The winner of the first Tour de France wore not a yellow jersey but a green armband.
After the second Tour de France, the rules were changed, and the general classification was no longer calculated by time, but by points.
This points system was kept until 1912, after which it changed back into the time classification. At that time, the leader still did not wear a yellow jersey.
The formal history, therefore, is that the first yellow jersey was worn by the Frenchman Eugène Christophe in the stage from Grenoble to Geneva on July 18, 1919.
The colour was chosen either to reflect the yellow newsprint of the organising newspaper, L'Auto, or because yellow was an unpopular colour and therefore the only one available with which a manufacturer could create jerseys at late notice.
There was no formal presentation when Christophe wore his first yellow jersey in Grenoble, from where the race left at 2am for the 325 km to Geneva. He was given it the night before and tried it on later in his hotel.
In the next Tour de France in 1920, the yellow jersey was initially not awarded, but after the ninth stage, it was introduced again.
The original yellow jerseys were of conventional style. Riders had to pull them over their head on the rostrum. For many years the jersey was made in only limited sizes and many riders found it a struggle to pull one on, especially when tired or wet. The presentation jersey is now made with a full-length zip at the back and the rider pulls it on from the front, sliding his hands through the sleeves rather like a strait-jacket. He then receives three further jerseys each day, plus money (referred to as the "rent") for each day he leads the race.
There is no copyright on the yellow jersey and it has been imitated by many other races, although not always for the best rider overall: in the Tour of Benelux yellow is worn by the best young rider.
In American English it is sometimes referred to as the mellow johnny, a mispronunciation of its French name originally by Lance Armstrong, who wore it many times while winning the 1999-2005 races. Armstrong also uses the name "Mellow Johnny" for his Texas-based bike shop.
If the rider who is awarded the yellow jersey cannot ride a certain stage, no rider will wear yellow until the end of that stage when a new rider will ride the right to wear it.
If a rider gets awarded another jersey aside from the yellow one, he must wear the yellow as it is significantly more important.
Sponsorship: The French bank, Crédit Lyonnais, has sponsored the maillot jaune since 1987. The company has been a commercial partner of the Tour since 1981. It awards a toy lion - le lion en peluche - to each day's winner as a play on its name. In 2007, sponsorship of the jersey was credited to LCL, the new name for Crédit Lyonnais following its takeover by another bank, Crédit Agricole.
After the second Tour de France, the rules were changed, and the general classification was no longer calculated by time, but by points.
This points system was kept until 1912, after which it changed back into the time classification. At that time, the leader still did not wear a yellow jersey.
The formal history, therefore, is that the first yellow jersey was worn by the Frenchman Eugène Christophe in the stage from Grenoble to Geneva on July 18, 1919.
The colour was chosen either to reflect the yellow newsprint of the organising newspaper, L'Auto, or because yellow was an unpopular colour and therefore the only one available with which a manufacturer could create jerseys at late notice.
There was no formal presentation when Christophe wore his first yellow jersey in Grenoble, from where the race left at 2am for the 325 km to Geneva. He was given it the night before and tried it on later in his hotel.
In the next Tour de France in 1920, the yellow jersey was initially not awarded, but after the ninth stage, it was introduced again.
The original yellow jerseys were of conventional style. Riders had to pull them over their head on the rostrum. For many years the jersey was made in only limited sizes and many riders found it a struggle to pull one on, especially when tired or wet. The presentation jersey is now made with a full-length zip at the back and the rider pulls it on from the front, sliding his hands through the sleeves rather like a strait-jacket. He then receives three further jerseys each day, plus money (referred to as the "rent") for each day he leads the race.
There is no copyright on the yellow jersey and it has been imitated by many other races, although not always for the best rider overall: in the Tour of Benelux yellow is worn by the best young rider.
In American English it is sometimes referred to as the mellow johnny, a mispronunciation of its French name originally by Lance Armstrong, who wore it many times while winning the 1999-2005 races. Armstrong also uses the name "Mellow Johnny" for his Texas-based bike shop.
If the rider who is awarded the yellow jersey cannot ride a certain stage, no rider will wear yellow until the end of that stage when a new rider will ride the right to wear it.
If a rider gets awarded another jersey aside from the yellow one, he must wear the yellow as it is significantly more important.
Sponsorship: The French bank, Crédit Lyonnais, has sponsored the maillot jaune since 1987. The company has been a commercial partner of the Tour since 1981. It awards a toy lion - le lion en peluche - to each day's winner as a play on its name. In 2007, sponsorship of the jersey was credited to LCL, the new name for Crédit Lyonnais following its takeover by another bank, Crédit Agricole.
