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55-533: The Tour DuPont was a cycling stage race in the United States held annually between 1989 and 1996, initially called the Tour de Trump in the first two years. It was intended to become a North American cycling event similar in format and prestige to the Tour de France . The tour's names came from its sponsors, first the businessman (and future U.S. President ) Donald Trump and then later DuPont . The race

110-607: A " cease and desist " letter to the organizers of a bike race held in Aspen, Colorado called the Tour de Rump. The letter stated: "You are using the name and mark Tour de Rump in connection with an 'inaugural' cycling event. Your use of that name and mark is likely to cause confusion and constitutes trademark infringement, unfair competition and false designation of origin, all in violation of applicable federal and state laws". The organizer Ron Krajian's lawyer responded by arguing that his race

165-558: A 1997 event was tentatively scheduled for May 1–11, and that he had been in discussions with ten companies about potential title sponsorship of the race. Organizers Packer and Plant arranged another race, in China, though it was short-lived. Before their falling out, Packer reports that his "idea was to have a Triple Crown of cycling–one in Asia, one in America and have the Tour de France to be

220-400: A Belgian company making windows and doors and solar panels. On the final day of the 2014 Tour de France the team announced that they had secured new sponsorship for the team with Soudal , manufacturers of sealants, adhesives and foams. Soudal signed a deal lasting six seasons, the team name becoming Lotto Soudal: in 2019, they extended the deal for two more years. Lotto continue to sponsor

275-402: A breakaway (as described below). Occasionally, the distinction between medium mountain and mountain in stage classification, decided by race officials, can be controversial. The Giro d'Italia has had a reputation of labeling selective, very difficult stages as merely medium mountain. Lastly, a handful of stages each year are known as being "good for a breakaway"—when one or a few riders attacks

330-618: A co-sponsor of the Quick-Step–Davitamon team in 2003 and 2004. Omega Pharma became the main sponsors in 2005, under their Davitamon brand name. The team name switched to Omega Pharma's Predictor brand name in 2007 and the Silence brand in 2008. From 2010 the team became known as Omega Pharma–Lotto, but this sponsor moved their financial support to the Quick-Step setup for the 2012 season. Belisol became co-sponsors in 2012, and are

385-410: A couple of minutes, to cross the finish line. Riders who crash within the last three kilometres of the stage are credited with the finishing time of the group that they were with when they crashed, if that is better than the time in which they actually finish. This avoids sprinters being penalized for accidents that do not accurately reflect their performance on the stage as a whole given that crashes in

440-403: A few seconds of improvement to their finishing time. There is a rule that if one rider finishes less than three seconds behind another then he is credited with the same finishing time as the first. This operates transitively, so when the peloton finishes together every rider in it gets the time of the rider at the front of the peloton, even though the peloton takes tens of seconds, and possibly even

495-405: A group known as the "bus" or "autobus" and ride at a steady pace to the finish. Their only goal is to cross the line within a certain limit—usually the stage winner's time plus 15% – or else they'll be disqualified from the race (at the discretion of the officials; on rare occasions a lead breakaway becomes so large that the entire peloton falls that far back and would normally be allowed to remain in

550-496: A long history of cycling sponsorship, they began sponsoring 1984 with Tönissteiner–Lotto–Mavic–Pecotex. In 1985, it became prime sponsor of a team bearing only its name. Walter Godefroot and Patrick Lefevere were early directeurs sportifs . The fusion of the Lotto–Adecco and Domo–Farm Frites teams for the start of the 2003 season created the current team and structure in the guise of Lotto–Domo. Omega Pharma had previously been

605-467: A professional, and East German rider Olaf Ludwig . The race was won by Mexican rider Raúl Alcalá of the PDM–Concorde team. After two editions, Trump withdrew his sponsorship of the race due to his business's financial problems. According to Packer, reflecting on the event in 2016, he and Trump "parted as good business friends", although he also explained that Trump's personality and celebrity, as well as

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660-584: A prologue time trial held in Wilmington, Delaware, became the traditional start to the race. Between 1992 and 1994, the race included a stage from Port Deposit and Hagerstown in Maryland , but in 1995, South Carolina was included on the route for the first time in its place. Every edition of the Tour DuPont visited Richmond, Virginia. Breukink won in 1991 by overcoming a 50-second deficit going into

715-399: A prologue time trial). Articles published the following year reported that Ekimov "had had the nerve to win a stage as an amateur ... and some pros reportedly rewarded him by jamming a feed bag into his wheel", and that he "threatened to win the Tour de Trump last year as an amateur before the pros banded together to eliminate any chance he had of winning". Nonetheless, the first edition of

770-465: A race in the United States to the basketball commentator and entrepreneur Billy Packer . Packer originally planned to call the race the Tour de Jersey. He approached representatives of casinos in Atlantic City for sponsorship, and Trump offered to be the race's primary sponsor and Packer's business partner in the venture. It was Packer who suggested the Tour de Trump name. Speaking at the time of

825-802: A state which Trump considered important for his three casinos in Atlantic City, and also visited Baltimore , after Trump agreed to local racecourse owner Joe De Francis's condition that he moor his yacht the Trump Princess in Baltimore Harbor during the race. It finished in Boston on May 13. Entrants in 1990 included 1989 winner Dag Otto Lauritzen, Greg LeMond, Steve Bauer , who had finished second in Paris–Roubaix that year, Andrew Hampsten, Davis Phinney , Ekimov, in his first year as

880-489: A yellow flag. The top-10 finishers in each of the first two stages are awarded bonus championship points. The points earned are added to a driver/owner's regular season points total, while the winner of the stage receives an additional point that can be carried into the NASCAR playoffs . The stage lengths vary by track, but the first two stages usually combine to equal about half of the race. The final stage (which still pays out

935-429: Is managed by Marc Sergeant and Bill Olivier and they are assisted by Herman Frison , Jean-Pierre Heynderickx , Bart Leysen , Marc Wauters , Mario Aerts , Dirk Demol and Michiel Elijzen . After Tosh Van der Sande accidentally listed the wrong nasal spray brand in the paperwork at the 2018 Six Days of Ghent where he returned a positive test for prednisolone , a substance found in the nasal spray Sofrasolone, he

990-684: The Union Cycliste Internationale upgraded it to a 2.1 ranked race , meaning that amateurs could no longer compete. This made the race the highest ranked outside of Europe and the first North American stage race to be ranked 2.1. The 1996 race was the subject of a number of legal issues, including a dispute over rights to its profits between the race owners, Billy Packer and president of the United States Cycling Federation Mike Plant, which resulted in them suing each other. DuPont itself

1045-608: The Volvo Ocean Race , Velux 5 Oceans Race , Clipper Round the World Yacht Race and Global Challenge . Lotto (cycling team) Lotto–Dstny ( UCI team code: LTD ) is a Belgian professional cycling team at UCI ProTeam level sponsored by the Belgian lottery and Dstny, a business communications provider. The same organisations also sponsor a women's cycling team, Lotto–Dstny Ladies . Lotto has

1100-606: The Vuelta a España in order to race the Tour de Trump. The inaugural Tour de Trump started in Albany, New York , and consisted of 10 stages, totalling 837 miles (1,347 km), taking in five Eastern states . The route took the race south from Albany to Richmond, Virginia , and then across to Atlantic City, where it finished in front of Trump's casino. Some 114 riders from eight professional and 11 amateur teams competed. Riders competing included Greg LeMond , and Andrew Hampsten , and

1155-472: The American team 7-Eleven , although there was some controversy about the result as Belgian rider Eric Vanderaerden , who had won four stages and was expected to take the lead in the general classification in the final stage time trial in Atlantic City but took a wrong turn following a race motorbike. The Soviet rider Viatcheslav Ekimov , who took part as an amateur, won the first stage of the race (following

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1210-430: The Tour de Trump and Tour DuPont to the city in the late '80s and early '90s". Stage (bicycle race) In an ordinary stage of road bicycle racing , all riders start simultaneously and share the road. Riders are permitted to touch and to shelter behind each other. Riding in each other's slipstreams is crucial to race tactics: a lone rider has little chance of outracing a small group of riders who can take turns in

1265-466: The Tour or the Giro, there is a secondary competition on points (e.g. Points classification in the Tour de France ), which tends to be contested by sprinters. Riders collect points for being one of the first to finish the stage and also for being one of the first three to finish an "intermediate" sprint. Sprinters also can get time bonuses, meaning that good sprinters may lead the general classification during

1320-694: The cobbled climb of Libby Hill Park . This hill was included in the circuit of the 2015 World Championship road races. Tour de Trump and Tour DuPont organizer Mike Plant was, according to USA Cycling, instrumental in Richmond's bid to hold the World Championships. As a member of the UCI Management Committee, when Richmond was announced as winning the bidding for the 2015 event, Plant commented that "Richmond stepped up and proved they could support world class cycling when we brought

1375-505: The competition to avoid having only a small field still in competition). Meanwhile, the lighter climbers hurl themselves up the slopes at a much higher speed. Usually, the General Classification riders try to stay near the front group, and also try to keep a few teammates with them. These teammates are there to drive the pace—and hopefully "drop" the opposition riders—and to provide moral support to their leader. Typically,

1430-585: The end of the 2022 season. The team was relegated from the World Tour at the end of 2022 after finishing 19th in the points standings for the 2020 - 2022 qualification cycle. The top 18 teams qualified for the 2023 - 2025 cycle, meaning that from 2023 the team will drop down a division and race under a UCI ProTeam licence. Among non-World Tour teams, Lotto finished first in the 2022 one-year points list ahead of TotalEnergies , meaning it receives wildcards for all 2023 World Tour stage and one-day races. The team

1485-519: The event back-to-back. The French rider Pascal Hervé , of the Festina cycling team , was second. The total prize money for the 1996 race was in excess of US$ 260,000. In July 1996, DuPont announced that it was ending its sponsorship of the race. According to a brand manager for the company, "Over the past six years, the Tour DuPont has been an excellent vehicle for promoting our products. However, we need to focus more on strategic markets in other parts of

1540-490: The event did not attract large crowds. Interviewed on NBC prior to the start of the 1989 race, Trump stated that "I would like to make this the equivalent of the Tour de France". The race filled a gap left by the demise of the Coors International Bicycle Classic , which had been North America's major stage race but which folded following its 1988 edition. Some European teams reportedly missed

1595-528: The event. He also states that despite having an estimated worldwide television audience of 200 million, "American fan enthusiasm and roadside spectator interest in the event failed to spike significantly". DuPont's withdrawal also came months after John DuPont , heir to the Du Pont family fortune, had been arrested for the murder of Olympic wrestler Dave Schultz . At the time of the announcement of DuPont's discontinuation of sponsorship, Mike Plant reported that

1650-457: The final stage, a 16.1-mile (25.9 km) individual time trial , despite puncturing 15 minutes into the stage, to win by 12 seconds from Norwegian Atle Kvålsvoll . In 1992, American Greg LeMond won the overall classification. It was the last major win of his career, although he competed in the race again in 1994. Alcalá's victory in the race in 1993 was his second, having won the Tour de Trump in 1990. In 1993, he beat Lance Armstrong, who had held

1705-475: The final three kilometre can be huge pileups that are hard to avoid for a rider farther back in the peloton. A crashed sprinter inside the final three kilometres will not win the sprint, but avoids being penalised in the overall classification. Ordinary stages can be further classified as "sprinters' stages" or "climbers' stages". The former tend to be raced on relatively flat terrain, which makes it difficult for small groups or individual cyclists to break away from

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1760-535: The first few stages of a big multi-day event. In NASCAR racing, starting with the 2017 season, races in the top three national touring series are completed in three stages, four in the case of the NASCAR Cup Series's longest race, the Coca-Cola 600 . A stage consists of normal green flag racing followed by a stoppage on a designated lap signified by the waving of a green and white checkered flag, then

1815-464: The global media exposure as worth close to US$ 70 million. Reed quotes a DuPont marketing executive as stating: "In 40 years in [media relations], I have never seen such concentrated, sustained and positive media coverage". However, Reed argues that despite this initial enthusiasm, "the Tour DuPont's chronic weaknesses hamstrung the event's growth", citing its " pro-am " status, which prevented professional riders from being able to win world ranking points in

1870-448: The leader will attack very hard when there are only a few kilometres to go, trying to put time into his main rivals. Gaps of two and even three minutes can be created over just a few kilometres by hard attacks. In larger stage races, some stages may be designated as "medium mountain", "hilly" or "intermediate" stages. These stages are more difficult than flat stages, but not as difficult as the mountain stages. They are often well-suited for

1925-493: The leader's jersey going into the final stage. Armstrong's first participation in the race had been in 1991, when he finished midway down the overall classification. According to The Guardian in 2008, his performance in the 1991 Tour DuPont "marked the arrival of a promising newcomer to the sport". In 1994, Alcalá and Armstrong returned to the race as teammates, both riding for Motorola . The race took place over 11 stages, covering 1,050 miles (1,690 km). That year, Ekimov won

1980-414: The line—200 metres away is about the maximum—the sprinter launches himself around his final lead-out man in an all-out effort for the line. Top speeds can be in excess of 72 km/h (about 45 mph). Sprint stages rarely result in big time differences between riders (see above), but contenders for the General Classification tend to stay near the front of the peloton to avoid crashes. Mountain stages, on

2035-524: The most championship points) usually equals the other half. The first driver to win a National Series race under the stage race format was GMS Racing Camping World Truck Series driver Kaz Grala who won the season opener at Daytona International Speedway in February 2017 after holding off Austin Wayne Self . Round-the-world sailing races are sometimes held over stages. Notable examples are

2090-524: The other hand, often do cause big "splits" in the finishing times, especially when the stage actually ends at the top of a mountain. (If the stage ends at the bottom of a mountain that has just been climbed, riders have the chance to descend aggressively and catch up to anyone who may have beaten them to the summit.) For this reason, the mountain stages are considered the deciding factor in most Tours, and are often attended by hundreds of thousands of spectators. Mountains cause big splits in finishing times due to

2145-400: The overall title, with Armstrong finishing second again. Armstrong finally won the overall classification of the Tour DuPont in 1995, when the race was held over 1,130 miles (1,820 km), despite losing more than two minutes to Ekimov on the final-stage time trial. The final edition of the race, held in 1996, was also won by Armstrong, who became the first and only rider to win two editions of

2200-423: The peloton and beats it to the finish line. Typically these stages are somewhere between flat and mountainous. Breakaway stages are where the rouleurs, the hard-working, all-around riders who make up the majority of most teams, get their chance to grab a moment in the spotlight. (The climbers will want to save their energy for the mountains, and the sprinters are not built for hills.) In the big multi-day events like

2255-450: The peloton—there are no big hills to slow it down. So more often than not, the entire peloton approaches the finish line en masse. Some teams are organized around a single specialized sprinter, and in the final kilometres of a sprint stage, these teams jockey for position at the front of the peloton. In the final few hundred metres, a succession of riders "lead out" their sprinter, riding very hard while he stays in their slipstream. Just before

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2310-642: The race was described as "a smashing success" in Sports Illustrated , which noted: "If you could get past the name, the Tour de Trump, without losing your lunch, and if you could somehow divorce the sporting event from the excess baggage that went with it ... what you had was a pretty nice bicycle race". Following the first event, Packer wanted to expand the race to take in more states. The 1990 race started on May 4 in Wilmington in Delaware ,

2365-475: The scandals surrounding Trump's marriage and business affairs, distracted from the event and annoyed European riders in the race. After Trump withdrew from sponsoring the event, DuPont became the primary sponsor. Between 1991 and 1995, national amateur teams took part alongside professional teams. The event attracted well-known competitors, including Lance Armstrong and Greg LeMond, and was attended by high-profile European-based professional cycling teams. In 1996,

2420-424: The simple laws of physics. Firstly, the slower speeds mean that the aerodynamic advantage gained by slipstreaming is much smaller. Furthermore, lighter riders generate more power per kilogram than heavier riders; thus, the sprinters and the rouleurs (all-around good cyclists), who tend to be a bit bigger, suffer on the climbs and lose much time—40 minutes over a long stage is not unheard-of. Generally, these riders form

2475-465: The start of the first Tour de Trump in May 1989, Trump himself stated that "When [the name] was initially stated, I practically fell out of my seat. I said, 'Are you kidding? I will get killed in the media if I use that name. You absolutely have to be kidding'". However, Trump reportedly changed his mind within 20 seconds, and was convinced by the commercial value of the name. Trump's lawyers subsequently sent

2530-473: The strenuous position at the front of the group. The majority of riders form a single large group, the "pack" (in French , the " peloton "), with attacking groups ahead of it and the occasional struggling rider dropping behind. In mountainous stages the peloton is likely to become fragmented, but in flat stages a split is rare. Where a group of riders reach the finish line together, they do not race each other for

2585-478: The team, as well as the women's team and under-23 team. For one stage race each year since 2016 (at the 2016 Paris–Nice , 2017 Paris–Nice , 2018 Giro d'Italia , and 2019 Tour de Pologne ), the team raced under the name Lotto Fix ALL and changed the team kit to a grey colour to reflect one of Soudal's key brands. Lotto–Dstny was a member team of the UCI World Tour from its inception in 2009 until

2640-628: The teams represented included Lotto , Panasonic , PDM , and the Soviet national squad. The race was met by anti-Trump protests in the first-stage finishing town of New Paltz, New York , where demonstrators held placards reading "Fight Trumpism", "Die Yuppie $ cum", "The Art of the Deal = The Rich Get Richer" and "Trump = Lord of the Flies". The 1989 race was won by the Norwegian rider Dag Otto Lauritzen of

2695-489: The third leg". When the Tour de Georgia was first run in 2003, Tim Maloney of Cyclingnews.com referred to it as "the prodigal son of Tour DuPont". In 2015, the UCI Road World Championships were held in Richmond, Virginia, which had previously hosted stages of the Tour de Trump and the Tour DuPont. In 1994, the Tour DuPont included a stage that concluded with several laps of a circuit incorporating

2750-468: The way they do business". Plant reported that polling had showed that public recognition of the event had grown significantly, but also that awareness of who sponsored it had declined. Historian Eric Reed notes that a DuPont marketing executive characterized the initial sponsorship as "a bargain", and that the company claimed that the American press clippings generated by the event weighed 29 pounds (13 kg). DuPont executives also reported that they valued

2805-512: The world, where a sustained annual program versus a two-week event can better leverage the DuPont brand equity for profitable growth". Race organizer Mike Plant explained that "I talked to them a couple of months ago, and they had to make a hard decision. They don't have hundreds of millions of dollars to put into worldwide advertising. They put a ton of money into this event and they built up a valuable franchise, but, like Motorola, corporations change

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2860-516: Was a local and non-commercial event, and predated the Tour de Trump. No response was received from Trump's lawyers, and the Tour de Rump went ahead. The total prize money on offer for the first event in 1989 was US$ 250,000, including $ 50,000 for the winner of the general classification. This, together with the race's place in the international calendar between the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France, made it attractive to high-profile riders and teams, but

2915-421: Was cited as evidence of Richmond, Virginia 's ability to host international cycle racing when the city successfully bid for the 2015 UCI Road World Championships . The race was originally sponsored by Donald Trump and known as the "Tour de Trump" in 1989 and 1990. The idea for the race was conceived by CBS Sports reporter John Tesh , who had covered the 1987 Tour de France and on his return suggested holding

2970-401: Was held in the mid-Atlantic states , including areas near DuPont's Wilmington, Delaware , headquarters. DuPont withdrew their sponsorship of the race after the 1996 edition, and the event has not been run since. During the eight-year history of the race as both the Tour de Trump and the Tour DuPont, it was won twice by Mexican rider Raúl Alcalá and twice by American Lance Armstrong . The race

3025-545: Was involved in a dispute about the anti-homosexual employment policies of the local government in Greenville, South Carolina , with the company insisting that the race organizers exclude the city from the route. After 1996, DuPont dropped its sponsorship and the race has not been run since. During its six years as the Tour DuPont, the race was won by Dutch rider Erik Breukink , Greg LeMond, Raúl Alcalá, Russian Viatcheslav Ekimov , and twice by Lance Armstrong. Over this time,

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