| Race details | |
|---|---|
| Date | April–May |
| Region | Mid-Atlantic States, United States |
| English name | Tour DuPont |
| Discipline | Road race |
| Type | Stage race |
| History | |
| First edition | 1991 |
| Editions | 6 |
| Final edition | 1996 |
| First winner | Erik Breukink |
| Most wins | Lance Armstrong (2 wins) |
| Final winner | Lance Armstrong |
The Tour DuPont was a cycling stage race in the United States held between 1991 and 1996. It was intended to become a North American cycling event similar in format and prestige to the Tour de France. The tour's name came from its sponsor, DuPont. The race was held in the Mid-Atlantic States, including areas near DuPont's Wilmington, Delaware headquarters.
The event attracted high-level competitors, including Lance Armstrong and Greg LeMond, and was attended by high profile European based cycling teams. After the sixth running in 1996, however, DuPont dropped its sponsorship and the race has not been run since.
Before the creation of the Tour DuPont, a similar race sponsored by Donald Trump and known as the Tour de Trump was run in 1989 and 1990.
The initial race, in 1991, witnessed an exciting finish, as the Netherlands' Erik Breukink of team PDM came from 50 seconds behind despite a flat tire to defeat Atle Kvalsvoll on the streets of Wilmington, Delaware. That year also saw the first occasion in which an American held the overall lead in the nation's premier race, when Greg Oravetz of the Coors Light team took the yellow jersey on a breakaway in Arlington, Virginia.
The next year saw the first American winner of the tour in Tour de France champion Greg LeMond; his teammate Kvalsvoll finished second for the second year running, supporting LeMond over the final three days even though only one second separated the two riders.
1993's tour witnessed the first stirrings of a future cycling star, as Lance Armstrong, riding for team Motorola, challenged team WordPerfect's Raúl Alcalá for the victory; Alcala triumphed after outperforming Armstrong in a 36-mile (59 km) time trial, but the young American finished second.
Another WordPerfect rider, Viatcheslav Ekimov, captured the overall victory in 1994, with Armstrong placing second for a second year running. The American finally broke through to the winner's spot on the podium the next year, outcompeting Ekimov and Andrea Peron. Armstrong also won the final tour in 1996; France's Pascal Hervé finished second.[1]
| Rider | Team | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Erik Breukink (NED) | PDM-Concorde | |
| 1992 | Greg LeMond (USA) | Z | |
| 1993 | Raúl Alcalá (MEX) | WordPerfect | |
| 1994 | Viatcheslav Ekimov (RUS) | WordPerfect | |
| 1995 | Lance Armstrong (USA) | Motorola | |
| 1996 | Lance Armstrong (USA) | Motorola |