Paris–Rouen was the first cycle race

Road bicycle racing

Road bicycle racing is a bicycle racing sport held on roads, using racing bicycles. The term "road racing" is usually applied to events where competing riders start simultaneously with the winner being the first to the line at the end of the course .Historically, the most...

 covering a distance between two cities. It was held between the cities of Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 and Rouen

Rouen

Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...

 on November 7, 1869. The winner of the inaugural Paris–Rouen race was an Englishman living in Paris, James Moore

James Moore (cyclist)

James Moore was a bicycle racer. He is popularly regarded as the winner of the first official cycle race in the world in 1868 at St-Cloud, Paris, although there appears to be no verifiable contemporary evidence for this...

, who rode the 123 kilometres dividing both cities in 10 hours and 40 minutes, including time spent walking his bicycle up the steeper hills.

The event was organized by the fortnightly cycling magazine Le Vélocipède Illustré

Le Vélocipède Illustré

Le Vélocipède Illustré was a fortnightly illustrated French newspaper which covered cycling, water sports, mechanical arts and sciences, fine arts, and industry...

 and Olivier brothers

Olivier brothers

The Olivier brothers, Aimé, René, and Marius, were the first people responsible for recognizing the commercial potential of a new invention : the bicycle....

, owners of a bicycle manufacturer company called The Michaux Company. They were delighted with the success of short races held in Parc de Saint Cloud, Paris and on November 7, they promoted a race between Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 and Rouen

Rouen

Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...

, covering a distance of 123 kilometres. The first prize was one thousand gold francs and a bicycle. The rules of the race said that the riders were not to be pulled by a dog or use sails.

A total of 120 riders, including two women, participated in the race but just 32 finished before 24 hours. James Moore won with 15 minutes of advantage on Castera and Bobillier. The first woman, referred to as Miss America, finished 12 hours and 10 minutes after Moore at 29th position.

After the eruption of Franco-Prussian War

Franco-Prussian War

The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...

 in 1870 the race was no longer held but it was held as an amateur race in later years. The centenary of the race was commemorated on May 12, 1969. The winner was Régis Delepine

Régis Delépine

Régis Delépine was a French professional road bicycle racer. In the 1974 edition of Bordeaux–Paris, he was ranked first together with Herman Van Springel, after Van Springel went the wrong way in the final.- Palmarès :...

, who received the same price as James Moore 100 years ago, one thousand gold francs as 50 Louis.

07-11-1869: Paris–Rouen, 123 km

	Cyclist	Time
1	James Moore James Moore (cyclist) James Moore was a bicycle racer. He is popularly regarded as the winner of the first official cycle race in the world in 1868 at St-Cloud, Paris, although there appears to be no verifiable contemporary evidence for this...	10h 45'
2	André Castera	15'
3	M. Bobillier	s.t.
4	Henri Pascaud	1h 15'
5	Félix Gaston Biot	1h 39'
6	Cantellauve	2h 54'
7	Johnson ou Bon Edouard-Charles	3h 40'
8	Joseph Meunier	3h 50'
9	Schand	4h 33'
10	E. Meyer	4h 43'
11	Tribout	4h 45'
12	Guillot	5h 07'
13	Steckel	5h 11'
14	Lamon	6h 44'
15	Servoz	6h 50'
16	R.R.	7h 10'
17	Delage	7h 20'
18	G. Aubrecht	7h 25'
19	Leroy d'E	7h 30'
20	Venant	7h 35'
21	Wolz	7h 45'
22	Daubel	7h 48'
23	Rocan	7h 53'
24	Duval	s.t.
25	Chateau	8h 20'
26	Tricycle Tissier	9h 20'
27	Constanceau	10h 30'
28	J. Pedro	11h 50'
29	Miss America	12h 10'
30	Turner	s.t.
31	Taboureau	s.t.
32	Ch. Chatelain	12h 35'
33	E. Fortin	14h 20'
34	Prosper Martin	s.t.