The world’s most famous road race - the Tour de France - has a rich history, and its fabled past is synonymous with the greatest names in the sport.
But who are the figures that have written themselves into the record books of this most emblematic of events? Who’s the fastest winner? The oldest winner? The youngest winner? Which country has basked in yellow more than any other? Who’s the climber that stands head and shoulders above all the others?
We’ve got all the answers and more right here in our history of the Tour de France by numbers, and alongside it is a gallery of some of the race's biggest names. With the start of the latest edition on June 29 upon us, will any of the current generation force their way into some of these categories?
Tour de France yellow jersey records
Most Tour de France overall wins
- 5: Jacques Anquetil (Fra) – 1957, 1961-64
- 5: Eddy Merckx (Bel) – 1969-72, 1974
- 5: Bernard Hinault (Fra) – 1978-79, 1981-82, 1985
- 5: Miguel Indurain (Spa) – 1991-95
- 4: Chris Froome (GBr) - 2013, 2015-17
Tour de France victories by nation
- France: 36
- Belgium: 18
- Spain: 12
- Italy: 10
- Great Britain: 6
- Luxembourg: 5
- Denmark: 3
- USA: 3
- Slovenia, Netherlands and Switzerland: 2
- Colombia, Ireland, Germany, Australia: 1
Smallest Tour de France winning margins (since 1947)
- 8 seconds: 1989 - Greg LeMond (USA) beats Laurent Fignon (Fra)
- 23 seconds: 2007 – Alberto Contador (Spa) beats Cadel Evans (Aus)
- 32 seconds: 2006 – Oscar Pereiro (Spa) over Andreas Klöden (Ger) after Floyd Landis was disqualified.
- 38 seconds: 1968 – Jan Janssen (Ned) beats Herman Van Springel (Bel)
Largest Tour de France winning margins (since 1947)
- 0:28:17: 1952 – Fausto Coppi (Ita) beats Constant Ockers (Bel)
- 0:26:16: 1948 – Gino Bartali (Ita) beats Alberic Schotte (Bel)
- 0:22:00: 1951 – Hugo Koblet (Sui) beats Raphael Geminiani (Fra)
Most days in Tour de France yellow jersey
- Eddy Merckx (Bel): 96
- Bernard Hinault (Fra): 75
- Miguel Indurain (Spa): 60
- Chris Froome (GBr): 59
- Jacques Anquetil (Fra): 50
Highest average speed of Tour de France winner
- 42.102 km/h: Jonas Vingegaard (DEN) - 2022
- 41.654: (winner disqualified for doping, no winner declared) - 2005
- 41.431 km/h: Jonas Vingegaard (Den) - 2023
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Oldest Tour de France winners
- 36: Firmin Lambot (Bel) – 1922
- 34: Henri Pelissier (Fra) – 1923
- 34: Gino Bartali (Ita) - 1948
- 34: Cadel Evans (Aus) – 2011
Youngest Tour de France winners
- 19: Henri Cornet – 1904
- 21: Tadej Pogačar - 2020
- 22: Francois Faber – 1909
- 22: Egan Bernal - 2019
Most Tour de France starts
- Sylvain Chavanel: 18
- Stuart O'Grady, Jens Voigt, George Hincapie: 17
- Joop Zoetemelk, Haimar Zubeldia: 16
Tour de France green jersey statistics
Most Tour de France green jersey victories
- 7: Peter Sagan (Slo) – 2012-16, 2018-2019
- 6: Erik Zabel (Ger) – 1996-2001
- 4: Sean Kelly (Ire) – 1982-83, 1985, 1989
- 3: Jan Janssen (Hol) – 1964-65, 1967
- 3: Eddy Merckx (Bel) – 1969, 1971-72
- 3: Freddy Maertens (Bel) – 1976, 1978, 1981
- 3: Djamolidine Abdoujaparov (Uzb) – 1991, 1993-94
- 3: Robbie McEwen (Aus) – 2002, 2004, 2006
Tour de France green jersey winners by nation
- Belgium: 21
- France: 9
- Germany: 8
- Slovakia: 7
- Ireland and Australia: 5
- Netherlands: 4
- Italy, Uzbekistan, Great Britain, Switzerland and Norway: 2
- Soviet Union, Spain: 1
Most days in Tour de France green jersey
- Peter Sagan: 30
- Erik Zabel: 89
- Freddy Maertens: 71
- Sean Kelly: 68
- Djamolidine Abdoujaparov: 54
- André Darrigade: 51
Tour de France green jersey worn in all stages
- André Darrigade (1959)
- Freddy Maertens (1976, 1978)
- Eric Vanderaerden (1986)
- Peter Sagan (2019)
- Wout van Aert (2022)
Polka Dot jersey records
Most Tour de France polka dot jersey (mountains classification) wins
- 7: Richard Virenque (Fra) – 1994-97, 1999, 2003-04
- 6: Federico Bahamontes (Spa) – 1954, 1958-59, 1962-64
- 6: Lucien Van Impe (Bel) – 1971-72, 1975, 1977, 1981, 1983
Tour de France polka-dot jersey winners by nation
- France: 23
- Spain: 18
- Italy: 13
- Belgium: 11
- Colombia: 5
- Denmark: 3
- Luxembourg, Netherlands, Great Britain, Poland, Slovenia: 2
- Switzerland: 1
Most days in Tour de France polka dot jersey
- Richard Virenque: 96
- Lucien Van Impe: 74
- Federico Bahamontes: 77
- Julio Jimenez: 43
- Eddy Merckx: 40
- Domingo Perurena: 30
- Gino Bartali: 30
- Claudio Chiappucci, Michael Rasmussen, Félicien Vervaecke: 27
- Luis Herrera: 26
Double Tour de France overall and polka dot jersey winners
- Gino Bartali: 1938
- Sylvère Maes: 1939
- Gino Bartali: 1948
- Fausto Coppi: 1949
- Fausto Coppi: 1952
- Federico Bahamontes: 1959
- Eddy Merckx: 1969
- Eddy Merckx: 1970
- Carlos Sastre: 2008
- Chris Froome: 2015
- Tadej Pogačar: 2020
- Tadej Pogačar: 2021
- Jonas Vingegaard: 2022
Tour de France white jersey records
Most Tour de France white jersey victories
- 4: Tadej Pogacar (Slo) - 2020-2023
- 3: Andy Schleck (Lux) – 2008-2010
- 3: Jan Ullrich (Ger) – 1996-98
- 2: Marco Pantani (Ita) – 1994-95
Tour de France white jersey winners by nation
- France: 8
- Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Colombia: 5
- Germany, Slovenia: 4
- USA, Luxembourg: 3
- Russia, Great Britain: 2
- Australia, Mexico, Ukraine: 1
Most Tour de France white jersey victories
- 4: Tadej Pogačar (Slo) - 2020-2023
- 3: Andy Schleck (Lux) – 2008-2010
- 3: Jan Ullrich (Ger) – 1996-98
- 2: Marco Pantani (Ita) – 1994-95
Tour de France stage records
Most Tour de France stage victories
- 34: Eddy Merckx (Bel)
- 34: Mark Cavendish (GBr)
- 28: Bernard Hinault (Fra)
- 25: Andre Leducq (Fra)
- 22: Andre Darrigade (Fra)
- 20: Nicolas Frantz (Lux)
Most Tour de France time trial victories
- 20: Bernard Hinault (Fra)
- 16: Eddy Merckx (Bel)
- 11: Jacques Anquetil (Fra)
Most stage wins in one Tour de France
- 8: Charles Pelissier (Fra) – 1930
- 8: Eddy Merckx (Bel) – 1970, 1974
- 8: Freddy Maertens (Bel) – 1976
Fastest non-time trial Tour de France stages
- 1999 - Stage 4: Laval - Blois, 194.5km - 50.36km/h - Mario Cipollini
- 2003 - Stage 18: Bordeaux - Saint-Maixent-l'Ecole, 202.5km - 49.94km/h - Pablo Lastras
- 1993 - Stage 6: Évreux - Amiens, 158km - 49.42km/h - Johan Bruyneel
- 2022 - Stage 6: Binche - Longwy, 219.9km - 49.376km/h - Tadej Pogačar
- 2023 - Stage 19: Moirans-en-Montagne - Poligny, 172.8km - 49.13km/h - Matej Mohorič