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What it's like to watch the women's Tour de France, for the only American to win it

The Tour de France for women fizzled out less than 10 years after Marianne Martin won it in 1984. Now, she says, "other women can see women racing and they can visualize themselves doing it."
Marianne Martin stands alongside fellow Tour de France winner Laurent Fignon on the podium in Paris on July 22, 1984. Martin received around $1,000 for her win; Fignon got more than $100,000.

Anyone wondering how big a deal it is that women once again have their own Tour de France should consider this: Marianne Martin — who won the race in 1984 — says this year's event made her want to be back out on the road, racing again, for the first time in years.

"I can watch the men's race and not feel like this. But when I watch the women's race, I'm like, 'I miss that so much,' " Martin told NPR. "And I didn't even think about it until I'm saying this right now. But that's the big thing about having

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