lejarreta (2) 1989 10 5 20
Spain Luis Javier Lukin 1988 32 82 60
Spain Marino Lejarreta 1987 4 10 34
France Philippe Poissonnier 1985 86 90 66
Spain José Luis Uribezubia 1971 29 50 27
Spain Jose Manuel Fuente 1971 39 72 54
Spain Federico Bahamontes 1958 17 8 6
Italy Pierino Baffi 1958 23 63 37
Italy Mario Baroni 1957 74 53 46
Italy Gastone Nencini 1957 1 6 9
Spain Bernardo Ruiz (3) 1957 55 24 3
Italy Arrigo Padovan 1956 12 26 19
Spain Bernardo Ruiz (2) 1956 38 70 31
Spain José Serra 1956 26 81 9
France Raphaël Géminiani 1955 4 6 3
Spain Bernardo Ruiz 1955 28 22 14
France Louis Caput 1955 68 54 55

References[edit]

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  12. ^ a b Frattini, Kirsten (16 October 2021). "A closer look reveals the inequity at Tour de France Femmes". cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
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  14. ^ Ostlere, Lawrence (22 July 2022). "Why the inaugural Tour de France Femmes 'changes everything'". The Independent. Retrieved 23 July 2022. I think if you asked everyone in the peloton what's more important, the prize money or the TV coverage, I think most would say TV coverage.
  15. ^ a b Later declared the legitimate winner
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