# 1954 Tour de France

The 1954 Tour de France was the 41st edition of the Tour de France, taking place from 8 July to 1 August 1954. It consisted of 23 stages over 4,656 km (2,893 mi). The race was won by Louison Bobet, the second of his three consecutive wins.

## Teams

As was the custom since the 1930 Tour de France, the 1954 Tour de France was contested by national and regional teams. Seven national teams were sent, with 10 cyclists each from France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Switzerland and Luxembourg/Austria (the latter a combined team). France additionally sent five regional teams from 10 cyclists each, divided into North-East/Centre, West, South-East, Île-de-France and South-West. The combined team Luxembourg/Austria consisted of six Luxembourger cyclists, three Austrian cyclists and one from Liechtenstein. In total, 110 cyclists started the race.
Notable absents were the Italian cyclists. In Italy, new "extra-sportives" sponsors had entered the market, non-cycling combinations promoted by Fiorenzo Magni with his "Nivea-Fuchs". The novelty provoked a protest from French cyclists, who therefore did not take part in the Giro. In response to the rudeness, the Italian Cycling Federation decided not to send a team to the Tour. In May, the Italian Federation head Adriano Rodoni announced Italian riders would not participate in the Tour.
The teams entering the race were:
* France
* Netherlands
* Belgium
* Spain
* Switzerland
* Luxembourg/Austria
* North-East/Centre
* West
* South-East
* Île-de-France
* South-West

## Route and stages

The 1954 Tour de France was the first time that the Tour had started outside France, as it started in Amsterdam. Also new was the team time trial. Although around 1930 the Tour had seen stages in which the teams started separately, in 1954 the team time trial format was reintroduced in a way that only the team time counted. Also the split stages were reintroduced. Stage 4 was divided into two parts: the team time trial of 10.4 km (part A), and a regular stage of 131 km (part B), both run on the same day. Similarly, stage 21 was divided into a regular stage of 134 km (part A) and an individual time trial of 72 km (part B), also both run on the same day. There were two rest days, in Bordeaux and Lyon. The highest point of elevation in the race was 2,556 m (8,386 ft) at the summit tunnel of the Col du Galibier mountain pass on stage 19.
Stage characteristics and winners :
| Stage | Date | Course | Distance | Type | Type | Winner |
| 1 | 8 July | Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Brasschaat (Belgium) | 216 km (134 mi) | | Plain stage | Wout Wagtmans (NED) |
| 2 | 9 July | Beveren (Belgium) to Lille | 255 km (158 mi) | | Plain stage | Louison Bobet (FRA) |
| 3 | 10 July | Lille to Rouen | 219 km (136 mi) | | Plain stage | Marcel Dussault (FRA) |
| 4a | 11 July | Rouen to Circuit des Essarts | 10.4 km (6 mi) | | Team time trial | Switzerland |
| 4b | 11 July | Rouen to Caen | 131 km (81 mi) | | Plain stage | Wim van Est (NED) |
| 5 | 12 July | Caen to Saint-Brieuc | 224 km (139 mi) | | Plain stage | Ferdinand Kübler (SUI) |
| 6 | 13 July | Saint-Brieuc to Brest | 179 km (111 mi) | | Plain stage | Dominique Forlini (FRA) |
| 7 | 14 July | Brest to Vannes | 211 km (131 mi) | | Plain stage | Jacques Vivier (FRA) |
| 8 | 15 July | Vannes to Angers | 190 km (118 mi) | | Plain stage | Fred De Bruyne (BEL) |
| 9 | 16 July | Angers to Bordeaux | 343 km (213 mi) | | Plain stage | Henk Faanhof (NED) |
| | 17 July | Bordeaux | Bordeaux | | Rest day | Rest day |
| 10 | 18 July | Bordeaux to Bayonne | 202 km (126 mi) | | Plain stage | Gilbert Bauvin (FRA) |
| 11 | 19 July | Bayonne to Pau | 241 km (150 mi) | | Stage with mountain(s) | Stan Ockers (BEL) |
| 12 | 20 July | Pau to Luchon | 161 km (100 mi) | | Stage with mountain(s) | Gilbert Bauvin (FRA) |
| 13 | 21 July | Luchon to Toulouse | 203 km (126 mi) | | Plain stage | Fred De Bruyne (BEL) |
| 14 | 22 July | Toulouse to Millau | 225 km (140 mi) | | Stage with mountain(s) | Ferdinand Kübler (SUI) |
| 15 | 23 July | Millau to Le Puy | 197 km (122 mi) | | Stage with mountain(s) | Dominique Forlini (FRA) |
| 16 | 24 July | Le Puy to Lyon | 194 km (121 mi) | | Stage with mountain(s) | Jean Forestier (FRA) |
| | 25 July | Lyon | Lyon | | Rest day | Rest day |
| 17 | 26 July | Lyon to Grenoble | 182 km (113 mi) | | Stage with mountain(s) | Lucien Lazaridès (FRA) |
| 18 | 27 July | Grenoble to Briançon | 216 km (134 mi) | | Stage with mountain(s) | Louison Bobet (FRA) |
| 19 | 28 July | Briançon to Aix-les-Bains | 221 km (137 mi) | | Stage with mountain(s) | Jean Dotto (FRA) |
| 20 | 29 July | Aix les Bains to Besançon | 243 km (151 mi) | | Stage with mountain(s) | Lucien Teisseire (FRA) |
| 21a | 30 July | Besançon to Épinal | 134 km (83 mi) | | Plain stage | François Mahé (FRA) |
| 21b | 30 July | Epinal to Nancy | 72 km (45 mi) | | Individual time trial | Louison Bobet (FRA) |
| 22 | 31 July | Nancy to Troyes | 216 km (134 mi) | | Plain stage | Fred De Bruyne (BEL) |
| 23 | 1 August | Troyes to Paris | 180 km (112 mi) | | Plain stage | Robert Varnajo (FRA) |
| | Total | Total | 4,656 km (2,893 mi) | 4,656 km (2,893 mi) | 4,656 km (2,893 mi) | 4,656 km (2,893 mi) |

## Race overview

In the first stage, Wout Wagtmans won the sprint, and took the yellow jersey. He would remain the leader until the team time trial in stage 4, when the French team won back enough time on the Dutch team for Bobet to take over the lead. In that time trial, over 10.4 km, the winning team was decided by adding the times of the three best cyclists per team. For the general classification, every cyclist got added his individual time. In the second part of the fourth stage, former winner Jean Robic hit a photographer during the sprint, fell down and had to give up.
In the eighth stage, Wagtmans had joined a breakaway, which won enough time on Bobet for Wagtmans to take back the yellow jersey. Wagtmans fell down in the eleventh stage, and although he managed to keep his lead until the start of the twelfth stage, he continued without morale. In the twelfth stage in the Pyrenees, three important riders attacked: Bauvin, Bahamontes and Malléjac. They stayed ahead, and Bauvin jumped to the first position in the general classification. Bobet was not far behind these three, and moved into the second place. In that twelfth stage, Hugo Koblet had fallen down, and lost 27 minutes, and his chances to win the Tour de France a second time. In the next stage, Koblet gave up.
In the fourteenth stage, the Swiss cyclists were fighting back. They were riding as fast as they could, and the leading group was getting smaller. Bauvin also could not keep up with that group, partly because he had a flat tire, and finished 8 minutes behind, losing the leading position. Bobet however could keep up with the Swiss pace, and took over the yellow jersey as leader of the general classification.
In the sixteenth stage, Bauvin lost another 20 minutes, and dropped to sixth place. The Swiss cyclists had attacked Bobet where they could, but were unable to gain time on him. They had moved into second and third place of the general classification. In the eighteenth stage, Bobet dominated, and dropped all of the other contenders. He won by a margin of one minute and 49 seconds, and his margin in the general classification was 12 minutes 49 seconds, which would normally be large enough for the victory. Bobet also won the individual time trial, and thereby increased his margin even more.
The Swiss cyclists could not attack Bobet anymore in the last stages, so Bobet won his second Tour de France. The Swiss team had performed well though, capturing the second and third place in the general classification, winning the team classification and having Kübler win the points classification.

## Classification leadership and minor prizes

The time that each cyclist required to finish each stage was recorded, and these times were added together for the general classification. If a cyclist had received a time bonus, it was subtracted from this total; all time penalties were added to this total. The cyclist with the least accumulated time was the race leader, identified by the yellow jersey. Of the 110 cyclists that started the 1954 Tour de France, 69 finished the race.
The points classification was calculated in the same way as in 1953, following the calculation method from the Tours de France from 1905 to 1912. Points were given according to the ranking of the stage: the winner received one points, the next cyclist two points, and so on. These points were added, and the cyclist with the fewest points was the leader of the points classification. In 1954, this was won by Ferdinand Kübler.
Points for the mountains classification were earned by reaching the mountain tops first. The system was almost the same as in 1953: there were two types of mountain tops: the hardest ones, in category 1, gave 10 points to the first cyclist, the easier ones, in category 2, gave 6 points to the first cyclist, and the easiest ones, in category 3, gave 3 points. Federico Bahamontes won this classification.
The team classification was calculated as the sum of the daily team classifications, and the daily team classification was calculated by adding the times in the stage result of the best three cyclists per team. It was won by the Swiss team.
In addition, there was a combativity award given after each stage to the cyclist considered most combative. The split stages each had a combined winner. The decision was made by a jury composed of journalists who gave points. The cyclist with the most points from votes in all stages led the combativity classification. At the end of the Tour de France, Lucien Lazaridès and François Mahé were leading this classification with equal points and shared the overall super-combativity award. The Souvenir Henri Desgrange was given to the first rider to pass the memorial to Tour founder Henri Desgrange near the summit of the Col du Galibier on stage 19. This prize was won by Federico Bahamontes.
Classification leadership by stage :
| Stage | Winner | General classification | Points classification | Mountains classification | Team classification | Combativity | Combativity | Bad luck award |
| Stage | Winner | General classification | Points classification | Mountains classification | Team classification | Award | Classification | Bad luck award |
| 1 | Wout Wagtmans | Wout Wagtmans | Wout Wagtmans | no award | Netherlands | Hugo Koblet | Hugo Koblet | Ferdi Kübler |
| 2 | Louison Bobet | Wout Wagtmans | Gilbert Bauvin | no award | France | Lucien Lazaridès | Lucien Lazaridès | Charly Gaul |
| 3 | Marcel Dussault | Wout Wagtmans | Gilbert Bauvin | no award | France | Richard Van Genechten | Lucien Lazaridès | Hein van Breenen |
| 4a | Switzerland | Louison Bobet | Gilbert Bauvin | no award | France | Charly Gaul | Lucien Lazaridès | |
| 4b | Wim van Est | Louison Bobet | Gilbert Bauvin | no award | France | Charly Gaul | Lucien Lazaridès | |
| 5 | Ferdinand Kübler | Louison Bobet | Gilbert Bauvin | no award | France | Vincent Vitetta | Lucien Lazaridès | Rolf Graf |
| 6 | Dominique Forlini | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | no award | Switzerland | René De Smet | Lucien Lazaridès | Albert Bouvet |
| 7 | Jacques Vivier | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | no award | Switzerland | Émile Guérinel | Lucien Lazaridès | Gilbert Bauvin |
| 8 | Fred De Bruyne | Wout Wagtmans | Ferdinand Kübler | no award | Switzerland | Jean Le Guilly | Lucien Lazaridès | Alfons Van den Brande |
| 9 | Henk Faanhof | Wout Wagtmans | Ferdinand Kübler | no award | Switzerland | François Mahé | Lucien Lazaridès | Vincent Vitetta |
| 10 | Gilbert Bauvin | Wout Wagtmans | Ferdinand Kübler | no award | Switzerland | Jean Stablinski | Jean Stablinski | Hugo Koblet |
| 11 | Stan Ockers | Wout Wagtmans | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Valentin Huot | Jean Stablinski | Nicolas Morn |
| 12 | Gilbert Bauvin | Gilbert Bauvin | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Federico Bahamontes | François Mahé | Richard Van Genechten |
| 13 | Fred De Bruyne | Gilbert Bauvin | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | René Privat | François Mahé | Valentin Huot |
| 14 | Ferdinand Kübler | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Lucien Lazaridès | Lucien Lazaridès | Gilbert Bauvin |
| 15 | Dominique Forlini | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Gerrit Voorting | Lucien Lazaridès | Emile Guérinel |
| 16 | Jean Forestier | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Robert Varnajo | Lucien Lazaridès | Lucien Lazaridès |
| 17 | Lucien Lazaridès | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Jean Le Guilly | Lucien Lazaridès | Jean Le Guilly |
| 18 | Louison Bobet | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Louison Bobet | Lucien Lazaridès | Wim van Est |
| 19 | Jean Dotto | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Jean Dotto | Lucien Lazaridès | Antonin Rolland |
| 20 | Lucien Teisseire | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | François Mahé | Lucien Lazaridès | Robert Varnajo |
| 21a | François Mahé | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Louison Bobet | Lucien Lazaridès | Jean Stablinski |
| 21b | Louison Bobet | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Louison Bobet | Lucien Lazaridès | Jean Stablinski |
| 22 | Fred De Bruyne | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Fred De Bruyne | Lucien Lazaridès | Jos Suijkerbuijk |
| 23 | Robert Varnajo | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Fred De Bruyne | Lucien Lazaridès | Federico Bahamontes |
| Final | Final | Louison Bobet | Ferdinand Kübler | Federico Bahamontes | Switzerland | Lucien Lazaridès and François Mahé | Lucien Lazaridès and François Mahé | |

## Final standings
### General classification

Final general classification (1–10) :
| Rank | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Louison Bobet (FRA) | France | 140h 06' 05" |
| 2 | Ferdinand Kübler (SUI) | Switzerland | + 15' 49" |
| 3 | Fritz Schär (SUI) | Switzerland | + 21' 46" |
| 4 | Jean Dotto (FRA) | South-East | + 28' 21" |
| 5 | Jean Malléjac (FRA) | West | + 31' 38" |
| 6 | Stan Ockers (BEL) | Belgium | + 36' 02" |
| 7 | Louis Bergaud (FRA) | South-West | + 37' 55" |
| 8 | Vincent Vitetta (FRA) | South-East | + 41' 14" |
| 9 | Jean Brankart (BEL) | Belgium | + 42' 08" |
| 10 | Gilbert Bauvin (FRA) | North-East/Centre | + 42' 21" |
Final general classification (11–69) :
| Rank | Rider | Team | Time |
| 11 | Nello Lauredi (FRA) | France | + 42' 42" |
| 12 | Carlo Clerici (SUI) | Switzerland | + 56' 36" |
| 13 | Apo Lazaridès (FRA) | South-East | + 1h 04' 03" |
| 14 | Jan Nolten (NED) | Netherlands | + 1h 04' 15" |
| 15 | François Mahé (FRA) | West | + 1h 09' 03" |
| 16 | Wim van Est (NED) | Netherlands | + 1h 09' 13" |
| 17 | Gerrit Voorting (NED) | Netherlands | + 1h 10' 20" |
| 18 | Bernardo Ruiz (ESP) | Spain | + 1h 11' 28" |
| 19 | Antonin Rolland (FRA) | France | + 1h 12' 20" |
| 20 | Hein van Breenen (NED) | Netherlands | + 1h 19' 10" |
| 21 | Marcel De Mulder (BEL) | Belgium | + 1h 21' 08" |
| 22 | Richard Van Genechten (BEL) | Belgium | + 1h 24' 58" |
| 23 | Lucien Teisseire (FRA) | France | + 1h 28' 52" |
| 24 | Lucien Lazaridès (FRA) | South-East | + 1h 31' 53" |
| 25 | Federico Bahamontes (ESP) | Spain | + 1h 37' 42" |
| 26 | Adolphe Deledda (FRA) | France | + 1h 39' 46" |
| 27 | Jean Forestier (FRA) | France | + 1h 43' 48" |
| 28 | Maurice Quentin (FRA) | Île-de-France | + 1h 45' 24" |
| 29 | Alex Close (BEL) | Belgium | + 1h 56' 00" |
| 30 | Willy Kemp (LUX) | Luxembourg/Austria | + 2h 03' 21" |
| 31 | Francesco Alomar (ESP) | Spain | + 2h 15' 02" |
| 32 | Dominique Forlini (FRA) | Île-de-France | + 2h 18' 36" |
| 33 | Jean Le Guilly (FRA) | Île-de-France | + 2h 19' 48" |
| 34 | René De Smet (BEL) | Belgium | + 2h 28' 39" |
| 35 | Raymond Hoorelbeke (FRA) | Île-de-France | + 2h 29' 44" |
| 36 | Alfred De Bruyne (BEL) | Belgium | + 2h 32' 01" |
| 37 | Andrés Trobat (ESP) | Spain | + 2h 45' 10" |
| 38 | Raoul Rémy (FRA) | France | + 2h 47' 04" |
| 39 | Georges Meunier (FRA) | North-East/Centre | + 2h 49' 53" |
| 40 | Jacques Vivier (FRA) | South-West | + 2h 50' 21" |
| 41 | Robert Varnajo (FRA) | West | + 2h 55' 51" |
| 42 | Joseph Mirando (FRA) | South-East | + 2h 56' 18" |
| 43 | Emilio Rodríguez (ESP) | Spain | + 2h 57' 18" |
| 44 | José Pérez (ESP) | Spain | + 2h 59' 45" |
| 45 | Manuel Rodríguez (ESP) | Spain | + 3h 03' 25" |
| 46 | Jean-Marie Cieleska (FRA) | North-East/Centre | + 3h 06' 27" |
| 47 | Henk Faanhof (NED) | Netherlands | + 3h 09' 48" |
| 48 | Jean-Louis Carle (FRA) | Île-de-France | + 3h 17' 18" |
| 49 | André Darrigade (FRA) | France | + 3h 17' 56" |
| 50 | Remo Pianezzi (SUI) | Switzerland | + 3h 19' 56" |
| 51 | Stanislas Bober (FRA) | Île-de-France | + 3h 21' 02" |
| 52 | René Privat (FRA) | South-West | + 3h 22' 31" |
| 53 | Marcel Guitard (FRA) | South-West | + 3h 23' 58" |
| 54 | Salvador Botella (ESP) | Spain | + 3h 27' 00" |
| 55 | Francesco Masip (ESP) | Spain | + 3h 28' 59" |
| 56 | Emilio Croci-Torti (SUI) | Switzerland | + 3h 33' 20" |
| 57 | Eugène Telotte (FRA) | North-East/Centre | + 3h 37' 41" |
| 58 | Alfred Tonello (FRA) | Île-de-France | + 3h 38' 18" |
| 59 | Pierre Molinéris (FRA) | France | + 4h 09' 27" |
| 60 | Georges Gilles (FRA) | West | + 4h 15' 05" |
| 61 | Francis Siguenza (FRA) | South-East | + 4h 15' 09" |
| 62 | Marcel Dussault (FRA) | South-West | + 4h 17' 45" |
| 63 | Albert Bouvet (FRA) | West | + 4h 20' 06" |
| 64 | Marcel Hendrickx (BEL) | Belgium | + 4h 36' 29" |
| 65 | Émile Guérinel (FRA) | West | + 4h 40' 50" |
| 66 | Jean Bellay (FRA) | North-East/Centre | + 4h 44' 56" |
| 67 | Philippe Agut (FRA) | South-West | + 4h 47' 21" |
| 68 | Kurt Schneider (AUT) | Luxembourg/Austria | + 5h 50' 12" |
| 69 | Marcel Dierkens (LUX) | Luxembourg/Austria | + 6h 07' 29" |

### Points classification

Final points classification (1–10) :
| Rank | Rider | Team | Points |
| 1 | Ferdinand Kübler (SUI) | Switzerland | 215.5 |
| 2 | Stan Ockers (BEL) | Belgium | 284.5 |
| 3 | Fritz Schär (SUI) | Switzerland | 286.5 |
| 4 | Wim van Est (NED) | Netherlands | 502.5 |
| 5 | Louison Bobet (FRA) | France | 513 |
| 6 | Gilbert Bauvin (FRA) | North-East/Centre | 615 |
| 7 | Dominique Forlini (FRA) | Île-de-France | 618 |
| 8 | Vincent Vitetta (FRA) | South-East | 653 |
| 9 | Richard Van Genechten (BEL) | Belgium | 660 |
| 10 | Jean Malléjac (FRA) | West | 675 |

### Mountains classification

Final mountains classification (1–10) :
| Rank | Rider | Team | Points |
| 1 | Federico Bahamontes (ESP) | Spain | 95 |
| 2 | Louison Bobet (FRA) | France | 53 |
| 3 | Richard Van Genechten (BEL) | Belgium | 45 |
| 4 | Jean Le Guilly (FRA) | Île-de-France | 38 |
| 5 | Jean Dotto (FRA) | South-East | 33 |
| 6 | Ferdinand Kübler (SUI) | Switzerland | 31 |
| 7 | Jean Malléjac (FRA) | West | 23 |
| 8 | Stan Ockers (BEL) | Belgium | 20 |
| 8 | Robert Varnajo (FRA) | West | 20 |
| 10 | Bernardo Ruiz (ESP) | Spain | 16 |

### Team classification

Final team classification :
| Rank | Team | Time |
| 1 | Switzerland | 420h 29' 57" |
| 2 | France | + 18' 27" |
| 3 | Belgium | + 32' 19" |
| 4 | Netherlands | + 1h 09' 00" |
| 5 | South-East | + 1h 13' 37" |
| 6 | Spain | + 2h 26' 08" |
| 7 | West | + 2h 42' 58" |
| 8 | North-East/Centre | + 3h 50' 16" |
| 9 | South-West | + 4h 08' 31" |
| 10 | Île-de-France | + 4h 27' 52" |
| 11 | Luxembourg/Austria | + 10h 20' 27" |

### Combativity classification

Final combativity classification (1–10) :
| Rank | Rider | Team | Points |
| 1 | Lucien Lazaridès (FRA) | South-East | 20 |
| 1 | François Mahé (FRA) | West | 20 |
| 3 | Louison Bobet (FRA) | France | 18 |
| 3 | Fred De Bruyne (BEL) | Belgium | 18 |
| 5 | Robert Varnajo (FRA) | West | 11 |
| 6 | René Privat (FRA) | South-West | 10 |
| 6 | Jean Dotto (FRA) | South-East | 10 |
| 6 | Jean Le Guilly (FRA) | Île-de-France | 10 |
| 6 | Richard Van Genechten (BEL) | Belgium | 10 |
| 6 | Vincent Vitetta (FRA) | South-East | 10 |

## Aftermath

After he won the Tour de France, Bobet would later win the 1954 UCI Road World Championships. The next year he would win the 1955 Tour de France, thereby becoming the first cyclist to win three Tours in a row.