Part V:Part V:

HHllSTORYSTORY AND LOREAND LORE

Highlights, memories, impressionsHighlights, memories, impressions

Traditional OneTraditional One--Day European Classic RacesDay European Classic Races

Not held 1967-72, moved to fall in 1973 168 finishers~225 kmSeptember 13189388th Paris-Bruxxelles (FRA/BEL)

176 (22 x 8)225 kmAugust 2198128th Clásica de San Sebastián (ESP)

Others

184 (23 x 8)257 kmApril 20196643rd Amstel Gold Race (NED)

Ardennes Classics

Nicknamed La Primavera (“The Spring”)200 (25 x 8)298 kmMarch 22190799th Milan-San Remo (ITA)

“The Race of the Falling Leaves;” called Milano-

Milano the first two editions

192 (24 x 8)242 kmOctober 181905102nd Giro di Lombardia (ITA)

Nicknamed La Reine (Queen of Classics) or Le

Enfer du Nord (Hell of the North)

200 (25 x 8)259 kmApril 131896106th Paris-Roubaix (FRA)

Cancelled in 2007 due lack of sponsors; status as

classic in doubt

64/169?October 11914

Nicknamed La Doyenne (“The Old One”); not held

1895-1907

240 (30 x 8)261 kmApril 271892

‘The Walloon Arrow’; women’s race added in 1996200 (25 x 8)/

150 (25 x 6)

200/104 kmApril 23193672nd La Flèche Wallonne (BEL)

94th Liège-Bastogne-Liège (BEL)

94th Züri-Metzgete, or Meistershaft von

Zürich (Championship of Zürich – SUI)

200 (25 x 8)209 kmApril 9193470th Gent-Wevelgem (BEL)

Cobbled Classics

Women’s race added in 2004200 (25 x 8)/

192 (32 x 6)

264/114 kmApril 6191392nd Ronde van Vlaanderran (Tour of

Flanders – BEL)

NOTESFIELD (M/W)LENGTH

(M/W)

DATE (2008)YEAR

BEGUN

EVENT

� Terrain is flat, but the test is extreme due to

the ‘pavé’ (below) – narrow sections of ancient

roads paved with cobbles that are often more

like small boulders or loaves of bread than

typical American cobblestones

� The 2008 edition had 28 sections of pavé

totaling 53 km

� Conditions range from wet and muddy (making

the cobbles slippery) to dry and dusty (which

can make breathing a challenge)

ParisParis--RoubaixRoubaix

� The most famous of European Spring Classics – known as the “Queen of Classics” or “Le

Enfer du Nord” (Hell of the North)

� First edition in 1896; not the oldest classic, but has been held more times than any other

� Race now actually starts outside of Paris and finishes with a lap of the Roubaix velodrome

The The ArenbergArenberg PassagePassage

The Trouée d'Arenberg (Trench of Arenberg) is a decisive

section of Paris-Roubaix.

This narrow 2.4 km run through the Arenberg forest was

‘found’ by Jean Stablinski, a professional rider who had

worked in the mine that lies below the woods. It was first

used in 1968, but was banned from 1974 to 1983 by the

National Office of Forestry.

Although almost 100 km from Roubaix, it usually proves to

be pivotal; as Stablinski observed, “Paris-Roubaix is not

won in Arenberg, but from there the group with the winners

is selected.”

Until 1998, the entry to the Arenberg pavé was slightly

downhill, causing a sprint to get the best position. After

Johan Museeuw’s crash in 1998 as World Cup leader –

which nearly caused him to lose his leg to gangrene – the

route was reversed to reduce the speed of the peloton as it

entered the forest.

By 2005, the abandoned mine (it closed in 1990) had caused sections of the road to sink, and the Arenberg was

omitted from the parcours, as race organisers judged conditions had deteriorated beyond safe limits. Following

repairs to restore the original width of three meters, it was added back to the race route the next year.

““Monsieur ParisMonsieur Paris--RoubaixRoubaix””

In the 112-year history of the race, one rider

showed such mastery of the cobbles that he was

given the title of “Monsieur Paris-Roubaix.”

In 14 starts from 1969-83, Belgium’s Roger

DeVlaeminck recorded 4 wins, 3 seconds, 1 third,

and 4 other top-10 placings – a record unmatched

even by the great Eddy Merckx. He abandoned only

once, in 1980. DeVlaeminck’s skill as a cyclocross

rider – he was amateur world champion in 1968

and pro champion in 1975 – made him expert on

the pavé of northern France, as well as the other

cobbled classics.

De Vlaeminck used the early-season Tirreno-

Adriatico stage race as training for the Spring

Classics and dominated that race too, with six

overall victories and fifteen stage wins between

1972 and 1977.

Ranking of Top Classic RidersRanking of Top Classic Riders

9+1131411981-94Moreno Argentin (ITA)

13+1121511211975-85Jan Raas (NED)

9361912-36Costante Girardengo (ITA)

6+312111121972-86Freddy Maertens (BEL)

2+99111953-69Jacques Anquetil (FRA)

4+32111111965-79Felice Gimondi (ITA)

10+331222211943-66Rik Van Steenbergen (BEL)

8+2222221939-59Albéric (Brik) Schotte (BEL)

9+333421924-36Alfredo Binda (ITA)

7+2222211997-Paolo Bettini (ITA)

10+32115131938-59Fausto Coppi (ITA)

11+111322121977-94Seán Kelly (IRL)

10+11121331988-04Johan Museeuw (BEL)

TOTALTOTALTOTALTOTALWCWCWCWC

1

1

2

3

RRRRRRRR

5

1

TTTTTTTT

1

1

2

PPPP----TTTT

1

1

2

1

PPPP----BBBB

2

1

1

1

3

FFFF----WWWW

1

1

3

3

GGGG----VVVV

1

2

AGRAGRAGRAGR

2

2

2

1

2

GdLGdLGdLGdL

2

1

1

5

LLLL----BBBB----LLLL

28+43271966-78Eddy Merckx (BEL)

16+23211953-70Rik Van Looy (BEL)

1414131969-87Roger De Vlaeminck (BEL)

11+11311973-88Francesco Moser (ITA)

1

PPPP----RRRR

Note: the first world championship time trial was held in 1994; previous to that, wins in the Grand Prix des Nations are credited, since it served as something of

a de facto world championship TT.

M-SR – Milan-San Remo RvV – Tour of Flanders G-V – Gent Wevelgem P-R – Paris-Roubaix L-B-L – Liège-Bastogne-Liège GdL – Giro di Lombardia

AGR – Amstel Gold Race F-W – La Fleche Wallone ZM – Züri-Metzgete P-B – Paris-Bruxxelles P-T – Paris-Tours WC – world championships.

10+61975-86Bernard Hinault (FRA)

ZMZMZMZMRvVRvVRvVRvVMMMM----SRSRSRSRCAREER CAREER CAREER CAREER

SPANSPANSPANSPAN

RIDERRIDERRIDERRIDER

Un Un galerie

galerie d

udu TourTour

1952 Tour de France1952 Tour de FranceFausto Coppi, Il Campionissimo, first atop L’Alpe d’Huez

1955 Tour de France1955 Tour de FranceLouison Bobet, first to win three straight

1959 Tour de France1959 Tour de FranceCharly Gaul, the Angel of the Mountain

1964 Tour de France1964 Tour de FranceThe Epic Duel: Anquetil vs. Poulidor, Le Puy de Dôme

1964 Tour de France1964 Tour de FranceThe Lap of Honor, Parc de Princes Vèlodrome

1969 Tour de France1969 Tour de FranceEddy Merckx

1969 Tour de France1969 Tour de FranceEddy Merckx

1975 Tour de France1975 Tour de FranceThe Fall of King Eddy

Stage 15: Eddy Merckx leading on the col d’Allos, the final

moments of his record 96 days in the yellow jersey...

…Merckx soon cracked, allowing Bernard Thévenet (above) to assume race

leadership and go on to win, but Merckx refused to concede until the very end,

despite a crash that required his jaw to be wired shut.

1979 Tour de France1979 Tour de FranceBernard Hinault & Joop Zoetemelk, 1-2 finish on the Champs-Elysées

1981 Tour de France1981 Tour de FranceStage 12b finish – Zolder, Belgium

Eddy Plankaert, Guido Van Calster, and Bernard Hinault

1981 Tour de France1981 Tour de FranceBernard Hinault

1986 Tour de France1986 Tour de FranceLeMond & Hinault on L’Alpe d’Huez

1989 Tour de France1989 Tour de FranceLeMond, suddenly in yellow: back where he always belonged

1990 Tour de France1990 Tour de FranceLeMond and Bugno sprint for the

line atop L’Alpe d’Huez

1990 Tour de France1990 Tour de FranceMarino Lejaretta, Miguel Induráin, and LeMond on Luz-Ardiden

1994 Tour de France1994 Tour de FranceMiguel Induráin

Ranking of Grand Tour RidersRanking of Grand Tour Riders

Youngest to win all three Grand Tours1231-0-02-0-01-0-02003-Alberto Contador (ESP)

Never a bad Giro, never a good Tour122002-1-41999-Gilberto Simoni

Crash-prone due to poor eyesight; with Armstrong, Rominger, & Simoni, part of the EPO era1222-1-00-2-001990-04Alex Zülle (SUI)

COMMENT

Anquetil the natural, Bobet the self-made rider

Early promise not quite fulfilled

We only glimpsed his best; special talent and unique personality

With LeMond, Ullrich, & 6 others, a full set of Tour medals

A late bloomer, had bad luck at the Tour

‘Strong as a bull, too bad he rode like one too’; made Tour podium at age 40

Armstrong’s only real challenger

Dominated the Giro like none other except perhaps Coppi

…again, without Merckx (and Hinault), add 4 more Tours

Tour record was aided by singular competitive focus

An extra 2 Tours and 1 Giro without Merckx to contend with…

Unprecedented back to-back Giro-Tour doubles in ’92-’93 – at the dawn of the EPO era

Like Coppi, what would he have done if not for the war?

Perhaps the greatest pure talent, but fragile

Unexcelled recuperative powers and time trialing prowess; first to win all three Grand Tours

Virtually the equal of Merckx in stage race success

Greatest depth and breadth of wins; master of both classics and stage races

12303-0-10-1-01947-61Louison Bobet (FRA)

*Points awarded on a 3-2-1 basis for first, second, and third place, respectively. Names in bold are also listed in the ranking of Classics riders.

1430-0-12-1-01-1-01982-93Laurent Fignon (FRA)

14303-1-10-0-11981-94Greg LeMond (USA)

1532-1-11-1-101982-94Pedro Delgado (ESP)

1543-0-10-1-01-0-01986-97Tony Rominger (SUI)

1611-1-00-3-501959-77Raymond Poulidor (FRA)

1721-0-01-5-101995-06Jan Ullrich (GER)

175005-1-01924-36Alfredo Binda (ITA)

1821-0-01-6-001970-87Joop Zoetemelk (NED)

22707-0-101992-05, 09-Lance Armstrong (USA)

2251-0-01-1-03-2-11965-79Felice Gimondi (ITA)

2470-1-05-0-02-0-11984-96Miguel Induráin (ESP)

25502-1-03-4-01935-54Gino Bartali (ITA)

25702-0-05-2-01938-59Fausto Coppi (ITA)

3181-0-05-0-12-2-21953-69Jacques Anquetil (FRA)

34102-0-05-2-03-0-01975-86Bernard Hinault (FRA)

35111-0-05-1-05-0-01966-78Eddy Merckx (BEL)

Points*WinsVueltaTourGiro

TOTALS

GRAND TOUR

PODIUM FINISHES

(first-second-third)

PRO

CARRER

SPAN

RIDER (COUNTRY)

Antithesis of his contemporary and countryman, the cool, stylish Koblet; won the points jersey in ’54 Tour7101-1-00-0-21940-56Ferdi Kübler (SUI)

…while “The Falcon” used his descending skills to snatch a Giro back from Simoni82002-1-01997-07Paolo Savoldelli

15 Tour starts, 15 finishes – second only to Zoetemelk8101-1-301969-87Lucien Van Impe (BEL)

Did the collar bone thing long before Tyler Hamilton113003-1-01941-56Fiorenzo Magni (ITA)

Humbled Merckx in ’71 Tour and was on his way to winning before crashing out1121-2-11-0-001968-77Luis Ocaña (ESP)

’81 Giro-Vuelta double (with 3 days rest in between!) is one of only two (Merckx did the other)1121-0-002-0-21973-84Giovanni Battaglin

GT wins founded on epic mountain performances, especially in extreme conditions10301-0-22-0-21953-65Charly Gaul (LUX)

10202-2-001922-34Nicolas Frantz (LUX)

Brilliant accomplishments, tragic death10201-0-01-2-01946-58Hugo Koblet (SUI)

A sprinter for the GC, or a GC rider who could sprint?92002-1-11977-88Giuseppe Saronni

Brought down Merckx, was brought down by cortisone1020-0-12-1-00-0-11970-81Bernard Thévenet (FRA)

Another robbed by WWII; Bahamontes’s inspiration1022-2-0001935-49Julián Berendero (ESP)

The “Eagle of Toledo” could soar, but not descend…810-1-01-1-101954-65Federico Bahamontes (ESP)

82002-1-01960-72Franco Balmamion (ITA)

First master of the Giro; unequalled longevity82002-1-01912-36Costante Girardengo (ITA)

The Joop Zoetemelk of the Tour’s early years9101-2-201907-14Gustave Garrigou (FRA)

The first great GC rider; robbed by World War I, otherwise, 5-6 Tours9303-0-001911-26Philippe Thys (FRA)

COMMENT

Outgoing and jocular, the temperamental opposite of his great rival Magne

Promise was cut short by mysterious death

Giro win was aided by cancellation of mountain stage

With Leducq, cycling’s first ‘dual act’, succeeded by Coppi/Bartali, Anquetil/Poulidor, etc.

Had record fourth Vuelta taken away; were any of the others clean?

*Points awarded on a 3-2-1 basis for first, second, and third place, respectively. Names in bold are also listed in the ranking of Classics riders.

8202-1-001927-38André Leducq (FRA)

8202-1-001922-26Ottavio Bottechia (ITA)

91001-3-01973-88Francesco Moser (ITA)

9202-1-101927-39Antonin Magne (FRA)

1033-0-1001995-05Roberto Heras (ESP)

Points*WinsVueltaTourGiro

TOTALS

GRAND TOUR

PODIUM FINISHES

(first-second-third)

PRO

CARRER

SPAN

RIDER

Ranking of Grand Tour Riders (cont.)Ranking of Grand Tour Riders (cont.)