Author Description

The Tour de France is the most gruelling sports event on the planet: a three-week, 2,000 mile test of endurance and skill. No other annual event has a larger live audience. Not just a sporting epic, the Tour has become a part of French national culture. And the feats of seven-times champion, the American Lance Armstrong, have helped to raise international interest in the great race higher than ever before.'Le Tour' offers a stunning visual journey through the history of this race. From the almost inhuman racing conditions of the Tour's early days to the controversial 2006 race, the images within capture the full range of emotions that have come to be associated with the event's sporting, social and cultural history.Beautiful photographs recall not only cycling's greatest champions but also the changing face of France over the last century. 'Le Tour' presents the sport's great characters, capturing the heroism, passion and tragedy in which the race is steeped.All the tour greats are here - from first winner Maurice Garin through Fausto Coppi, Gino Bartali and Eddy Merckx to the modern Armstrong era. 'Le Tour' also captures the colour and excitement surrounding the three-week Tour circuit. There are calamitous starts and dramatic finishes; celebrity fans including Orson Welles and Robin Williams; roadside spectators waiting patiently for the peloton; the majestic scenery of a beautiful country. The whole history and life of the Tour is here.The greatest show in sport heads to London for the first time in 2007 and 'Le Tour; charts the start of the route.