1986 Tour de France
Route of the 1986 Tour de France
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| Race details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Dates | 4–27 July | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stages | 23 + Prologue | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Distance | 4,094 km (2,544 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Winning time | 110h 35' 19" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Winner |
 Greg LeMond (USA)
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(La Vie Claire) |
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| Second |
 Bernard Hinault (FRA)
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(La Vie Claire) | |
| Third |
 Urs Zimmermann (SUI)
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(Carrera–Inoxpran) | |
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Points |
 Eric Vanderaerden (BEL)
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(Panasonic–Merckx–Agu) |
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Mountains |
Bernard Hinault (FRA)
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(La Vie Claire) |
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Youth |
Andrew Hampsten (USA)
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(La Vie Claire) |
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Combination |
Greg LeMond (USA)
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(La Vie Claire) |
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Sprints |
 Gerrit Solleveld (NED)
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(Kwantum–Decosol–Yoko) |
| Team | La Vie Claire | ||
| Team Points | Panasonic–Merckx–Agu | ||
The 1986 Tour de France was the 73rd running of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. The Tour consisted of 23 stages, beginning with a prologue in Boulogne-Billancourt, Paris, on 4 July, and concluded on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 27 July. This year had the first American cycling team, 7-Eleven, in Tour's history. The race was organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation, was shown on television in 72 countries, with the total viewers estimated at one billion.
Following the success of Bernard Hinault in the previous edition, the La Vie Claire team was heavily favored. Hinault promised to return Greg LeMond's support to win the 1985 Tour, however, continuing attacks cast doubt on Hinault's sincerity. He claimed that his tactics were simply to wear down LeMond's (and his) opponents and that he ultimately knew that LeMond would be the winner because of time losses earlier in the race. Regardless of his true motives, this tactic worked well, and rivals Laurent Fignon of Système U and Carrera–Inoxpran's Urs Zimmermann were put on the defensive from the first day. Fignon quit the race due to injuries aggravated by stress.
The ascent of the legendary Alpe d'Huez gave spectators a spectacular stage in which Hinault made a suicidal solo attack to demoralize the opposition, to be matched only by LeMond at the top. In a gesture of respect, the two riders reached the top hand-in-hand, beaming smiles, and LeMond let Hinault finish first to claim the stage. However, within hours LeMond and Hinault were interviewed together on joint television, where Hinault stated that the race was not over, seemingly betraying his teammate LeMond. He went on to say that they would let the final time trial determine the winner.
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