GREG LEMOND

Greg LeMond was the first American to win the Tour de France. He won it thrice.

Born in Lakewood, Calif., he grew up on the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada. Hiking, hunting, skiing and flyfishing were boyhood pastimes. "I was a boy who just could not sit still." he said. 

Afflicted with ADHD, he was unable to get help from his parents and educators who did not have the knowledge to diagnose and cope with his affliction, but when he got into cycling it changed his life. He rode his bike everywhere, often to school by riding over Mt. Rose pass. 

At 17, he finished second in the Tour of Fresno, catching the attention of the US Cycling Federation. He was then selected as the youngest member of the US Olympic Cycling Team and began winning amateur races. 

His debut as a pro was to win a stage of the Tour de France in 1981. He continued to place highly and was the first American to win a medal at the world championships. In the '84 Tour de France, he won the Young Rider jersey and placed second overall. In '86 LeMond became the first American to win the Tour. 

Following a near-fatal hunting accident in '87, he could not ride until '89 where he won another Tour, then again in '90. LeMond's success profoundly influenced American cycling, encouraging generations of Americans to compete and it stimulated broad interest in the sport. 

When his team recommended that he dope his blood, LeMond refused. He became an outspoken critic of performance-enhancing drugs in cycling. LeMond admitted that the prevalence of doping among other athletes shortened his career. Following his retirement from cycling in '94, he was inducted into the US Bicycling Hall of Fame.

Thereafter, LeMond established LeMond Cycles that innovated carbon frames, LeMond Fitness to help individuals train more effectively and LeMond Composites to manufacture high-volume, low-cost carbon fiber composites, among other ventures.

No American has had a more positive impact upon cycling than Greg LeMond.