The inaugural Tour de France in 1903 was nothing short of groundbreaking. Organized by the French newspaper L’Auto, the race was intended as a publicity… Read More »The cheating scandal of Tour de France 1904
Louis Trousselier (1881-1939), the charismatic winner of the 3rd Tour de France in 1905, had a life story as colorful as his cycling career. Known… Read More »The cyclist who won Tour de France but gambled away the entire prize money
Spanish climber Vicente Trueba was the first King of the Mountains of Tour de France. The special competition was introduced to the race in 1933.… Read More »Vicente Trueba climbing Galibier (Tour de France 1933)
On the desert-like descent of the Col d’Izoard during the 15th stage of the 1939 Tour de France, Sylvère Maes dramatically turned the tide of… Read More »Sylvère Maes takes over the lead on Col d’Izoard (Tour de France 1939
Federico Bahamontes made his Tour de France debut in 1954, a race that would mark the beginning of his legacy as one of the greatest… Read More »Federico Bahamontes stops for an ice cream (Tour de France 1954)
It’s the good old story. Someone launches an attack that seems rather a suicide mission. The peloton miscalculates, does not really care about the move.… Read More »Hugo Koblet’s epic solo victory at Tour de France 1951
The world of road cycling often celebrates the second-place riders as much, if not more, than the winners. Few embody this sentiment better than the… Read More »The battle on Puy de Dôme: Raymond Poulidor’s closest chance at Tour de France glory
Since its introduction to the Tour de France in 1952, Alpe d’Huez has been the scene of many legendary moments in cycling history. Among the… Read More »Hand in hand on the top of Alpe d’Huez
The 1969 edition of the Tour de France was Merckx’s first. Coming off wins in other prestigious races such as the Giro d’Italia, Merckx had… Read More »Eddy Merckx’s epic solo victory in the Pyrenees (Tour de France 1969)
In 1910, Henri Desgrange, the Tour’s founder and director, decided to introduce mountain stages into the race to make it even more challenging. The Pyrenean… Read More »When Octave Lapize called the Tour de France organizers “murderers”