Famous Belgians - Eddy Merckx Eddy Merckx It is very rare in any sport that one is able to state that one man was undoubtedly the greatest ever. But such is the case in cycling with Eddy Merckx of Belgium, born on 17 June 1945 in Meensel-Kiezegem. He was so strong and rode so hard so consistently that his nickname was "The Cannibal". He had no weaknesses - he was the strongest time trialist and climber in the world, and could outsprint all but a few rivals. His list of major victories is staggering. He is one of only four cyclists to have won the Tour de France five times, along with Jacques Anquetil, Bernard Hinault and Lance Armstrong. At the 1969 Tour de France, Merckx performed the still unequalled feat of winning the Yellow Jersey (overall winner), the Green Jersey (points winner) and the Polka-Dot Jersey (King of the Mountains). Merckx was a professional cyclist. By the age of 28 he had surpassed more records than any other racer, with more than 300 professional victories.

He won the world amateur cycling championship in 1964, and in 1967 he captured the world professional cycling title. He became the first man to win all of the major scoring classifications in both the 1968 Giro d'Italia and the 1969 Tour de France. He was Belgian Sportsman of the Year each year from 1969 to 1974. In his prime he was virtually unbeatable at time trials and mountain races; in sprint events none but the world's fastest ever defeated him. Merckx rode about 32,180 km (20,000 miles) per year for training and another 16,120 km (10,000 miles) annually in races. He set World Records in Mexico City in 1972 for 10km (11 minutes 53.2 seconds), 20km (24 minutes 6.8 seconds) and the 1 hour record (49.431957 km). These records were later beaten but this was only possible with the help of updated technology.

Nobody could ever beat Merckx's records using the same technology as he did. Eddy's son has also taken up professional cycling and it remains to be seen whether he can even get close to the brilliant career of his father. The Tour de France is cycling's most famous international event. Started in 1903 by Henri Desgrange, the stage race covers a course that varies from about 4,000 km to 4,800 km (2,500 miles to 3,000 miles) over roads and mountain passes throughout France and portions of five neighbouring countries. The 3-week event attracts the greatest cyclists; the winner is generally acknowledged as the world's best cyclist. The first bicycle race was held at the Parc de St. Cloud, France, in 1868. Recognized world championships were first held in 1893. As competition became more widespread, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) was established in 1900 to govern all amateur and professional events. The United States, France, Italy, Belgium, and Switzerland were charter members of this group, which now represents over 110 nations.

Winners are currently established in 14 categories. The Olympic Games has competitions in both road and track racing for a total of eight events.

Further Information / Sources : 1969 Tour de France by BikeRaceInfo Ferdinand Bracke (Peugeot-BP) @ 2hr 45min 28sec José Gomez-Lucas (KAS) @ 2hr 46min 12sec Pietro Scandelli (Faema) @ 2hr 46min 42sec Jaak De Boever (Flandria) @ 2hr 47min 11sec Nemesio Jiménez (KAS) @ 2hr 47min 59sec Jean-Louis Bodin (Frimatic-De Gribaldy) @ 2hr 49min 32sec Cees Haast (Willem II-Gazelle) @ 2hr 51min 9sec Juul Van Der Flaas (Willem II-Gazelle) @ 2hr 51min 44sec Gerben Karstens (Peugeot-BP) @ 2hr 52min 17sec José Catieau (Sonolor-Lejeune) @ 2hr 53min 46sec Barry Hoban (Mercier-BP)

 @ 2hr 54min 2sec Jean-Pierre Genet (Mercier-BP) @ 2hr 54min 15sec Mario Anni (Molteni) @ 2hr 54min 18sec Edouard Delberghe (Sonolor-Leujeune) @ 2hr 55min 58sec Michael Wright (Bic) @ 2hr 56min 47sec Julien Stevens (Faema) @ 2hr 59min 38sec Giacinto Santambrogio (Molteni) @ 3hr 1min 27sec Michel Coulon (Flandria) @ 3hr 6min 1sec Paul In't Ven (Mann-Grundig) @ 3hr 6min 2sec Frans Mintjens (Faema) @ 3hr 7min 6sec Guido Reybrouck (Faema) @ 3hr 8min 0sec Harm Ottenbros (Willem II-Gazelle) @ 3hr 8min 10sec Eric Leman (Flandria) @ 3hr 

12min 13sec Raymond Riotte (Mercier-BP) @ 2hr 12min 37sec Pietro Guerra (Salvarani) @ 3hr 15min 53sec Marc De Block (Flandria) @ 3hr 21min 15sec Eddy Beugels (Mercier-BP) @ 3hr 21min 52sec Roger Cooreman (Mann-Grundig) @ 3hr 34min 37sec Pierre Matignon (Frimatic-De Gribaldy) @ 3hr 45min 23sec André Wilhelm (Sonolor-Lejeune) @ 3hr 51min 53sec Climbers' Competition: Complete Final 1969 Tour de France General Classification The story of the 1969 Tour de France: This excerpt is from "The Story of the Tour de France", Volume 2.

If you enjoy it we hope you will consider purchasing the book, either print or electronic. The Amazon link here will make either purchase easy. After the 2-year test the Tour reverted to trade teams. The national team system, while popular with the public, was not without problems. The Tour organization was responsible for the transport, feeding and lodging of the athletes and this was no small expense at a time when the Tour had little to spare. Additionally, the sponsors detested the system because they suffered a virtual 3-week publicity blackout while their riders rode the most popular event in the cycling calendar. Worse, most of the sponsors had to watch their riders act as domestiques for the riders of other teams. Raymond Poulidor, riding for Mercier the rest of the year, did his best to help Peugeot rider Roger Pingeon win the 1968 Tour. This cannot be what Mercier planned when they sponsored Poulidor. Moreover the riders could not be counted on to forget their trade team loyalties during the Tour when their trade sponsors were the true source of their living. The result was confusion, ambiguity and friction.

Given that there were no commanding reasons for the change to national teams in 1967 it is not surprising that the Tour counted its Centimes, listened to the cycling industry, and went back to trade teams. The Tour organization continued to search for revenue. Cycling's and the Tour's fortunes were hitting a period of low ebb. In 1969, for the first time, the Yellow Jersey had an official sponsor, 2 actually. In 1967 the clothing company Le Coq Sportif acquired the right to put their logo on the Yellow Jersey. In 1969 the synthetic dairy products company Virlux paid to have its name placed on the upper left breast of the Yellow Jersey. Until then the initials of Tour founder Henri Desgrange had been placed somewhere on the front of the Jersey. To make room for the new advertising (including the Yellow Jersey holder's principal sponsor), Desgrange's initials were placed on both shoulders. At 4,117 kilometers the 1969 Tour was the shortest since Desgrange went from 11 to 15 stages in 1906.

With 25 stages (counting the Prologue) the average stage was now only 158 kilometers, a dramatic drop from the nearly 200-kilometer average stage length of the mid-1960's. This doesn't mean that the riders were getting an easier time of it. 3 of the days had split stages. The riders hated the days with 2 stages. They had to get up very early in the morning in order to eat enough and digest their food before the racing started. After the first stage of the day was completed they would wait around in the sweltering July heat, sometimes in tents, before being forced to race again. The return of the split stages was another symptom of the Tour's financial troubles. Cities paid the organization a fat fee to be a start or finish city. By crowding 2 stages in a day the Tour reaped a financial windfall. Still worse for the riders, there were no rest days in 1969. 1968's "Tour of Good Health" was a thing of the past. It was a clockwise Tour starting in Roubaix and heading into Belgium, then Holland.

The Vosges mountains were the first serious climbing, followed by the Alps, the Pyrenees and finally the Massif Central with a trip up Puy de Dôme. From there it was a straight shot north to Paris. This Tour avoided the roads of both Brittany and Normandy, for the first time since the beginning in 1903. The Tour's entry list of contenders had depth: Jan Janssen (riding for BIC), Herman van Springel (Mann), Joaquim Agostinho (De Gribaldy), Roger Pingeon (Peugeot), Andres Gandarias (KAS), Raymond Poulidor (Mercier), Felice Gimondi and Rudi Altig (Salvarani) plus some new talent riding the Tour for the first time who would shake things up in later years: Lucien van Impe (this Tour was his second race as a pro), Luis Ocaña and Roger De Vlaeminck. But the 500-pound gorilla was Eddy Merckx. There was no question that he was the most complete and capable rider alive. Merckx won the world amateur road championships in 1964.

He turned pro in April 1965 and from there his record of wins is without parallel. He won Milan-San Remo the next year, the first of 7 such victories. In 1967 he won the professional world road championship plus Milan-San Remo, Ghent-Wevelgem, Flèche Wallonne and rode his first Grand Tour, the Giro, coming in ninth. In 1968 he won 32 races including the Giro and Paris-Roubaix. His 1969 was even more stunning with a total of 43 victories including Paris-Nice, Milan-San Remo, Tour of Flanders and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. He planned to do the Giro-Tour double and was leading the Giro after taking the Pink Jersey on stage 14. It was after stage 16 that he was given the news that he had tested positive for amphetamines. His Pink Jersey was taken from him and he was ejected from the Giro. The new leader of the Giro was Felice Gimondi who went on to take the final victory.

Merckx has maintained to this day that this was a setup to allow an Italian to win the Giro. He says that bribes were offered to him to let an Italian win and when that failed he was set up. He furthermore argues that the stage where he tested positive was so easy that that was no reason to dope. Without a doubt, the circumstances around the testing were anything but clear. Given the cloudy nature of the entire affair, I believe Merckx should be considered innocent. If they had the goods on him, the various questionable oddities which reek of a frame-up that surrounded the affair probably would not have happened. Seething with rage over the miscarriage of justice and seeking redemption, Merckx came to the Tour with a fury and a will to win that was powerful by even Merckxian standards. There was also the deep seated desire of his countrymen to see a Belgian again in Yellow. The previous year the Belgians had come close when their Herman van Springel lost the Tour to Jan Janssen by only 38 seconds in the final stage.

Janssen says that the Belgians were furious at him and still tell him to this day, "You stole the Tour from our Herman van Springel." No Belgian had won the Tour since Sylvère Maes in 1939. Decided by lot, members of Merckx's team were the first riders to ride the Prologue individual time trial. In a show of bravado Merckx's director, Guillaume Driessens, had Merckx go first. Usually the protected rider goes as late as possible so that he will have riders up the road to chase. Driessens justified the unusual move by saying that the sooner Merckx got his ride finished the sooner he could begin resting for the next day's competition which involved the first of the split stages. Rudi Altig won the Prologue with Merckx in second place, 7 seconds behind. The early riders faced a headwind that calmed down as the later riders finished the course. Stage 1A as the Tour is in Belgium. Merckx on the Grammont. Stage 1b was a 15.6-kilometer team time trial in the Belgian city of Woluwe-St.

Pierre and passed in front of Merckx's parent's grocery store. Of course Merckx's Faema squad won the stage. While the times of the teams didn't affect the rider's individual General Classification standings, the riders of the fastest 3 teams got 20-, 10- and 5-second time bonuses. By virtue of that 20-second bonification Merckx was in Yellow in his home town. Altig was second at 8 seconds and 1968 Tour winner Jan Janssen was third, 20 seconds back. It wasn't Merckx's intent to keep the Yellow Jersey all the way to the end. He was pleased when his domestique, Julien Stevens, won the next day's sprint and the lead. Merckx wouldn't relax, but he could save some energy until the race entered the Vosges mountains. Stevens kept the lead as the Tour went through the Argonne region but lost the Yellow Jersey on first day of climbing in stage 5. All the big guns finished together, 18 seconds behind the stage winner, Joaquim Agostinho.

One of Pingeon's domestiques Désiré Letort, found himself the new Yellow Jersey, 9 seconds ahead of Merckx. It was on stage 6 the Merckx made it clear what sort of race this was to be. The race did 3 climbs, culminating in the Ballon d'Alsace, one of the first climbs ever included in the Tour back in 1905. Over the course of the stage, while the others suffered from both bad luck (Gimondi flatted, Poulidor had a mechanical), crashes (Roger De Vlaeminck) and plain fatigue, Merckx simply rode them off his wheel. The group of riders who hoped to control Merckx in this Tour (particularly Pingeon, Poulidor, Gimondi, Aimar and Gandarias) finished 4 minutes, 21 seconds after the Belgian had soloed to the finish. Galera and Altig had limited their losses to "only" 55 seconds and 115 seconds respectively. It was an extraordinary performance and the high mountains were yet to come. The General Classification after stage 6: 1. Eddy Merckx 2.

Rudi Altig @ 2 minutes 3 seconds 3. Jan Janssen @ 4 minutes 41 seconds 4. Felice Gimondi @ 4 minutes 50 seconds 5. Raymond Poulidor @ 4 minutes 56 seconds Stage 8a was an individual time trial only 8.8 kilometers long, luckily for the riders in the Tour who weren't named Merckx. He was able to increase his lead slightly, only 2 seconds on Altig but he took a quarter of a minute out of Pingeon and Poulidor. Stage 8B: Andres Gandarias and Michele Dancelli have escaped and will make to Thonon les Bains almost 2 minutes ahead of the field. Dancelli beat Gandarias by 4 seconds to win the stage. The Tour hit the first of the high Alps on stage 9, with the Forclaz and Montets ascents. Pingeon was showing a rare bout of self-confidence, believing that Merckx was manageable. The 2 of them escaped on the Forclaz and rode together to the end of the stage.

Merckx let the Frenchman go first over both summits and take the sprint. This was a rare bit of charity by Merckx that won't be repeated very often in this book. The effect of the stage was to bury Janssen, Poulidor and Gimondi and lift Pingeon to second place, a distant 5 minutes, 21 seconds behind Merckx. The next day's stage, number 10, with the Madeleine, Télégraphe and Galibier climbs was made still harder by terrible weather. Herman van Springel got away successfully on the run-in to Briançon and Merckx led in Wagtmans, Gimondi and Pingeon 2 minutes later. 111 riders were in the race after stage 9. Only 97 finished this hard day, making for 14 abandons. 57 of the stage 10 finishers came in over a half hour after van Springel. Each day Merckx seemed to take a bite out of his competitors, sometimes a big one, sometimes a smaller one. The fact was that the time lost to Merckx while he was in this indominatable state was irrecoverable.

Stage 11 with the Vars and Allos put Pingeon another 22 seconds back when Merckx and Gimondi finished together. No charity given to Gimondi here, Merckx won the stage. Stage 12 brought the Tour into Provence with a final minor climb, the Espigoulier. Merckx and one of his lieutenants, Victor van Schil, broke away with Gandarias and Gimondi, who won the stage. Another chunk of time taken out of the riders who couldn't get into the winning move, this day it was 1 minute, 23 seconds. After the Alps Merckx had an enviable lead: 1. Eddy Merckx 2. Roger Pingeon @ 7 minutes 11 seconds 3. Felice Gimondi @ 7 minutes 14 seconds 4. Raymond Poulidor @ 11 minutes 9 seconds 5.

Andres Gandarias @ 12 minutes 11 seconds As the Tour cruised through Provence and Languedoc on the way to the Pyrenees 15-minute penalties were given to Rudi Altig, Pierre Matignon and Bernard Guyot after stage 14 for testing positive for dope. For the rest of the riders the bad news from stage 15 was that Merckx was showing no signs of tiring. He won the 18.5-kilometer time trial handily, relegating Pingeon, Poulidor and Altig about another minute further back while Gimondi lost 93 seconds. Stages 16 and 17 were the Pyrenean stages. Stage 16's results looked unremarkable even though it had 3 major climbs when Merckx finished fourth behind the winner Raymond Delisle, Jan Janssen and Wladimiro Panizza. The important story of the stage was that he had inflicted more of his terrible math upon his real competitors. Pingeon lost 20 seconds and Gimondi about 30. Stage 16: Merckx takes off on the Portillion but Raymond Delisle won the stage.

It was on stage 17 that Eddy Merckx etched his name on the granite wall of Tour de France history. At the start of the stage, here was the General Classification: 1. Eddy Merckx 2. Roger Pingeon @ 8 minutes 21 seconds 3. Felice Gimondi @ 9 minutes 29 seconds 4. Raymond Poulidor @ 12 minutes 46 seconds With a such a substantial lead, Merckx could easily ride Anquetil- or Indurain -style: just keep the dangermen in sight and preserve and defend the advantage. The age of Anquetil was over. This was the age of Merckx. Stage 17 was a 214.5-kilometer epic stage with the Peyresourde, the Aspin, the Tourmalet and the Aubisque. Over the first 2 mountains, Merckx was content to let Joaquin Galera be first over the top. On the ascent of the Tourmalet with most of the would-be contenders for company, Merckx attacked.

Only his teammate and the tallest man in the pro peloton, Martin Vandenbossche, could go with him. The others could only watch. Over the top of the Tourmalet his lead over his chasers was only a few seconds. On the descent Merckx again showed what a complete rider he was, descending far faster than his chasers. He arrived at the bottom of the Tourmalet alone and a minute ahead of the chasing group. Given the commanding lead Merckx had in the General Classification and the fact that there were still 140 kilometers and the Aubisque left in the stage, the others felt that it was unlikely that Merckx would continue to press his advantage. The initial motivation to drop (actually spank) Vandenbossche and continue alone was Merckx's resentment that Vandenbossche had accepted a contract with another team, Molteni, for the coming year. Vandenbossche was now back in that lead group of chasers, loyally working to protect Merckx. With 105 kilometers left, Merckx took on food and continued to forge ahead.

He later told L'Équipe "I was just 'walking', and when I heard the time gap I decided I had to carry on." At the top of the Aubisque, wondering if he should wait for help, he was told that he now had a lead of 7 minutes. He decided to keep on with his breakaway. Merckx flew down the hill and over the rolling countryside that stood between him and the finish line. He crossed that line 7 hours, 4 minutes, 28 seconds after he started. The second rider to finish was Michele Dancelli, 7 minutes, 57 seconds in arrears. Pingeon and Poulidor were right behind Dancelli. In a single day Merckx had about doubled his lead. Coming in at 14 minutes, 49 seconds was the major group containing Gimondi, van Impe and Agostinho.

Taking into account the narrowing differences between riders' abilities that has steadily occurred over the past 100 years, Merckx's 1969 stage 17 ride has to be one of the few Tour exploits that can be considered on par with Coppi's 1952 stage 11 victory. The new standings showed how Merckx had shattered his rivals: 1. Eddy Merckx 2. Roger Pingeon @ 16 minutes 18 seconds 3. Raymond Poulidor @ 20 minutes 43 seconds 4. Felice Gimondi @ 24 minutes 18 seconds 5. Andres Gandarias @ 29 minutes 35 seconds When the race climbed Puy de Dôme in stage 20 Merckx would have liked to have won the stage but he woke up too late to realize that a man sitting at the bottom of the standings had taken off on a solo quest to win one of the Tour's most prestigious stages. Aroused, Merckx took off after the now tiring Pierre Matignon (who lost 15 minutes in a doping penalty earlier in the Tour).

Utterly exhausted Matignon crossed the line 85 seconds ahead of the flying Belgian. The effects of Merckx's tyrannical attempt to squash a poor flea were to leave the other contenders scattered behind. That left only the final time trial in Paris and of course it was another Merckx victory. Over 36.8 kilometers he put the day's second-place Poulidor a minute back and cost Pingeon, the year's best challenger, 74 seconds. Here is the final General Classification of the 1969 Tour de France. Merckx won by the largest margin in 17 years. One has to go back to Fausto Coppi's 28-minute lead over Stan Ockers in the 1952 Tour to find a greater gap. 1. Eddy Merckx: 116 hours 16 minutes 2 seconds 2. Roger Pingeon @ 17 minutes 54 seconds 3. Raymond Poulidor @ 22 minutes 13 seconds 4. Felice Gimondi @ 29 minutes 24 seconds 5.

Andres Gandarias @ 33 minutes 4 seconds Merckx also won all the other Tour competitions including the "Combine" classification: Points Jersey: h2g2 - Famous Racers in The Tour De France - Edited Entry To The Galaxy Earth Edition Famous Racers in The Tour De France Content from the guide to life, the universe and everything Famous Racers in The Tour De France Created 3 Conversations In its long history, the Tour De France has made legends out of many men. One inspired day in the saddle leading to the traditional two handed salute as they cross the line for their tour stage can eclipse anything else they achieve in the rest of their careers. While it is not possible to talk about every rider who has competed for the yellow jersey, won stages or the race, most of the names below are regularly mentioned in connection with the tour and provide a spectrum of the talent that has made the race the biggest sporting event in the world. Jacques Anquetil (1934 - 1987) Jacques, who was born in Normandy before the war, was a rider that raced mainly for the money, picking and choosing the events for the prize on offer.

He used his supremacy in the Time Trial discipline to great advantage, taking five Tours de France, in 1957 and then from 1961 to 1964. He also won six Giros and one Vuelta, the first man in history to win all three. Because of what was seen as his lack of grit, preferring to win by Time Trial rather than fighting it out in the mountains, he wasn't a huge hero with the French public who also saw him as rather distant. His great rival during this period was Raymond Poulidor 1 . Anquetil was known for his love of good food. In 1964 he ate a roast lamb on the rest day instead of training, and the upset stomach caused him to be dropped early the next day. A quick bottle of champagne cured that though. Anquetil died from stomach cancer at the age of 53. Lance Armstrong (1971 - ) Lance Armstrong claimed seven victories in a row in the Tour De France. His story seemed like a fairy tale, coming back from cancer to win.

In 2012 the American anti-doping authority published a report where 14 of Armstrong's former teammates admitted to drug taking during Armstrong's winning years and alleging that he was also involved. Armstrong, although he continued to deny it, refused to participate in a hearing to establish his guilt and was subsequently stripped of all his Tour De France wins. In January 2013 an interview with Armstrong by Oprah Winfrey was broadcast, where Armstrong admitted to cheating, claiming he was only doing it to level the playing field as everybody was doing it. No mention was made of the clean riders such as Christophe Bassons who were bullied out of the sport by Armstrong at that time. Fausto Coppi (1919 - 1960) Fausto Coppi was born in Castellania, Italy, and by the age of 8 was cycling regularly as a grocery delivery boy. In 1940 he started his first Giro, as a support rider for Gino Bartali 2 . However, by the end of the race he was the winner, over 45 minutes ahead of his team leader.

During the war he broke the world hour record, and once the war was over, Coppi, the campionissimo returned to racing, with the country split between the Bartali fans and the Coppi fans. The battle between these two rivals provided many great races, notably the 1949 Tour de France that Coppi won. He also won the Tour in 1952. Coppi suffered a lot of injuries during his career and died in 1960 after doctors failed to diagnose malaria. Pedro Delgado (1960 -) A Spanish hero and hot favourite in the later years of the 1980s. One of the best climbers in the world, Delgado's luck often failed him with incidents such as food poisoning and flat tyres letting him down on occasion. His 1987 race against Roche featured any number of twists, Delgado fighting through the mountains, trying and failing to get enough time in hand for the final time trial. In 1988, he dominated the race winning against Dutchman Steven Rooks. However, a doping test error almost led him to quit the race.

In 1989 he finished third, spending the entire race trying to get back the eight minutes he had lost though missing the prologue start and a poor team time trial. However, the fact of him only finishing three minutes behind the winner was overshadowed by Greg Lemond's final time trial victory. He continued to fight on for the next few years aided unselfishly by his team mate Miguel Indurain. The passion of Delgado made him a favourite with fans well into the Indurain period. Laurent Fignon (1960 -) Laurent Fignon was never the French hero that his compatriot Hinault was. He was noticed by team manger Cyrille Guimard as a 21-year-old amateur. A 22-year-old tour winner in 1983 and again in 1984 he did not maintain that form and took only minor results for the next few years. 1989 was the year that took him back to prominence. He fought a race-long battle with Greg Lemond, only losing out in the final time trial. This failure is now more remembered than his victories.

His battles with the press were almost as legendary; images of the harassed blond Parisian spitting at the intrusive press cameras were an abiding image of the tour. As well as many classic race titles, he also took the Giro D'Italia title. Even though he was never taken to the heart of the people, the image of Fignon in his Super U team colours was a common sight throughout France in the late 1980s. Laurent currently works as a tour organiser and also rather ironically as a commentator for Eurosport. Charly Gaul (1932 - 2005) Whereas famous Belgians are ten a penny, it is much more difficult to find anybody famous from Luxembourg . Gaul was an accomplished time-triallist and exceptional climber who used his tactic of finding a small gear and spinning it very quickly to win the 1958 Tour, as well as taking a couple of third places and mountain jerseys. He was called the Angel of The Mountains, and like most Angels didn't like the heat much. While he was near unbeatable in the cold and the wet, he struggled on the hotter days. He was also the first non-Italian to win the Giro twice.

Bernard Hinault (1954 -) Breton 3 Hinault joined the exalted five times winners' club in 1985, beating his team-mate Lemond in a race that would mark the arrival of the Americans as a force to be reckoned with in the Tour. Lemond helped him out in the 1985 race. In return Hinault was to help Lemond in the 1986 race; however, he attacked Lemond at every opportunity, making the American work hard for his win. His professional career started in 1974, the same year that Merckx won his last race, and by the time he finished in 1986, he had 28 stage victories in the Tour de France, as well as victories in the Giro, Vuelta and numerous one day races. Along with Merckx, Hinault is one of the only two men to have won all three of the major competitions in the Tour.

A great time-triallist, climber and sprinter and fierce competitor, he was nicknamed The Badger, not because he was small and furry, but because he battled to the end and was at his most dangerous when backed into a corner. Now retired, he works as an official in the Tour de France. Miguel Indurain (1964 -) Big Mig was an example of the perfect athlete. He had overcome serious heart complaints as a child to have possibly the most physically adapted body for cycling. His lungs were so big they displaced his stomach, leading to the trademark hump in his back - while cycling, his rest pulse was 28 beats per minute. A superb time-triallist, he used this as a foundation for his five tour wins, the first rider to take five consecutive tour titles. Although he had a massive frame, he was able to climb with the best in the race giving him an almost invincible aura. His wins from 1991 to 1995 could easily have included 1990 when he selflessly gave up his overall position working for team leader Delgado. His other weakness was the cold.

His large body was more susceptible to changes in temperature and that cost him the 1996 Tour. Indurain was also a fairly able sprinter, having a number of high placings in his early career and narrowly missing out on a couple of World Championships. He also won a couple of Giros and other major stage races. Greg Lemond (1961 -) The World Junior Road Race Champion of 1979 was the man who changed the face of modern cycling. He took up cycling as fitness training for downhill skiing, but by 1981 was a professional with Cyrille Guimard's Renault team. He came to prominence by taking the 1983 World Championships. His battle with teammate Hinault in the 1985 tour set him at odds with the French press, which did not improve when he became the first native English-speaking Tour winner the next year. A wrist break in 1987 led to some time off, and things took a big turn for the worse when his brother-in-law shot him while hunting, and almost killed him.

Lemond finally got back in 1989 with the little ADR team, and found himself battling against Fignon for the race win, much to most people's surprise. Lemond was always looking to innovate and his aerodynamic advances altered the way people have ridden time trials ever since. The best time-triallist of his time, he beat Fignon in 1989 to win and he took the 1990 Tour on the last time trial after spending the whole race trying to gain back time lost to a breakaway on the first stage. Lemond's success gave him massive marketing clout and he knew his, taking a big money contract and altering the financial structure of sport. By the nineties, he was struggling to get his fitness back, and he was finding it harder and harder to recover; this was diagnosed as related to the lead shot that still remained in his body and was poisoning him. His career highlights also include another World Championship win outsprinting Sean Kelly and Dmitri Konyshev to the title. Eddy Merckx (1945 -) Regarded as the greatest cyclist of all time.

Although in 2004, Lance Armstrong passed the record of five tour victories that Merckx held along with Anquetil, Hinault and Indurain, as an all round rider Merckx has yet to be equalled. Born in Meensel-Kiezegem, Belgium, Merckx's desire to win got him the nickname of 'The Cannibal', something he lived up to by recording 525 career wins. The fact that he achieved his five Tour De France wins, five Giro wins, while competing in the full year long season marks his cycling achievements out from modern riders like Indurain and Armstrong who base their whole year's riding on winning the Tour. Merckx remains the only man to have won the points and overall title in all three grand tours. Merckx retired in 1977 and continues to be a public figure in the world of cycling. Marco Pantani (1970 - 2004) The ups and downs of Pantani's career are as steep as the mountains he thrived on. A hugely talented climber, his light weight of 57kg allowed him to fly up the hills.

His bald head and prominent ears earned him the nickname Elephanto though he preferred The Pirate. He took third place in the 1994 tour, but an accident with a car on closed roads left him with a broken leg in 1995. He came back with a third place in 1997 before winning in 1998. Drug scandals, victimisation by the Italian press and the judiciary left him a bitter man, and he died of a drug overdose on Valentine's Day 2004. Stephen Roche (1959 -) The Dublin rider was the first and so far only Irish winner of the tour. Professional since 1980, he had done well in previous Tours, but without the big names of Lemond and Hinault the stage was open for him in 1987. His race was an epic contest between himself and the great climber Pedro Delgado, the climax being Roche's comeback from being dropped on the climb to La Plange, a ski resort in the Alps. Delgado had escaped from Roche on the climb and everybody was expecting him to create a big enough cushion for the upcoming time trial.

Roche had other ideas and produced a loss-limiting ride that left him collapsed at the finish with an oxygen mask. Roche was a far superior time-triallist and went on to win the Tour. In the same year he achieved the Triple Crown of World Championship and Giro, only the second man to win all three in the same year. Jan Ullrich (1973 -) Jan is possibly the most talented rider in the current field if he is able to utilise it. Although dogged by weight problems, the German has never finished lower than second place in the Tour de France, where he has ended up five times until 2004 where illness led to his fourth place finish. He came to prominence in 1996 where he followed his Team Leader Bjarne Riis where even Indurain couldn't follow, to a seemingly untroubled second. He won the next year following Riis' loss of form. He finished second to Pantani in 1998 when his weight problems in the close season coinciding with a tour that suited the climbers.

Although he missed the 1999 and 2002 tours, he has finished behind Armstrong in the other races he has taken part in. Ullrich does not possess the ability to change pace to break people on a mountain that Armstrong and Pantani do, but he makes up for it in sheer power and is a superb time trial rider, winning two World Titles, as well as being very quick in a sprint when he needs to be, taking the Olympic title. Ullrich also has won the Spanish Tour. Lucien Van Impe (1946-) Belgian, Van Impe rode in 15 Tours de France, just one off the record. Although he won the 1976 race, and was second once and third three times, it is for his exploits in the mountains that Van Impe is remembered. He was unfortunate to have to compete against both Merckx and Hinault at their prime, so as a pure climber 4 , had to make do with a then record six King of the Mountain Jerseys.

Van Impe's win in 1976 was remembered for the stage when he launched an attack that by the finish left 43 out of the 95 other riders outside the stage time limit, forcing the officials to bend the rules to let them back in. He also managed 12 stage wins. Joop Zoetemelk (1946 -) Joop goes down in the annals of Tour history for having the grit and determination to start and finish a record 16 Tours de France. His professional career overlapped both Merckx and Hinault and so only claimed one Tour Victory, in 1980 when Hinault abandoned the race, though he has finished second a record six times. He also won a Tour of Spain, the World Championships and was still winning major classics into his forties. Sprinters Djamolidine Abdoujaparov (1964 -) When the Eastern Bloc riders were allowed into the Tour after the fall of the Berlin wall, nobody really noticed the first name out of the gates for an all Soviet team.

The Little Man from Uzbekistan (or The Tashkent Tornado/Terror) was the most fearsome sprinter for the early part of the nineties. His ability to make his bike swerve and skew in a bunch sprint was infamous, causing any number of incidents. The major one for which he will be remembered is when he swerved himself into a giant coke can at the Paris finish, taking down a fair few competitors with him. It may be surprising that in 1994 the Tour gave him a Fair Play award, one of only two riders to be awarded them. He also has 9 tour stage wins and 3 times has won the green jersey competition. His last stage win came when he wasn't at the height of his powers, so joined a breakaway on a hilly stage, disappearing off the front some distance from the line when it became clear that nobody else would work because he was by far the strongest sprinter. His career ended with ejection from the Tour for high white blood count in 1997, to the sadness of many fans of exciting racing and the relief of journalists everywhere.

Mario Cipollini (1967 -) Born in 1967, and a pro from the age of 20, the Lion King is one of the most flamboyant and fashion conscious of the modern riders. The greatest sprinter of his generation, if he is to be believed, he makes sure he has a pair of shorts to match whatever colour prize jersey he wears. Preferring to be on a beach, rather than on climbing a mountain, he doesn't regularly finish the tour, but was a strong bet for stage wins in the first week. Sean Kelly (1956 -) A professional since 1977, Kelly held the record of four green points jerseys on his professional retirement in 1994. He rode 15 tours and was a very talented all-rounder, able to compete on the climbs, time-trialling and with the big sprinters. It's been suggested that if he had concentrated less on the Green Jersey he may have won the Tour, having been a winner of the Vuelta. He also won a large amount of classics. Erik Zabel (1970 -) Berliner Zabel is one of the all time greatest sprinters.

Between 1996 and 2001 he picked up six consecutive Green Jersey victories. Backed up by his T-Mobile or Telecom team he always seems to be there or thereabouts at the end of a stage. Climbers Luis (Lucho) Herrera (1961 -) Along with Fabio Parra, Luis Herrera was one of the first prominent Colombians to race in the Tour in the mid eighties. A devastating climber, he won the King of The Mountains titles twice, in 1985 and 1987. He is one of the only people to have won the climbers competition in each of the three major tours. His limited abilities on the flatter roads meant he was never a real contender, but his exploits on the climbs of the tour inspired a new generation of cyclists from his country. Herrera retired in 1992, and was kidnapped in his home country, but such was the outcry and size of the manhunt, his captors let him go pretty quickly.

Richard Virenque (1969 -) The French housewives' favourite rider, he broke the previous record of six King of The Mountains jerseys in 2004 when he attained his seventh. Possibly not the outright best climber on the toughest climbs, Virenque normally makes up enough points on the slightly more gentle climbs, often with a lone break as the race enters the mountains, to maintain his lead as the climbs get bigger. He finished on the podium twice before the Festina 5 scandal broke, and after two years of protesting innocence, he admitted to doping in 2000 and spent a year suspended. However he came back after the trial aiming to prove himself, and has succeeded in adding more stage victories to his CV. Virenque announced his retirement in 2004. 1 Nicknamed The Eternal Second. 2 1914 - 2000, two times Tour de France winner and three times Giro winner. 3 Born in Yffiniac, Brittany. 4 Something that Belgium and Holland produce a surprising amount of. 5 The Team Virenque rode for from 1993 to 1998.

Eddy Merckx Bio, Stats, and Results | Olympics at Sports-Reference.com Related Olympians: Father of Axel Merckx . Biography Eddy Merckx is considered the greatest cyclist of all-time, and few argue with that assessment. He was so strong and rode hard so often that his nickname was "The Cannibal". He had no weaknesses – he was the strongest time trialist and climber in the world, and could outsprint all but a few rivals. Although his list of major victories is impressive, it is almost more impressive when one considers the records he holds for victories in major races. At his retirement he had won the most titles, or equal most, in the Tour de France (5), Giro d'Italia (5), World Championship road race (3), Milano-Sanremo (7), Gent-Wevelgem (3), La Flèche Wallonne (3), and Liège-Bastogne-Liège (5), and in that list, only Merckx's five Tour de France wins has been surpassed, intially by Lance Armstrong, with seven, prior to his doping disqualifications.

Merckx won 19 monument races, the five greatest one-day classics, a record, with second on that list [Roger De Vlaeminck], far back with 11. He is one of only three riders, with De Vlaeminck and [Rik Van Looy], to have won all five of the monuments. Merckx's seven victories at Milano-Sanremo is an absolute record for most victories at any major one-day classic. Merckx was the first man (and since equalled only by [Stephen Roche]) to win the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and World Professional Road Race in the same year (1974). Only he, [Jacques Anquetil], [Felice Gimondi], Bernard Hinault, and [Alberto Contador] have ever won all three of the grand tours – Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, and the Vuelta à España, but only Merckx won at the other major tour, the Tour de Suisse.

At the 1969 Tour de France, Merckx performed the still unequalled feat of winning the yellow jersey (overall winner), green jersey (points winner), and polka-dot jersey (King of the Mountains), something that could not even be imagined today in the professional peloton. His 11 victories in the major tours is an all-time record and might have been greater. He rode the Tour de France only eight times, twice when past his prime, and in 1973, because he was so dominant, he was asked by Tour organizers not to race because they felt his dominance was ruining the Tour. Merckx is credited with over 500 major professional wins during his career. His grand tour wins were as follows\: 1969-72, 1974 Tour de France; 1968, 1970, 1972-74 Giro d'Italia; 1973 Vuelta à España; and the 1974 Tour de Suisse.

He also won the following other jerseys in grand tours\: mountain classification – 1969-70 Tour de France; 1968 Giro d'Italia; points classification – 1969, 1971-72 Tour de France; 1968, 1973 Giro d'Italia; and the 1973 Vuelta à España. Merckx's three victories in the World Professional Road Race came in 1967, 1971, 1974, but he also won the World Amateur Championship on the road in 1964. In 1972, he set the World Hour Record, recording 49.431 km (30.722 miles) in Mexico City. That mark was broken in 1984 by Francesco Moser, but by then new bike technology had taken over, and subsequent hour marks were often due to improved bike design as much as the riders' abilities.

The UCI eventually reverted to a "standard" bike classification, and with that new classification, Merckx's hour record was not bettered until 2000, and then by [Chris Boardman] riding only 10 metres further.

In other lesser tours and one-day classics, Merckx's victories can be summarized as follows\: Milano-Sanremo – 1966-67, 1969, 1971-72, 1975-76; La Flèche Wallonne – 1967, 1970, 1972; Gent-Wevelgem – 1967, 1970, 1973; Paris-Roubaix – 1968, 1970, 1973; Liège-Bastogne-Liège – 1969, 1971-73, 1975; Ronde van Vlaanderen – 1969, 1975; Paris-Nice – 1969-71; Dauphiné-Libéré – 1971; Midi-Libre – 1971; Het Volk – 1971, 1973; Giro di Lombardia – 1971-72; Paris-Brussels – 

1973; Grand Prix des Nations – 1973; Amstel Gold Race – 1973, 1975.

Merckx was not without his detractors. He was criticized by other riders because he never let up, always riding to win, often not giving lesser riders a chance to shine a bit. And he tested positive for drugs three times, in an era in which the doping penalties were less stringent. In retirement, though, he remains the all-time Belgian sporting legend, being voted Belgium's Sportsman of the 20th Century, and he was made a Baron by Albert II, King of Belgium in 1996. Merckx's son, [Axel], later became a professional cyclist, though not with the success of his father, although he did win a bronze medal in the Olympic road race in 2004. Results One transfer by plane, one by train. KEY STAGES STAGE 4, JULY 5 The team time trial. Each team member receives the same time, that of the fifth rider across the line. Watch how the top five are pulled by the other four team members and who fades at the end when his score doesn't count. STAGE 7, JULY 8 Sprinters' paradise. The last two minutes are must-see as dozens of riders jockey for position.

The route dips into Germany, homeland of 1997 Tour winner Jan Ullrich, Lance Armstrong's chief rival. STAGE 11, JULY 13 This 108-mile stage features three climbs, including the one-two punch of Col du Telegraphe and Col du Galibier, a combined 28.5 kilometers (17.7 miles) of climbing with grades as steep as 10 percent. STAGE 15, JULY 17 By far the Tour's most grueling day, with six mountain climbs. Many believe the rider wearing the yellow jersey at the end of this stage will win the Tour. STAGE 20, JULY 23 If the race is close coming out of the Pyrenees, this 55-kilometer (34.2-mile) time trial will be the decisive stage. SCORING The focus of contenders in the general classification (GC) is to cover the course in the least amount of time. Times are cumulative. A stage win receives a 20-second bonus. It is possible to win the Tour without winning any stages, but that's rare.

TEAMS Cycling appears to be an individual sport, but teamwork is critical. Teams are comprised of nine riders. Those with a contender to win the GC, such as Team Discovery with Armstrong, are geared toward helping that rider maximize his potential. Sprinters pace him in the flats, climbers in the mountains. One rider serves as a buffer for the wind and delivers food and water from the team car. A manager plots strategy, communicating with riders through electronic earpieces from a car behind the pack. WHY YELLOW? The yellow jersey - maillot jaune - is the Tour's most visible icon, an easy way for spectators and race officials to identify the leader. It was introduced in 1919 by Tour founder and newspaper man Henri Desgrange as a gimmick, its color matching the pages of his publication. The yellow jersey is awarded to the Stage 1 winner and to the rider at the end of each stage with the lowest cumulative time. OTHER JERSEYS POLKA DOT: Worn by the top climber or King of the Mountains, this white jersey with red dots is the second-most prestigious jersey. Frenchman Richard Virenque retired after winning a record seventh polka-dot jersey in 2004.

GREEN: Awarded to the top sprinter based on points earned during road races, time trials and designated sprint locations called hot spots. Germany's Erik Zabel won an unprecedented six consecutive green jerseys from 1996 to 2001. WHITE: Honors the race's highest-ranked overall rider age 25 and under. Frenchman Laurent Fignon (1983) and German Jan Ullrich (1997) were 23 when they won the final white and yellow jerseys. TOP CONTENDERS * JAN ULLRICH, GERMANY: A near-perfect cyclist, Ullrich is a product of the former East German sports machine. Believed to share Armstrong's physical gifts, Ullrich seems to lack the Texan's spirit and dedication. He wears the hot-pink jersey of Team T-Mobile. * IVAN BASSO, ITALY: Last year's third-place finisher, Basso rides for Team CSC, the only team as well-organized as Team Discovery. Basso, a tremendous climber, stayed with Armstrong last year in the Pyrenees.

* ANDREAS KLODEN, GERMANY: A teammate of Ullrich's on Team T-Mobile, Kloden was the runnerup last year. * FLOYD LANDIS AND BOBBY JULICH, USA: While Tyler Hamilton serves a two-year suspension for blood doping, Landis and Julich join Armstrong as the top Americans. Landis is a former Armstrong teammate. TOUR HEROES Five riders have won the Tour five or more times. LANCE ARMSTRONG (6): American cancer survivor goes for record seventh straight win in the final ride of his career. MIGUEL INDURAIN (5): The first to win five consecutive Tours, the Spaniard won in 1991-95. BERNARD HINAULT (5): The last Frenchman to dominate, "The Badger" won in 1978-79, 1981-82 and 1985. EDDY MERCKX (5): Considered the greatest cyclist of all time, the Belgian won all manner of races. Nicknamed "The Cannibal," he won the Tour from 1969-72 and 1974.

JACQUES ANQUETIL (5): The handsome Frechman was the first to win the Tour five times, 1957 and 1961-64. TRACKING THE TOUR Whether you plan to line the streets of some charming French village or fluff the pillows on your couch, up-to-the-minute info is available from a variety of sources. ON TV: The Outdoor Life Network OLN provides some of the best television coverage in the United States. A prerace show in the morning switches to live coverage, and the show is repeated in the evening prime time with added elements, including interviews. The broadcast schedule is listed at Also, on Sunday mornings during the Tour, CBS airs a one-hour recap. ON THE INTERNET: Several sites carry live feeds with results updated by the minute. Official Tour de France site: choose the English version by clocking the British flag icon at the bottom right of the screen. Impress friends with your cycling savvy. * ATTACK: A quick acceleration to take the lead. * BOSS: The most respected rider in the pack, usually the defending champion. * BREAKAWAY: When a group of riders pulls away from the pack, hoping to take the lead and win the stage.

* DOMESTIQUE: A team member who works for the leaders, providing a barrier to the wind and delivering food and water. * DOPING: The use of banned substances. * DROPPED: When a rider can't keep up. * KIT: Cycling jersey and shorts. * LEADOUT: When one rider accelerates with a second, usually a sprinter, inches behind. The second rider saves energy for the finish by drafting. * PELOTON: The main pack. * WRENCH: A bike mechanic. SOURCES: The Tour de France Companion 2005, by Bob Roll and Dan Koeppel; Tour de France for Dummies, by Phil Liggett, James Raia and Sammarye Lewis. © 2007  All Rights Reserved  St. Petersburg Times 490 First Avenue South  St. Petersburg, FL 33701  727-893-8111 Sports: The Tour de France: A primer One transfer by plane, one by train. KEY STAGES STAGE 4, JULY 5 The team time trial.

Each team member receives the same time, that of the fifth rider across the line. Watch how the top five are pulled by the other four team members and who fades at the end when his score doesn't count. STAGE 7, JULY 8 Sprinters' paradise. The last two minutes are must-see as dozens of riders jockey for position. The route dips into Germany, homeland of 1997 Tour winner Jan Ullrich, Lance Armstrong's chief rival. STAGE 11, JULY 13 This 108-mile stage features three climbs, including the one-two punch of Col du Telegraphe and Col du Galibier, a combined 28.5 kilometers (17.7 miles) of climbing with grades as steep as 10 percent. STAGE 15, JULY 17 By far the Tour's most grueling day, with six mountain climbs. Many believe the rider wearing the yellow jersey at the end of this stage will win the Tour.

STAGE 20, JULY 23 If the race is close coming out of the Pyrenees, this 55-kilometer (34.2-mile) time trial will be the decisive stage. SCORING The focus of contenders in the general classification (GC) is to cover the course in the least amount of time. Times are cumulative. A stage win receives a 20-second bonus. It is possible to win the Tour without winning any stages, but that's rare. TEAMS Cycling appears to be an individual sport, but teamwork is critical. Teams are comprised of nine riders. Those with a contender to win the GC, such as Team Discovery with Armstrong, are geared toward helping that rider maximize his potential. Sprinters pace him in the flats, climbers in the mountains. One rider serves as a buffer for the wind and delivers food and water from the team car. A manager plots strategy, communicating with riders through electronic earpieces from a car behind the pack. WHY YELLOW? The yellow jersey - maillot jaune - is the Tour's most visible icon, an easy way for spectators and race officials to identify the leader.

It was introduced in 1919 by Tour founder and newspaper man Henri Desgrange as a gimmick, its color matching the pages of his publication. The yellow jersey is awarded to the Stage 1 winner and to the rider at the end of each stage with the lowest cumulative time. OTHER JERSEYS POLKA DOT: Worn by the top climber or King of the Mountains, this white jersey with red dots is the second-most prestigious jersey. Frenchman Richard Virenque retired after winning a record seventh polka-dot jersey in 2004. GREEN: Awarded to the top sprinter based on points earned during road races, time trials and designated sprint locations called hot spots. Germany's Erik Zabel won an unprecedented six consecutive green jerseys from 1996 to 2001. WHITE: Honors the race's highest-ranked overall rider age 25 and under. Frenchman Laurent Fignon (1983) and German Jan Ullrich (1997) were 23 when they won the final white and yellow jerseys.

TOP CONTENDERS * JAN ULLRICH, GERMANY: A near-perfect cyclist, Ullrich is a product of the former East German sports machine. Believed to share Armstrong's physical gifts, Ullrich seems to lack the Texan's spirit and dedication. He wears the hot-pink jersey of Team T-Mobile. * IVAN BASSO, ITALY: Last year's third-place finisher, Basso rides for Team CSC, the only team as well-organized as Team Discovery. Basso, a tremendous climber, stayed with Armstrong last year in the Pyrenees. * ANDREAS KLODEN, GERMANY: A teammate of Ullrich's on Team T-Mobile, Kloden was the runnerup last year. * FLOYD LANDIS AND BOBBY JULICH, USA: While Tyler Hamilton serves a two-year suspension for blood doping, Landis and Julich join Armstrong as the top Americans. Landis is a former Armstrong teammate. TOUR HEROES Five riders have won the Tour five or more times. LANCE ARMSTRONG (6): American cancer survivor goes for record seventh straight win in the final ride of his career.

MIGUEL INDURAIN (5): The first to win five consecutive Tours, the Spaniard won in 1991-95. BERNARD HINAULT (5): The last Frenchman to dominate, "The Badger" won in 1978-79, 1981-82 and 1985. EDDY MERCKX (5): Considered the greatest cyclist of all time, the Belgian won all manner of races. Nicknamed "The Cannibal," he won the Tour from 1969-72 and 1974. JACQUES ANQUETIL (5): The handsome Frechman was the first to win the Tour five times, 1957 and 1961-64. TRACKING THE TOUR Whether you plan to line the streets of some charming French village or fluff the pillows on your couch, up-to-the-minute info is available from a variety of sources. ON TV: The Outdoor Life Network OLN provides some of the best television coverage in the United States.

A prerace show in the morning switches to live coverage, and the show is repeated in the evening prime time with added elements, including interviews. The broadcast schedule is listed at Also, on Sunday mornings during the Tour, CBS airs a one-hour recap. ON THE INTERNET: Several sites carry live feeds with results updated by the minute. Official Tour de France site: choose the English version by clocking the British flag icon at the bottom right of the screen. Impress friends with your cycling savvy. * ATTACK: A quick acceleration to take the lead. * BOSS: The most respected rider in the pack, usually the defending champion. * BREAKAWAY: When a group of riders pulls away from the pack, hoping to take the lead and win the stage. * DOMESTIQUE: A team member who works for the leaders, providing a barrier to the wind and delivering food and water. * DOPING: The use of banned substances. * DROPPED: When a rider can't keep up. * KIT: Cycling jersey and shorts. * LEADOUT: When one rider accelerates with a second, usually a sprinter, inches behind. The second rider saves energy for the finish by drafting.

* PELOTON: The main pack. * WRENCH: A bike mechanic. SOURCES: The Tour de France Companion 2005, by Bob Roll and Dan Koeppel; Tour de France for Dummies, by Phil Liggett, James Raia and Sammarye Lewis. [Last modified June 26, 2005, 00:34:18] Share your thoughts on this story

Question: Which Belgian in 1969, was the first man to win all three major prizesin the Tour de France?
Answer: EDDY MERCKX