The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race that covers more than 3,500 kilometres (2,200 mi) throughout France and a bordering country. The race usually lasts 23 days and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken down into day-long segments, called stages.

Individual times to finish each stage are totaled to determine the overall winner for the race. The rider with the least elapsed time each day wears a yellow jersey. The course changes every year but it has always finished in Paris.

There are similar races in Italy and Spain but the Tour de France is the oldest, the most prestigious and the best known. The Tour de France is a bicycle race that is known around the world. It is possible to win without winning a stage, as Greg LeMond did in 1990.

Although the number of stages varies, the modern Tour typically has 20, with a total length of 3,000 to 4,000 kilometres (1,800 to 2,500 mi). The shortest Tour was in 1904 at 2,420 km, the longest in 1926 at 5,745 km. The 2007 Tour was 3,569.9 km long.

The three weeks usually include two rest days, sometimes used to transport riders between stages. The race alternates between clockwise and counter-clockwise circuits of France. The combination of endurance and strength needed led the New York Times to say in 2006 that the "Tour de France is arguably the most physiologically demanding of athletic events." The effort was compared to "running a marathon several days a week for nearly three weeks", while the total elevation of the climbs was compared to "climbing three Everests." The number of riders varies annually.

There are usually 20 to 22 teams of nine riders. Entry is by invitation. The organizers have used UCI points to give some teams automatic entry.

Others are invited to make up the numbers. Each team, named after its sponsor, wears a distinctive jersey. Team members help each other and are followed by managers and mechanics.

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