May 11, 1893 – Early bicycle enthusiast, Henri Desgrange, established the very first bicycle world record, traveling at a top speed of 21.95 miles per hour or 35.325 km/hr at the Buffalo Velodrome in Paris, France.
This was sort of a starting point for Desgrange to take cycling to a whole new level. The Frenchman watched his first bicycle race in 1891 and caught the bug.
He ended up setting twelve world records in track cycling, was an early journalist/writer on the sport, and was the original founder of the Tour de France in 1903.
To find more great daily sports history make sure to check out the Sports Jersey Dispatch and Pigskin Dispatch.
More From Sports History Network

ACC Basketball’s Four-Way Tie
In my last article, I made a case for the 1988-89 season being the

Mark Morthier’s Favorite Sport Cards (1968 – 1971)
The first sports trading cards I remember collecting were the 1968 and 1969 Topps

What Atlanta Falcons Odds Suggest About the 2026 Season
Atlanta enters 2026 as a team that the betting market respects only in limited

How Sports Betting Went from Back-Alley Bookies to Big Business
Long before mobile apps and instant odds updates, betting on sports meant finding a

The Anatomy of a Perfect Long Run: Fuelling, Pacing, and Recovery Windows
Photo sourced via Pexels.com – Credit Kaan Durmus The long run is where good

Reliving the 1975 Los Angeles Rams Season
The Cleveland Rams joined the NFL in 1937 and won the NFL Championship in

Could the Heartland Support Another Women’s Professional Basketball League? (Part 2)
Last time, we explored a simple question. What if another women’s professional basketball league

My Book 10-Year Anniversary (NFL in the 1970s)
In 2008, I decided to write a book. I wanted this book to be