The Tour is the holy grail to the extent that the Grand National is the acme of horse racing. It might be the one that gains the attention of those that otherwise have no interest in the sport, and whose result is remembered for longest and that generates storylines for the popular press, and in one subsection of the sport, it is among the major tests of the year. But to those who follow the sport in detail it is by no means the be all and end all that others might think.
Of course not and I've never said that it was, as knowledgable cycling fans are well aware. But it does mean ( the Tour as cycling's Holy Grail with its Golden Fleece) that the rider who wins it, if not always to the same degree, stands at the top of the sport that year. Look, there isn't much to argue about here. In a sport that places greatest glory in events that require endurance and resistance to fatigue, wearing yellow in Paris is simply the apogee. Ask any pro and he will tell you the same. I mean, that's obvious. This doesn't mean, however, that there aren't other prestigious events, the winning of any one of them makes a career. Yet if they say, "but the Tour is the Tour," there must be a reason. And if the Tour is the only race, as one pro recently put it, that is bigger than cycling itself, this not only means that the event is even known to people with only a passing or no interest in cycling (and thus generates headlines like no other race, while being the cash cow for team sponsors - something like 70 percent of all annual publicity pro cycling generates is bound to the Tour alone which is positively astounding); but that, because of this, every rider from lowly domestique to team capitan is expected to arrive at the start in his absolute top shape. No other event on the calendar is like that. So the Tour, rather than being a mere "subsection of the sport," is rather a microcosm of pro cycling for three weeks around France; where the best sprinters in the world, the best classics riders, TTers, climbers and best GT podium candidates, vie against their colleagues to establish who that year is the best sprinter, rouleur, puncheur, climber, TTer and GT king. For this reason the competition is far tougher, across the various disciplines and for overall glory, than any other event in the sport. And this is why, like it or not, the Tour winner stands at the top of cycling's pecking order. Hence, saying that the Tour is only the Grand National of cycling, really demonstrates a lack of awareness of the issues at hand and the forces at work. Plus the Tour, along with the Olympics and FIFA Worlds, is the most watched sporting event on earth. For a sport that is relatively poor and not as popular as some others, this is truely remarkable, nay absolutely mind-boggling, and only underscores how massive is the status and prestige given, not only to the Yellow Jersey wearer, but the sprinter, the climber, the TTr, etc., who demonstrated superiority over the 21 stages of the event. No, the Tour aint just some Grand National on two wheels.
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