Who is the Best Cyclist in the World?

A difficult of professional cycling is working out who is the best cyclist. There are many different ways of measuring the best cyclists

1. Tour de France winner

Especially in the era of Lance Armstrong, the Tour de France gained in prestige. It is by far the most popular and internationally viewed cycling race. It is only really the Tour de France which touches the imagination of the non cycling population. Lance Armstrong was undoubtedly the best cyclist, even though he rarely won any other race. The Tour de France can be viewed as the premier cycling race and thus the winner is the year’s best cyclist. Certainly no one would dispute Lance Armstrong was the best cyclist during his Tour domination. See: List of Tour de France Winners

2. UCI World Rankings

This is based on the ATP tennis rankings. Devised by Jean Marie Leblance, this gives points to winners and placings. Points are calculated depending on the toughness and prestige of the race. See: UCI World Rankings

3. UCI World Cup.

This is a competition for one day classic races. It is decided on points from a series of 12 one day races throughout the year. Including the 5 monuments of cycling:
Milan San Remo, the Tour of Flanders, Paris Roubaix, Liege Bastogne Liege and the Giro di Lombardia

4. Velo Magazines Velodor Mondial

An election by Italian journalist of this year’s best cyclist.