The 1986 Tour de France was the 73rd running of the Tour….which consisted of 23 stages, beginning with a prologue in Boulogne-Billancourt, Paris on July 4….and concluded on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on July 27th…..in what was a historic race for several major reasons….for 1986 was the first year that an American cycling team, Team 7-Eleven, that had ever competed in the Tour’s history…..as the race was organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation….and was shown on television in 72 countries…..with a total viewing audience of an estimated at one billion viewers……while the eventual winner was USA Greg LeMond…..who was the 1st American to ever win a Tour de France….plus the prologue was won by FRA Thierry Marie….with Bernard Hinault in second place just two seconds slower……when Marie lost the lead in the first stage to Team 7-Eleven’s Alex Stieda, thanks to bonus time that Stieda won in intermediate sprints….as Stieda became the 1st American to win a Tour stage…..and all of this American success made the 1986 Tour de France a truly historic event.
