Landis Gentry

One of the most unpredictable and chaotic Tours de France in decades ended as the smart money might have expected: with Floyd Landis on the top of the final podium. After seemingly dropping out of contention on Wednesday's Stage 16, and putting himself back into the top three with a magnificent ride on Thursday's Stage 17, Landis took it easy on Friday and then raced well enough in Saturday's time trial to move back into the yellow jersey. In winning the 93rd Tour, Landis becomes the third American to win (along with seven-time winner Lance Armstrong and three-time winner Greg LeMond). On top of that, he's a hardworking nutjob who has now made good on lots of hard, thankless work. I hope his hip surgery goes smoothly and that he's back in the saddle in time to train for the 2007 Tour.