Due to the system of Tour de France was competed by national teams between 1930 and 1961, the spectators of the race witnessed Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali riding in the same team during the late 1940s and early 1950s. This situation sometimes put the diplomatic skills of team manager Alfredo Binda to the test.
Before the 16th stage, Fiorenzo Magni led the general classification.
The 275 km long stage between Cannes and Briançon included some mighty Alpine mountains. Coppi and Bartali broke away on the Izoard. They rode so far ahead of the peloton, that even a puncture of Bartali did’t reduced their advance.
Only Jean Robic was able to follow them from a decent distance.
Bartali, celebrating his birthday that day, won the stage and took the yellow jersey.
Next day, another hard Alpine stage, they escaped again, but this time Binda told Coppi not to wait for Bartali, who had to stop because of a puncture again. Coppi won the stage, took the jersey and kept it untill Paris.
Fausto Coppi became the first rider to win both Giro d’Italia and Tour de France in the same year.
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