retro cycling stories

Josephine Baker visits Tour de France (1936)

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moments iconic France de Tour

The famous French dancer visited the peloton in 1936. This wasn’t the only occasion, she already made an appearance in 1933 on the first stage of the race. Sylvère Maes and especially his namesake Romain Maes surely enjoyed a fanboy moment.    

Mini Cycling Who’s Who: Roger Lapébie

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Roger Lapebie was born on the 16th of January 1911 in Bayonne (France). He made his Tour de France debut with a stage win (Stage 12) in 1932. He was part of the French national team again in the two subsequent years. In 1934 he won five stages and finished third in the general classification. … Read more

Tour de France 1976

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Tour de France 1976 on Peloton&Tales

The 63rd Tour de France was held between the 24th June and 18th July 1976. This was a 4017 km long edition divided into a prologue and 22 stages. The 5th and the 22nd stages had A and B parts, the 18th stage (on the Bastille Day) was split into three parts. The course included 8 mountain stages, five of them with a  hilltop finish.

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Antonin Magne cheering for André Leducq (Tour de France 1932)

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Peloton&Tales Iconic Cycling Moments Tour de France 1932

Antonin Magne (Tour de France winner 1931 and 1934) did not attend the Tour de France in 1932, but he visited the race. This was the year when André Leducq won his second Tour de France title. (He was the winner also in 1930) RELATED POSTS           

Cycling Who’s Who: Learco Guerra

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Learco Guerra was born on the 14 of October 1902 in Bagnolo San Vito, Italy. After a short attempt to be a football player, Guerra turned to road cycling and became professional in 1928.  He was among the top riders of the era both in the peloton of the Grand Tours and the one-day classics. … Read more

Cycling Who’s Who: Jacques Marinelli

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Jacques Marinelli was born on the 15th December of 1925 in Blanc-Mesnil, France.  He was a professional rider between 1948 and 1955. He rode the Tour de France six times between 1948 and 1954, his most successful year was 1949 when he was wearing the yellow jersey for six days. That Tour de France was … Read more

Cycling Who’s Who: Giuseppe Enrici

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Giuseppe Enrici was born on the 16 Juni 1894 in Pittsburgh, USA. Although he was born in America, he was an Italian citizen at the time when he won the Giro d’Italia (1924).  He also won two stages that year.  His other results at the Giro: 3rd (1921), 6th (1923) 5th  1926) 13th (1928). He … Read more

Mini Cycling Who’s Who: Gaetano Belloni

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Every generation has its “eternal second” rider. During the post WW1 period in Italy, this was Gaetano Belloni. Belloni was born on the 26th of August in 1892 in Pizzighettone, Italy. Before turning professional, he won several races as amateur, including the Italian Championship. There were significantly more races held during the first World War … Read more

Tour de France 1951

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Tour de France 1951 Tourmalet Fausto Coppi Hugo Koblet,

The 38th Tour de France between 4th and 29th July 1951 was the first edition which visited the interior of France, most importantly the Massif Central and the Mont Ventoux.

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Mini Cycling Who’s Who: Antonin Magne

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Antonin Magne Tour de France winner 1931 and 1934

Antonin Magne, the two-time winner of the Tour de France was born on the 15th of February 1904 in Ytrac, France. He attended the Tour de France first in 1927. In 1931 André Leducq, the defending champion was the team leader of the French squad, but he was out of shape, so Magne became the … Read more