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Philippe Thys the first 3-time Tour de France winner

Mini Cycling Who’s Who: Philippe Thys

The first 3-time winner of the Tour de France, Philippe Thys was born in Anderlecht on the 8th  of October 1889. He won the first Belgian cyclo-cross championship (1910)  and some road stage races before he turned professional. Also, he was the best independent rider at the Tour de France in 1911. Philippe Thys won the Tour de France first time in 1913 when he was 22 years and 9 month old. He repeated his success next year, but for his third victory, he had to wait for 6 more years, till he triumphed in 1920 again. The reason for this 6-year hiatus was obvious: World War I. As Henri Desgrange wrote about Thys: if… Read More »Mini Cycling Who’s Who: Philippe Thys

Tour de France 1913

29 June 1913 The 11th Tour de France started

The race was 5,287 km long divided into 15 stages. It was held between 29 June and 27 July 1913. The Belgian Philippe Thys triumphed at the end, he also won Stage 6 ( Bayonne to Luchon) which included Tourmalet. This was the race when the fork of the extreme unlucky Eugene Christophe’s bike broke, and he had to repair it himself. After several editions (1905-1912) used a point system to manage the general classification, in 1913 (and from then on), the Tour used elapsed time to calculate the standings.  

Mini Cycling Who’s Who: René Pottier

René Pottier was probably the finest climber of the early years of Tour de France. He was born in 1879 in Moret-sur-Loing, Seine-et-Marne. In 1903 he won Bordeaux-Paris and had also several other podium results (f. e. at Paris-Roubaix). Pottier attended the Tour de France only 2 times, in 1905 and 1906. The first time he had to abandon the race but next year he won it, including five stage wins.  He crossed the Ballon d’Alsace (the first climb of the Tour de France ) as first rider both occasions. On 25 January 1907 Pottier committed suicide after learning his wife found a new lover while he was winning the Tour de France.  

4 June 1965 Cima Coppi Was Introduced

Every year the highest peak of the Giro d’Italia is called “Cima Coppi”, in honour of the great cyclist Fausto Coppi (1919-1960). In the inauguration year, the highest peak of the route was Passo dello Stelvio. The race was a real spectacle due to the heavy snowfall. Graziano Battistini crossed the finish line first on that memorable day.