It might not have been the hardest Tour -- it only skirted the Pyrenees Mountains and spent just two days in the high Alps — but this Tour was the fastest. The cyclists kept up an average pace of 24.5 mph, bettering the record held in 1988, when racers averaged 24.1 mph.

Italian Claudio Chiappucci finished in second place, and earned the polka dot jersey as best climber, while another Italian, Gianni Bugno, finished in third. Bugno was one of the contenders who was full of big expectations for this Tour, saying he would forgo this spring's Tour of Italy to better prepare for the Tour de France. But he didn't look like a winner until the final week, and by then Indurain had already sewn up his victory.

American Andy Hampsten finished fourth, equaling his previous best here, in 1986. His finish on top of Alpe d'Huez made him the first American to even win the stage that winds its way up a mountain and finishes at a ski resort.

"It's always a surprise to see who's going to win Alpe d'Huez, and it's a better surprise when it's your rider," said Jim Ochowicz, Hampsten's team director. Ochowicz just shook his head when asked if the win was diminished by the fact that at the same time Hampsten was on the podium that day, three-time winner Greg LeMond was abandoning the race.

"I don't think it was overshadowed by that," Ochowicz said. "Sure, it was a double news day, but Andy was on the better side of the news."

Hampsten's fourth place — 13 minutes and 40 seconds back — meant he didn't get to be on the podium in Paris. But he didn't seem to mind.

"Fifteen years ago, I was just a kid in North Dakota riding a bike for fun," said Hampsten, 30. "If you had asked me then if I thought I'd be doing this now, I'd say no way."

Today's 88-mile ride was hardly any indication of that blistering record-setting pace. With the result all but locked up, the cyclists rode the first half looking as if they were out on a recreational ride, and not the Tour de France. They rode with no hands for a while, mugged for TV cameras and generally had a relaxed ride. But as they came into Paris, they got serious. Fans lined both sides of the Champs Elysees, the French red, white and blue banners hung from light posts to welcome riders and some spectators waved the Basque flag and cheered on the man in yellow.

The racers took 10 circuits up one side and down the other of Paris's main street, rounding the Place de la Concorde, and then going down to pass in front of the Arc du Triomphe. They took turns at leading the way, and finally on the last lap, they were all bunched together. Olaf Ludwig, from what was formerly East Germany, won the sprint and the stage, although the standings did not budge.

The Tour that started on July 4 in San Sebasian, Spain, covered 2,479 miles and dropped into four other countries in addition to France and Spain: Belgium, Luxembourg, Holland and Germany.

Of the 198 riders who started the race, only 130 finished in Paris. Indurain completed the 21 stages in 100 hours 49 minutes 30 seconds. The rider in last place was another Spanish cyclist, Fernando Quevedo. He rode four hours and 12 minutes slower than Indurain.

Indurain said his second win was easier than the first if for no other reason than he's a more experienced Tour rider.

"This win was better than last year because now I'm more familiar with the course," he said. "But I also feel that now, the pressure's on."

Proving that his forte in the race against the clock is no fluke, Indurain also won the two time-trial stages in the Tour of Italy, and won the two time-trials in France last year. In fact, in this past week's time trial, Indurain rode faster than the pace held by Italian Francesco Moser in the hour world record. Indurain averaged 32.5 miles per hour, Moser's record is 31.7.

"I think Bugno lost the Tour in the first time trial," said Indurain of the race against the clock in Luxembourg that he won by almost four minutes.