Le Tour de France (la Tour de France means "the Tower of France," but it's a common mistake so don't worry!) was "invented" by Geo Lefevre in 1902.
In those days, sporting events were often organised to boost sales of magazines and other publications. Lefevre had been persuaded to work with a newspaper called L'Auto by its owner as a rugby and cycling journalist. However, L'Auto's circulation was poor and a meeting was held on 20th November to come up with ideas to promote it. Lefevre, who spoke last at the meeting, proposed the idea of organising the Tour and staging it the following year, 1903. He later claimed that he had only suggested it because he couldn't think of anything else to say.