Robert Millar

Infobox Cyclist
ridername = Robert Millar


fullname = Robert Millar
nickname =
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1958|9|13
country = SCO
currentteam = Retired
discipline = Road
role = Rider
ridertype = Climbing specialist
amateuryears =
amateurteams =
proyears = 1980–1985
1986–1987
1988
1989–1991
1992–1994
1995
proteams = Peugeot
Panasonic
Fagor
Z-Peugeot
TVM
Le Groupement
majorwins = Tour de France, 3 stages
:King of the Mountains, (1984)Giro d'Italia, 1 stage
:King of the Mountains (1987)Vuelta a España, 1 stage
Volta a Catalunya (1985)
Dauphiné Libéré (1990)
Tour of Britain (1989)
flagicon|GBR National Champion (1995)
updated = July 26, 2007

Robert Millar (born 13 September 1958) is a former Scottish professional cyclist who won the “King of the Mountains” competition in the 1984 Tour de France and finished fourth overall – the highest Tour position for a British cyclist, and the first time a Briton had won a major Tour classification. He also achieved the highest finish by a Briton in the Giro d'Italia, finishing second in 1987 and winning the King of the Mountains classification too. He was a vegetarian. He is not related to fellow Scot David Millar.

Early life

Raised in Glasgow and at one time destined for a career as a factory engineer, Robert Millar was a leading amateur road racing rider. Riding for Glasgow Wheelers cycling club, he won the Scottish junior title in 1976 and was Scottish hill-climb champion the following year.

In 1978, Millar established himself on the British scene. He was 21st in the Milk Race, and won the British amateur road race championship. He moved to France in 1979 to join the ACBB (Athletic Club Boulogne-Billancourt), Europe's top amateur team. A year later, after retaining his British road title, taking fourth place in the world amateur road championship, claiming five wins in France and winning the French 'Best Amateur' Trophy, he turned professional for the Peugeot cycling team, and as a climbing specialist focused on single-day road races and stage races in hilly or mountainous terrain.

Professional career

His early professional career included high positions in the Tour of Vaucluse (3rd in 1980), Criterium du Dauphiné Libéré (7th in 1981 and second in 1983), Tour de Romandie (7th in 1981 and 1982) and Tour de l'Avenir (second in 1982).

In 1983, he rode the Tour de France for the first time, winning stage 10 Pau-Bagneres de Luchon and finishing 14th overall and third in the mountain classification. That year he also came second in the Dauphiné Libéré stage race.

1984 saw continued improvement. In the early season Paris-Nice stage "Race to the Sun" he held the lead for a while before finishing sixth, and in the Tour de Romandie he took fifth place overall, the mountains competition and a stage at Crans-Montana. It was preparation for the Tour de France – he finished fourth (surpassing Tom Simpson's sixth place in the 1960s) and won "King of the Mountains", aided by another mountain stage victory on stage 11 from Pau to Guzet-Neige.

In 1985, he won the Volta a Catalunya and came sixth in Paris-Nice. He also raced well in the Vuelta a España, finishing second and taking a stage (feats he repeated in 1986), but in the Tour de France he finished 11th. Riding for the Dutch Panasonic team in 1987, Millar got his first taste of the Giro d'Italia, finishing second, taking a stage and the mountains competition. In the Tour de Romandie, he finished fourth; in the Tour de France 19th.

In 1988, Millar rode for the French Fagor team and managed his best position in a one-day 'Monument' Classic, third in Liège-Bastogne-Liège. In the Tour de France, he lost the opportunity of a repeat mountain stage win in Guzet-Neige when, sprinting uphill to the finish with Phillipe Bouvatier, both riders mistook a gendarme's signals, took a wrong turn and ceded the win to Massimo Ghirotto.

In 1989, racing for Z-Peugeot, he was close to victory in the Dauphiné Libéré, taking a stage en route to second place. In the Tour de France, he finished 10th and added stage 10 from Cauterets to Superbagnères. He also won the Tour of Britain.

Victory in the Dauphiné Libéré arrived in 1990, along with a fourth place in the Giro di Lombardia. In between, he also took second place in the 1990 Tour of Britain.

During the mid-1980s Millar appeared in television commercials for Kellogg's 'Start' cereal. A one-hour television documentary about Millar's 1985 racing season, which also included appearances by Allan Peiper and music by Steve Winwood, was screened in Britain shortly before the start of the 1986 Tour de France.

Later career

The final years of his career were less successful. Riding for the Dutch TVM Squad, he completed the Tour de France in 1991 (72nd), 1992 (18th) and 1993 (24th), and the Vuelta in 1992 (20th) and 1993 (15th), and achieved numerous top 10 finishes, but victories eluded him. His final major victory came in June 1995 when he won the British road race championship. However, soon afterwards, his French team, Le Groupement, went bust and Millar retired.

In 1997 he became British coach, and in 1998 managed the Scottish team in the PruTour, an eight-day round-Britain stage race.

Millar was also a cycling journalist, testing new products. He then cut his ties with the sport. In 2003 he was inducted to the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame but didn't attend the ceremony.

A book about Millar - "In Search of Robert Millar", by Richard Moore - was published by HarperCollins in 2007. The author made email contact with Millar and their exchanges form the epilogue. The "Daily Mail" said it had located Millar in a Dorset village, living as a woman, but this article has since been removed from the web site and appears unconfirmed . [ [http://www.theherald.co.uk/sport/headlines/display.var.1428523.0.0.php "The enigma machine" Doug Gillon, The Herald] 26 May 2007]

A film was also screened simultaneously with the release of the book; "Robert Millar - The High Life" at Edinburgh Bike Week Film Festival on 26 June 2007. [ [http://homepage.mac.com/ch.edinburgh/bff/BW07/PDF/BFF07.pdf Edinburgh Bike Week Film Festival programme] PDF]

Palmares

;1980 - no wins:3rd Tour of Vaucluse.:8th Tour de Romandie.:5th National Championship.;1981 - no wins:7th, Tour de Romandie.:7th Dauphiné Libéré.:5th Tour de l'Aude.:5th GP Gippingen.;1982 - no wins:7th Tour de Romandie.:2nd Tour de l'Avenir.;1983 - 1 win:Tour de France:: winner stage 10::14th place overall:3rd Dauphiné Libéré.;1984 - 3 wins:Tour de France::::Winner stage 11:Tour de Romandie: Winner stage 2:Midi Libre: Stage 11:2nd Nice-Alassio.:2nd Tour of Haut Var.:6th Paris-Nice.:5th Tour de Romandie.:4th Midi Libre.:4th Tour de France.:6th World Championship.:7th Volta a Catalunya.;1985 - 1 win:Volta a Catalunya overall.:7th Tour of Haut Var.:6th Paris-Nice.:6th Criterium International.:6th Tour Midi-Pyrenees.:2nd Tour of Spain.:9th Dauphiné Libéré.:4th GP Wallonia.:3rd Tour of Piedmont.;1986 - 1 win:Vuelta a España:::2nd place overall::Winner stage:6th Tour of Aragon.:2nd Tour de Suisse.:7th Montjuich hill-climb.;1987 - 2 wins:Giro d'Italia::2nd place overall::::Winner stage 21:6th Tour of the Mediterranean.:7th Catalan Week.:5th Liège-Bastogne-Liège.:4th Tour de Romandie.;1988 - no wins:9th Paris-Nice.:3rd Criterium International.:3rd Liège-Bastogne-Liège.:6th Tour of Spain.:3rd Rut de Sud.:2nd Bicicleta Vasca.:8th Volta a Catalunya.;1989 - 4 wins:Tour de Romandie: stage 4:Dauphiné Libéré: Stage 7:Tour de France: stage 10:Tour of Britain: overall:7th GP Besseges.:8th GP Cannes.:8th Paris-Camembert.:8th Tour of Vaucluse.:2nd Gp Wallonia.:3rd Tour de Romandie.:2nd Dauphiné Libéré.:6th National Championship.:9th GP of Americas.;1990 - 2 wins: Winner Dauphiné Libéré:Winner Stage four, Tour de Romandie:4th Tour of Andalucia.:7th GP Rennes.:9th Fleche Wallone.:2nd Tour de Suisse.:2nd Tour of Britain.:4th GP Ouest France.:4th Giro di Lombardia.;1991 - 1 win:Winner stage five, Tour de Suisse.:2nd Tour de Romandie.:2nd Classique des Alpes.:4th Dauphiné Libéré.:5th Tour de Suisse.:4th Tour of Britain.:5th GP of Americas.;1992 - no wins:9th Catalan Week.:9th Liège-Bastogne-Liège.:9th Tour of Britain.:6th Tour of Lazio.:7th Tour of Piedmont.;1993 - no wins:9th Classique des Alpes.:7th Tour of Asturias.:6th Midi Libre.:2nd Tour of the Mining Valleys.:5th National championship.;1994 - no wins:9th Tour of Galicia.:4th Climber's Trophy.:6th Coppa Piacci.:7th Coppa Sabatini.;1995 - 1 win:National championship run as the Manx Trophy.:9th Classique des Alpes.

Teams

*1980-1981: Peugeot - Esso - Michelin (France)
*1982-1985: Peugeot - Shell - Michelin (France)
*1986: Panasonic (Netherlands)
*1987: Panasonic - Isostar (Netherlands)
*1988: Fagor - MBK (France)
*1989: Z - Peugeot (France)
*1990-1991: Z (France)
*1992: TVM - Sanyo (Netherlands)
*1993-1994: TVM - Bison Kit (Netherlands)
*1995: Le Groupement (France)

References