The Triple Crown of Cycling is made up of two of the three Grand Tours: the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France (the Vuelta a España - The Tour of Spain - is the third Grand Tour), and the World Cycling Championship. It is considered the hardest title to win in professional road bicycle racing. The cycling triple crown has only been won twice:
- Belgian Eddy Merckx did it in 1974
- Ireland's Stephen Roche in 1987.
Among those who came close are Frenchman Bernard Hinault and later Spaniard Miguel Indurain who finished second in the World Championships in 1993.
