Crédit Agricole (cycling team)

Crédit Agricole (UCI team code: C.A) was a French professional cycling team managed by Roger Legeay. From 1998 to 2008, the team was sponsored by the French bank Crédit Agricole. Prior to 1997, the team was known as Vêtements Z–Peugeot (1987), Z–Peugeot (1988–89), Z (1990–92) and GAN (1993–98). In 1990, the team's leading cyclist, the American Greg LeMond, won the Tour de France. The team also won the team title at the Tour de France that year. Crédit Agricole announced that they would cease to sponsor the team after 2008, and the team was subsequently disbanded.
The team was born out of the Peugeot cycling team, which existed from the early 1900s to 1986. Roger Legeay was the Peugeot team's last manager, and he created Vêtements Z–Peugeot in 1987 (taking its name from the children's clothing brand Z and the car manufacturer Peugeot). That year, the team made its appearance at the Tour de France, with Frenchman Pascal Simon as its leading cyclist.
In 1988, under the name of Z–Peugeot, the team achieved its first stage win at the Tour de France when Jérôme Simon (Pascal Simon's brother) won stage 9 of the tour. The team's second stage win came in 1989, when the Scottish rider Robert Millar took a mountain stage.
In 1990, the Tour's defending champion, Greg LeMond, moved to the team, which had been renamed Z. Riding for the team, LeMond won his third Tour title that year, coming in 2 minutes and 16 seconds ahead of the second-placed rider, the Italian Claudio Chiappucci. LeMond credited strong team support and tactics for his third Tour victory. And the team also won the team title at the year's Tour, coming in just 16 seconds ahead of the ONCE cycling team (the closest margin for the team classification in the Tour's history).
In 1991, with the team renamed simply Z, LeMond wore the yellow jersey for five stages in the earlier part of the Tour, but faded as the event progressed and eventually finished in seventh place, 13 minutes behind the new champion, the Spanish rider Miguel Induráin.
In 1992, LeMond struggled and eventually abandoned the Tour on the 14th stage. However the team picked up one stage win that year, with Jean-Claude Colotti winning stage 17.
In 1993, the team was renamed GAN. LeMond did not ride in the 1993 Tour. He returned in 1994, but withdrew after six stages.
Just prior to LeMond's departure the team acquired the British track cyclist Chris Boardman, a time trial specialist. Riding for the team, Boardman won the Prologue of the Tour de France in 1994, 1997 and 1998.
The team also acquired a young Australian track rider, Stuart O'Grady, in the mid-1990s. He won several Tour stages and nearly won the points classification in the 2000 Tour de France. O'Grady held on to the yellow jersey as leader of the general classification for many days during that same tour.
The team was renamed Crédit Agricole in 1998.
German rider Jens Voigt joined the team until the 2003 season, winning a Tour stage and spending a day in the yellow jersey in 2001.
The 2000 and 2001 seasons saw Americans Bobby Julich and Jonathan Vaughters in the team, making it the team with the most English speakers. The team also won the 2001 Tour de France team time trial in front of the ONCE and U.S. Postal teams. Julich and Vaughters left after one and two seasons respectively.
The 2003 season saw the emergence of Thor Hushovd of Norway as the main sprinter of the team. At the end of 2003 O'Grady and Voigt left for Cofidis and Team CSC respectively.
2005 was successful for the team. Pietro Caucchioli finished in the top ten of the Giro d'Italia and Christophe Le Mével took a breakaway stage win. In the 2005 Tour de France Christophe Moreau was the highest-placed French rider (11th) and Thor Hushovd secured the green jersey points classification.
In 2006, Crédit Agricole captured the team classification at the Tour de Pologne. Hushovd took stage wins and two days in the yellow jersey at the Tour de France, won the Gent–Wevelgem classic, and a stage win and the points classification at the Vuelta a España.
From 2005 to 2008, the team was one of the 20 which competed in the UCI ProTour.
The team disbanded at the end of the 2008 season when Crédit Agricole ended their sponsorship.