From 1999 to 2005, Lance Armstrong finished with the fastest time at the end of each Tour de France and took home the yellow jersey all seven years. He retained the physical jerseys, but in 2012, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) stripped him of all seven Tour titles.
Armstrong was the most dominant cycler in history during that stretch, surpassing Greg LeMond as the greatest American cyclist. However, in light of the doping allegations, Armstrong is no longer the official winner of those races. No winner has since been declared for those races, with the official Tour website scrubbing his name from the pages and simply listing the second place finisher as the top finisher but not winner.
A year after Armstrong’s last yellow jersey, American cyclist Floyd Landis won the Tour de France. However, he failed a drug test after Stage 17 that later resulted in him being stripped of the title. Spanish cyclist Óscar Pereiro moved up and became the 2006 champ.
That means Greg Lemond is back to being the first and only American to win the Tour de France. Lemond claimed his first title in 1986 and then won back-to-back titles in 1989 and 1990.
In 2023, the best Americans racing are Sepp Kuss and Matteo Jorgenson. They are both installed at +15000 to win the race at DraftKings Sportsbook.