Pro Cycling Salaries

My last blog explained an interesting an usually unknown coincidence about two of America's top bicycle racers. This blog is going to explain some more interesting facts concerning professional cyclists and their salaries which are unknown to many. Most professional athletes' salaries are common knowledge to most sports enthusiasts. Many know of the millions of dollars that pro basketball, football, baseball,and golf athletes earn each year of over entire careers, but many may not know how much some earn by riding a bicycle for a living. Most of cycling's top wage earners are champions in the sport's super bowl of cycling, the Tour de France. In 1985, American Greg LeMond became the first cyclists in the history of cycling to sign a contract which paid him over $1 Million a year. He would go on to win the Tour de France 3 times and change the salary structure forever in bicycle racing. Another American, Lance Armstrong, has a personal net worth of over $30 Million (Forbes Magazine). He won the Tour de France 7 times. On today's top professional cycling teams, the minimum salary is $50,000 a year, and the top riders on each team are earning from $1 Million to $4 Million annually. These numbers only represent the base yearly salary and does not include endorsements from the many companies who associate their products with the sport's top riders.