Eugène Christophe

Cyclist infobox
ridername = Eugène Christophe


fullname = Eugène Christophe
nickname = 'Cri-cri' and 'Le vieux Gaulois'
dateofbirth = birth date|1885|1|22
dateofdeath = death date and age|1970|2|1|1885|1|22
country = FRA
height =
weight =
currentteam =
discipline = Road and cyclo-cross
role = Rider
ridertype =
amateurteams =
amateuryears =
proyears = 1904-1905
1906
1907-1911
1912
1913-1914
1914-1918
1919-1921
1922
1923-1924
1925
1926
proteams = no information
Labor
Alcyon
3 teams
Peugeot-Wolber
No information
La Sportive
Automoto-Wolber-Russell
Christophe-Hutchinson
JB Louvet
Christophe-Hutchinson / Peugeot-Dunlop
majorwins = Milan - Sanremo (1910)
3 stages, Tour de France (1912)
Paris-Tours (1920)
Bordeaux-Paris (1920)
Bordeaux-Paris (1921)
updated = May 15, 2007

Eugène Christophe (January 22, 1885 in Paris, France – February 1, 1970 in Paris) was a French road bicycle racer and pioneer of cyclo-cross. He was a professional cyclist from 1904 until 1926. In 1919 he became the first rider to wear the yellow jersey of the Tour de France when it was introduced to indicate the rider in the overall lead at the end of the previous day. Claims by the Belgian rider, Philippe Thys, that he was given a yellow jersey in earlier Tours have not been disputed by the Tour de France organisation, although records have since been lost.

Although Christophe was a successful rider, his reputation is based on misfortunes that led to his never winning the Tour de France.

Tour de France

1906 was Christophe's first Tour. He finished 9th overall.

In the 1912 race Christophe was denied victory by the system of awarding victory to the winner on points. Throughout the race he was the strongest rider, but the Belgian riders rode together to win the sprints necessary to amass maximal points. Only when Christophe could drop the peloton did he finish ahead of eventual winner Odiel Defraye. He won three stages using this method (including the Tour's longest successful solo break of 315km to Grenoble). Had the race been decided on time, the result would have been closer - Christophe would have led the race until the final stage (when he sat up in disgust allowing a group to ride away). As a result of these tactics the 1913 race reverted to a time-based general classification.

In 1913 Christophe was well placed to win the tour when a mechanical failure cost him the race. The incident happened on stage 6, Bayonne to Luchon in the Pyrenees. The overnight leader was the 1912 champion, Odile Defraye but he had dropped behind on the climb of the Col du Tourmalet. At the top of the Tourmalet, Christophe was the leader on the road, leading by five minutes from a group containing most of his main rivals. On the descent, however, he crashed after his fork snapped. He ran several miles to a forge in the village of Sainte-Marie-de-Campan. Once there he lit the fire and repaired his bicycle observed by race judges. The rules forbade outside help, so when Christophe asked a boy to work the bellows, the judges fined him 10 minutes. Christophe had already lost about four hours. He eventually finished seventh overall in Paris. [http://www.dewielersite.net/db2/wielersite/monumentenfiche.php?monid=66 The building on the site of the forge has a plaque on its wall] commemorating the episode.

In 1919 Christophe became the first man to wear the yellow jersey of race leader, though he was destined not to win the race overall. Christophe was riding with a grey La Sportive jersey when, while leading the Tour, Desgrange gave him the first maillot jaune to wear in the history of the race. [cite web|url=http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.net/palmares/lambot_firmin.php|title=Firmin Lambot (Belgique)|publisher=Memoire du cyclisme.net|accessdate=2007-11-12] By the start of the penultimate stage 14 (Metz to Dunkerque) he was in the lead by about 30 minutes. His fork broke again and he lost more than two and a half hours and the race lead while he made repairs. On the final stage he suffered a record number of punctures and dropped from 2nd to 3rd overall. His story captured the public imagination and he was awarded the same prize money as winner Fermin Lambot at the finish.

1925 was Christophe's last Tour de France. He finished 18th overall, 19 years after first riding the race.

Christophe never won the Tour, but his stories have become part of the race's mythology. Christophe (like René Vietto and Raymond Poulidor after him) is celebrated as an eternal second, more famous for his near-misses than many of his more successful rivals.

Major results

;1909:flagicon|FRAFrench cyclo-cross champion;1910:1st Milan-Sanremo:3rd Paris-Roubaix:flagicon|FRAFrench cyclo-cross champion;1911:2nd Tour of Belgium:flagicon|FRAFrench cyclo-cross champion;1912:3 stage wins and 2nd overall Tour de France:flagicon|FRAFrench cyclo-cross champion;1913:flagicon|FRAFrench cyclo-cross champion;1914:flagicon|FRAFrench cyclo-cross champion;1917:3rd Paris-Tours;1919:3rd Tour de France;1920:1st Paris-Tours :1st Bordeaux-Paris:2nd Paris-Roubaix;1921:1st Bordeaux-Paris:flagicon|FRAFrench cyclo-cross champion:2nd Paris-Brest-Paris:3rd Paris-Tours

References

External links

* [http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.net/palmares/christophe_eugene.php Christophe's palmares at memore-du-cyclisme.net]
* [http://www.dewielersite.net/db2/wielersite/coureurfiche.php?coureurid=1265 Christophe at dewielersite.net (English version available)]
* [http://www.veloarchive.com/riders/riders.php?id=C Christophe's palmares at veloarchive.com] . This site also contains information on Christophe's Tour de France rides.