IIB 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3589 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 23, 2019 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

Urban Affairs 

AN ACT 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Greg LeMond, 

in recognition of his service to the Nation as an athlete, 

activist, role model, and community leader. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Greg LeMond Congres3 sional Gold Medal Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 The Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) Gregory James ‘‘Greg’’ LeMond was born 

7 in Lakewood, California, on June 26, 1961. 

8 (2) Greg began cycling at the age of 14, win9 ning an astonishing 11 straight races to begin his 

10 career. 

11 (3) Greg took home a full suite of medals at the 

12 1979 Junior World Championships, including gold, 

13 silver, and bronze, emerging victorious in the road 

14 race and placing in both team and track pursuit 

15 events. 

16 (4) At age 18, Greg became the youngest cyclist 

17 in the history of the sport to be selected for the 

18 United States Men’s Olympic team. 

19 (5) Greg emerged victorious in the 1980 Circuit 

20 de la Sarthe, becoming the first American in history 

21 and the youngest rider ever to win a major pro-am 

22 cycling event on the European continent. 

23 (6) At age 19, Greg signed his first professional 

24 contract. 

25 (7) In 1982, Greg made the first of several re26 markable recoveries, returning from a broken collarVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:12 Sep 24, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3589.RFS H3589

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1 bone to win the silver medal at the world champion2 ships in Great Britain. 

3 (8) The Tour de France, the world’s pre4 eminent cycling competition, was first held over a 

5 century ago, in 1903. 

6 (9) The Tour de France takes place over 23 

7 days, covering an extraordinary 2,200 miles, winding 

8 through multiple mountain ranges, spanning mul9 tiple nations, and is viewed as comparable to run10 ning a marathon every day for three consecutive 

11 weeks. 

12 (10) Greg first competed in the Tour de France 

13 in 1984, finishing third, and finishing second the 

14 following year, in both years deputizing himself to 

15 his teammates, sacrificing a chance to win himself to 

16 boost his teammates toward victory. 

17 (11) Greg emerged victorious in the 1986 Tour 

18 de France, ascending the fabled Alpe D’Huez, de19 feating the field by more than 3 full minutes, becom20 ing the first American and the first non-European to 

21 win cycling’s most prestigious race. 

22 (12) In 1987, while recovering from a broken 

23 wrist and collarbone, Greg was tragically shot during 

24 a turkey hunting accident, leaving him in intensive 

25 care, requiring the removal of over 40 shotgun pelVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:12 Sep 24, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3589.RFS H3589

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1 lets from his abdomen, was deemed unlikely to ever 

2 ride a bicycle again, and likely survived only due to 

3 the abnormal strength of his cardiovascular system. 

4 (13) Greg mounted the greatest comeback in 

5 the history of American sports, taking home an as6 tonishing victory at the 1989 Tour de France, fol7 lowing multiple surgeries, life-threatening gunshot 

8 wounds, tendon repair, and an appendectomy, win9 ning by 8 seconds in the closest finish in the history 

10 of the Tour de France. 

11 (14) Greg would win a third Tour de France 

12 victory in 1990. 

13 (15) Greg is the only American to win the Tour 

14 de France. 

15 (16) Greg has vocally spoken out to champion 

16 healthy sport amongst athletes of all ages and com17 petition levels. 

18 (17) Greg and his wife, Kathy, are active in nu19 merous nonprofit causes, including healthy sport, as20 sisting victims of sexual abuse and various childhood 

21 illnesses. 

22 (18) Cycling offers young people a healthy, ac23 tive, outdoor hobby. 


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1 (19) Greg completed his professional career 

2 having won 2 World Championships, 3 Tour de 

3 France championships, and 22 titles overall. 

4 (20) More than any other cyclist, Greg personi5 fied the ‘‘breakaway’’ culture of American cycling in 

6 the 1970s and 80s, viewed universally as the epit7 ome of a young person on a bicycle, attempting to 

8 accomplish feats no other American had achieved. 

9 (21) Greg has not only reached the pinnacle of 

10 international sport, but has devoted his time and re11 sources to assisting his fellow athletes. 

12 (22) Greg has demonstrated the commitment to 

13 excellence, generosity, community, and tenacity that 

14 makes him an example for all to follow. 

15 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

16 (a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of 

17 the House of Representatives and the President pro tem18 pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements 

19 for the presentation, on behalf of the Congress, of a gold 

20 medal of appropriate design to Greg LeMond, in recogni21 tion of his contributions to the Nation as an athlete, activ22 ist, role model, and community leader. 

23 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For purposes of the 

24 presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary 

25 of the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:12 Sep 24, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3589.RFS H3589

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1 retary’’) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, 

2 devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec3 retary. 

4 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

5 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

6 bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 

7 under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at 

8 a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, 

9 materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses, 

10 and the cost of the gold medal. 

11 SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

12 (a) NATIONAL MEDALS.—The medals struck pursu13 ant to this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 

14 51 of title 31, United States Code. 

15 (b) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of section 

16 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck 

17 under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items. 

18 SEC. 6. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS. 

19 The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 

20 complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, 

21 shall be determined by reference to the latest statement 

22 titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation’’ for this 

23 Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record 

24 by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, proVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:12 Sep 24, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3589.RFS H3589

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1 vided that such statement has been submitted prior to the 

2 vote on passage. 

Passed the House of Representatives September 19, 

2019. 

Attest: CHERYL L. JOHNSON, 

Clerk. 


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