McEwen wins final stage; Armstrong takes his fourth Tour de France

American Lance Armstrong won his fourth consecutive Tour de France as the race came to a close in Paris on Sunday after the 20th and final stage from Melun to Paris, won in dramatic fashion by Australian Robbie McEwen.

Armstrong, 30, becomes only the fifth rider in the Tour's 99-year history to have won it at least four times, after Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain - all five-time winners.

The U.S. Postal ace finished the three-week race with a 7min 17sec lead over Spaniard Joseba Beloki, second this year after finishing third in 2000 and 2001.
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Final overall standings

1. Lance Armstrong (USA), USP, at 82:05:12.
2. Joseba Beloki (Spa), ONE, at at 07:17.
3. Raimondas Rumsas (Lit), LAM, at 08:17.
4. Santiago Botero (Col), KEL, at 13:10.
5. Igor Gonzalez Galdeano (Spa), ONE, at 13:54.
6. Jose Azevedo (Por), ONE, at 15:44.
7. Francisco Mancebo (Spa), BAN, at 16:05.
8. Levi Leipheimer (USA), RAB, at 17:11.
9. Roberto Heras (Spa), USP, at 17:12.
10. Carlos Sastre (Spa), CST, at 19:05.

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Lance Armstrong joins Tour greats with fourth win

Riders who have won four or more Tours de France:
Jacques Anquetil (Fra): 1957, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964
Eddy Merckx (Bel): 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974
Bernard Hinault (Fra): 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1985
Miguel Indurain (Spa): 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995
Lance Armstrong (USA): 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
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j p, at Dumbmonkey, found this nugget of chunky linky Lance A. goodness from 2000.

Tiger Who? Lance Armstrong Is the Real Sports Hero
Americans have always ignored cycling and the Tour de France. This year, says TIME.com's Jessica Reaves, it's time to tune in

If anyone deserves to be on the front page of every major newspaper and sports magazine, it's Armstrong. He has a very strong case to make America's Greatest Sports Figure. This guy powers himself up mountains using only his quadriceps and a bicycle. Most Americans would get winded driving these peaks, for Pete's sake. But instead of following Armstrong and his teammates over the cragged peaks of Europe, we're treated to ad nauseam stories about Tiger Woods, whose accomplishments are myriad, to be sure, but whose claim to greatness lies more with skill and mental determination rather than those combined with true athletic prowess.
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Click back in next year to see if Lance can make it 5 in a row — and maybe the year after for 6?