The fastest ever Tour de France stage (excluding time trials) was on Stage 4 in 1999. Mario Cipollini won it in a bunch sprint. He finished the 194.5km (121.6 miles) stage in 3h 51’ 45”, with an average speed of 50.355km/h.
Until now, it’s still the only Tour de France stage (excluding time trials) where the winner’s average speed is above 50km/h.
Pablo Lastras holds the second-fastest Tour de France stage record on Stage 18 of the 2003 Tour de France. He finished the 203.5km (127.2 miles) stage in 4h 3’ 18” with an average speed of 49.938km/h.
The third fastest Tour de France stage record was achieved by Johan Bruyneel, who finished the 158km (98.8 miles) Stage 6 of the 1993 Tour de France in 3h 11’ 50”, with an average speed of 49.417km/h.
Below are the top 10 fastest Tour de France average speeds, excluding time trials.
| Rider | Average speed | Time | Distance | Year | Stage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mario Cipollini | 50.355 km/h | 3h 51′ 45″ | 194.5km | 1999 | 4 |
| Pablo Lastras | 49.938 km/h | 4h 3′ 18″ | 203.5km | 2003 | 18 |
| Johan Bruyneel | 49.417 km/h | 3h 11′ 50″ | 158km | 1993 | 6 |
| Patrice Halgand | 48.932 km/h | 3h 0′ 15″ | 147km | 2002 | 10 |
| Adri Van der Poel | 48.927 km/h | 46′ 36″ | 38km | 1988 | 16 |
| Tom Steels | 48.764 km/h | 4h 12′ 51″ | 205.5km | 1998 | 12 |
| Patrick Sercu | 48.677 km/h | 56′ 42″ | 46km | 1977 | 13a |
| Robbie McEwen | 48.584 km/h | 3h 46′ 0″ | 183km | 2005 | 5 |
| Eddy Merckx | 48.532 km/h | 2h 19′ 5″ | 112.5km | 1974 | 21a |
| Alessandro Petacchi | 48.398 km/h | 3h 27′ 39″ | 167.5km | 2003 | 3 |
Tour de France Records and Stats
Alex Lee is the founder and editor-at-large of Mr. Mamil. Coming from a professional engineering background, he breaks down technical cycling nuances into an easy-to-understand and digestible format here.
He has been riding road bikes actively for the past 12 years and started racing competitively in the senior category during the summer recently.