# Grand Prix des Nations

The Grand Prix des Nations was an individual time trial (against the clock) for both professional and amateur racing cyclists. Held annually in Cannes, France, it was instituted in 1932 and often regarded as the unofficial time trial championship of the world and as a Classic cycle race. The race was the idea of a Parisian newspaper editor called Gaston Bénac. The beret-wearing sports editor was looking for a race to make a name for Paris-Soir, the biggest French evening paper before the war.
He and his colleague Albert Baker d'Isy had been inspired by the world road race championship in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1931. That, unusually, had been run as a time trial, and the two were impressed and also, they said, aware that a time-trial cost less to organise than a conventional road race. Baker d'Isy decided the name Grand Prix des Nations.
There is a dispute over who devised the first route. The American-French writer René de Latour said in the UK magazine Sporting Cyclist that he did; Baker d'Isy says that he did. The route started near the Versailles château and ran round a triangle through Rambouillet, Maulette, Saint-Rémy-les-Chevreuse, Versailles and Boulogne to finish on the Vélodrome Buffalo where the founder of the Tour de France, Henri Desgrange, had become the world's first hour record holder in 1893. There were three hills, one in the first 100 km, plenty of cobbles, and the last 40 km went through the woods of the Vallée de Chevreuse, a popular area for bike riders. The distance was 142 km.
The introduction of an official time trial champion at the UCI Road World Championships in 1994 and an Olympic individual time trial championship (1996) reduced its importance. With the introduction of the UCI ProTour in 2005, the event was removed from the calendar. Since 2006, Chrono des Nations (formerly Chrono des Herbiers) has effectively taken the place of GP des Nations in the calendar.

## History

Race distances have varied. Until 1955, it was approximately 140 km; six years later, the distance was 100 km; from 1965 onwards the distance rarely exceeded 90 km, with many events run of around 75 km. The events were in the Vallée de Chevreuse in the Paris area, then near Cannes on the French Riviera; for five years from 1993, it was held at the Madine Lake in the Meuse; from 1998, it has taken place in Seine-Maritime département, two circuits of 35 km around Dieppe.
The roll of honour includes cycling's greatest time trialists, but the event's history was dominated by two Frenchmen: Jacques Anquetil won nine times, Bernard Hinault five.
British amateur woman Beryl Burton competed in 1968, finishing only minutes behind her male rivals.

## Winners (professionals)

| Year | Country | Rider | Team |
| 1932 | France | Maurice Archambaud | |
| 1933 | France | Raymond Louviot | |
| 1934 | France | Antonin Magne | |
| 1935 | France | Antonin Magne | |
| 1936 | France | Antonin Magne | |
| 1937 | France | Pierre Cogan | |
| 1938 | France | Louis Aimar | |
| 1941 | Italy | Jules Rossi (victory shared with Louis Aimar) | |
| 1941 | France | Louis Aimar (victory shared with Jules Rossi) | |
| 1942 | France | Jean-Marie Goasmat (victory shared with Émile Idée) | |
| 1942 | France | Émile Idée (victory shared with Jean-Marie Goasmat) | |
| 1943 | Belgium | Jozef Somers | |
| 1944 | France | Émile Carrara | |
| 1945 | France | Eloi Tassin | |
| 1946 | Italy | Fausto Coppi | |
| 1947 | Italy | Fausto Coppi | |
| 1948 | France | René Berton | |
| 1949 | France | Charles Coste | |
| 1950 | Belgium | Maurice Blomme | |
| 1951 | Switzerland | Hugo Koblet | |
| 1952 | France | Louison Bobet | Stella Huret Dunlop |
| 1953 | France | Jacques Anquetil | La Française–Dunlop |
| 1954 | France | Jacques Anquetil | La Perle–Hutchinson |
| 1955 | France | Jacques Anquetil | La Perle Hutchinson |
| 1956 | France | Jacques Anquetil | Helyett Potin |
| 1957 | France | Jacques Anquetil | Helyett Potin |
| 1958 | France | Jacques Anquetil | Helyett Potin |
| 1959 | Italy | Aldo Moser | EMI Guerra |
| 1960 | Italy | Ercole Baldini | Ignis |
| 1961 | France | Jacques Anquetil | Helyett Fynsec |
| 1962 | Belgium | Ferdinand Bracke | Peugeot |
| 1963 | France | Raymond Poulidor | Mercier–BP |
| 1964 | Belgium | Walter Boucquet | Flandria–Faema |
| 1965 | France | Jacques Anquetil | Ford–Gitane |
| 1966 | France | Jacques Anquetil | Ford-Hutchinson |
| 1967 | Italy | Felice Gimondi | Salvarani |
| 1968 | Italy | Felice Gimondi | Salvarani |
| 1969 | Belgium | Herman van Springel | Mann–Grundig |
| 1970 | Belgium | Herman van Springel | Mann–Grundig |
| 1971 | Spain | Luis Ocaña | Bic |
| 1972 | Belgium | Roger Swerts | Molteni |
| 1973 | Belgium | Eddy Merckx | Molteni |
| 1974 | Netherlands | Roy Schuiten | TI–Raleigh |
| 1975 | Netherlands | Roy Schuiten | TI–Raleigh |
| 1976 | Belgium | Freddy Maertens | Flandria Velda |
| 1977 | France | Bernard Hinault | Gitane–Campagnolo |
| 1978 | France | Bernard Hinault | Renault–Elf–Gitane |
| 1979 | France | Bernard Hinault | Renault–Elf–Gitane |
| 1980 | Belgium | Jean-Luc Vandenbroucke | La Redoute–Motobécane |
| 1981 | Switzerland | Daniel Gisiger | Cilo–Aufina |
| 1982 | France | Bernard Hinault | Renault–Elf |
| 1983 | Switzerland | Daniel Gisiger | Malvor Bottecchia |
| 1984 | France | Bernard Hinault | La Vie Claire |
| 1985 | France | Charly Mottet | Renault–Elf–Gitane |
| 1986 | Ireland | Sean Kelly | Kas |
| 1987 | France | Charly Mottet | Système U–Gitane |
| 1988 | France | Charly Mottet | Système U–Gitane |
| 1989 | France | Laurent Fignon | Super U–Raleigh–Fiat |
| 1990 | Switzerland | Thomas Wegmüller | Weinn SMM |
| 1991 | Switzerland | Tony Rominger | Toshiba |
| 1992 | Belgium | Johan Bruyneel | ONCE |
| 1993 | France | Armand de Las Cuevas | Banesto–Pinarello |
| 1994 | Switzerland | Tony Rominger | Mapei–CLAS |
| 1995 | No race | No race | No race |
| 1996 | Great Britain | Chris Boardman | GAN |
| 1997 | Germany | Uwe Peschel | Cantina Tollo–Carrier–Starplast |
| 1998 | France | Francisque Teyssier | Mutuelle de Seine-et-Marne |
| 1999 | Ukraine | Serhiy Honchar | Vini Caldirola |
| 2000 | Result Void | Result Void | Result Void |
| 2001 | Germany | Jens Voigt | Crédit Agricole |
| 2002 | Germany | Uwe Peschel | Gerolsteiner |
| 2003 | Germany | Michael Rich | Gerolsteiner |
| 2004 | Germany | Michael Rich | Gerolsteiner |