1994 Tour de France results by BikeRaceInfo (original) (raw)
1994 Tour de France stages and results with running GC
Prologue: Saturday, July 2, Lille 7.2 km Individual Time Trial. Stage and GC places and times are the same.
1. Chris Boardman: 7min 49sec
2. Miguel Indurain @ 15sec
3. Tony Rominger @ 19sec
4. Alex Zulle @ 22sec
5. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 24sec
6. Thierry Marie @ 29sec
7. Eddy Seigneur @ 30sec
8. Johan Museeuw @ 31sec
9. Claudio Chiappucci @ 33sec
10. Andrea Peron @ 34sec
Stage 1: Sunday, July 3, Lille - Armentières, 234 km
1. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov: 5hr 46min 16sec
2. Olaf Ludwig s.t.
3. Johan Museeuw s.t.
4. Silvio Martinello s.t.
5. Andrei Tchmil s.t.
6. Jan Svorada s.t.
7. Giovanni Fidanza s.t.
8. Emmanuel Magnien s.t.
9. Miguel Indurain s.t.
10. Gianluca Bortolami s.t.
GC after Stage 1:
1. Chris Boardman: 5hr 54min 5sec
2. Miguel Indurain @ 15sec
3. Tony Rominger @ 19sec
4. Alex Zulle @ 22sec
5. Johan Museeuw @ 23sec
6. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 24sec
7. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov @ 27sec
8. Thierry Marie @ 29sec
9. Eddy Seigneur @ 30sec
10. Olaf Ludwig @ 32sec
Stage 2: Monday, July 4, Roubaix - Boulogne Sur Mer, 203.5 km
1. Jean-Paul Van Poppel: 5hr 5min 40sec
2. Olaf Ludwig s.t.
3. Silvio Martinello s.t.
4. Francois Simon s.t.
5. Johan Museeuw s.t.
6. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
7. Laurent Desbiens s.t.
8. Angel Edo s.t.
9. Fabiano Fontinelli s.t.
10. Andrei Tchmil s.t.
GC after Stage 2:
1. Chris Boardman: 10hr 59min 45sec
2. Miguel indurain @ 15sec
3. Tony Rominger @ 19sec
4. Olaf Ludwig @ 20sec
5. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov @ 21sec
6. Alex Zulle @ 22sec
7. Johan Museeuw @ 23sec
8. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 24sec
9. Thierry Marie @ 29sec
10. Eddy Seigneur @ 30sec
Stage 3: Tuesday, July 5, Calais - Eurotunnel 66.5 km Team Time Trial. Riders got their team's real GC times, but rules limited a rider's time loss to 5 minutes.
1. GB-GM Technogym: 1hr 20min 31sec
2. Motorola @ 6sec
3. Banesto @ 18sec
4. Castorama @ 27sec
5. Mapei @ 42sec
6. Gewiss-Ballan @ 1min 2sec
7. Lampre @ 1min 15sec
8. GAN @ 1min 17sec
9. Polti @ 1min 23sec
10. Wordperfect @ 1min 55sec
GC after Stage 3:
1. Johan Museeuw: 12hr 20min 39sec
2. Miguel Indurain @ 10sec
3. Rolf Sorensen @ 19sec
4. Flavio Vanzella @ 22sec
5. Lance Armstrong @ 27sec
6. Steve Bauer s.t.
7. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 28sec
8. Thierry Marie @ 33sec
9. Sean Yates @ 34sec
10. Tony Rominger @ 38sec
Stage 4: Wednesday, July 6, Dover - Brighton, 204.5 km
1. Francisco Cabello: 5hr 12min 53sec
2. Emmanuel Magnien @ 20sec
3. Flavio Vanzella s.t.
4. Chris Boardman @ 33sec
5. Enrico Zaina s.t.
6. Silvio Martinello @ 38sec
7. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
8. Rolf Aldag s.t.
9. Stefano Colage s.t.
10. Frankie Andreu s.t.
GC after Stage 4:
1. Flavio Vanzella: 17hr 34min 6sec
2. Johan Museeuw @ 4sec
3. Miguel Indurain @ 14sec
4. Rolf Sorensen @ 23sec
5. Lance Armstrong @ 26sec
6. Steve Bauer @ 31sec
7. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 32sec
8. Thierry Marie @ 37sec
9. Sean Yates @ 38sec
10. Tony Rominger @ 42sec
Stage 5: Thursday, July 7, Portsmouth - Portsmouth, 187 km
1. Nicola Minali: 4hr 10min 49sec
2. Olaf Ludwig s.t.
3. Silvio Martinello s.t.
4. Jan Svorada s.t.
5. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
6. Jean-Paul Van Poppel s.t.
7. Johan Capiot s.t.
8. Jan Kirsipuu s.t.
9. Gianluca Bortolami s.t.
10. Christophe Capelle s.t.
GC after stage 5:
1. Flavio Vanzella: 21hr 44min 55sec
2. Johan Museeuw @ 4sec
3. Miguel Indurain @ 14sec
4. Lance Armstrong @ 14sec
5. Armand De La Cuevas @ 32sec
6. Thierry Marie @ 37sec
7. Sean Yates @ 38sec
8. Tony Rominger @ 42sec
9. Frankie Andreu @ 43sec
10. Thomas Davy s.t.
Stage 6: Friday, July 8, Cherbourg - Rennes, 270.5 km
1. Gianluca Bortolami: 6hr 58min 47sec
2. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov @ 2sec
3. Beat Zberg s.t.
4. Guido Bontempi s.t.
5. Jens Heppner s.t.
6. Sean Yates s.t.
7. Frankie Andreu s.t.
8. Jan Svorada @ 46sec
9. Jan Kirsipuu s.t.
10. Angel Edo s.t.
GC after Stage 6:
1. Sean Yates: 28hr 44min 22sec
2. Gianluca Bortolami @ 1sec
3. Johan Museeuw @ 4sec
4. Frankie Andreu @ 5sec
5. Flavio Vanzella @ 6sec
6. Miguel Indurain @ 20sec
7. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov @ 31sec
8. Lance Armstrong @ 32sec
9. Thierry Marie @ 37sec
10. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 38sec
Stage 7: Saturday, July 9, Rennes - Futuroscope, 259.5 km
1. Jan Svorada: 5hr 56min 50sec
2. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
3. Olaf Ludwig s.t.
4. Nicola Minali s.t.
5. Christophe Capelle s.t.
6. Silvio Martinello s.t.
7. Mario De Clercq s.t.
8. Jesper Skibby s.t.
9. Johan Museeuw s.t.
10. Emmanuel Magnien s.t.
GC after Stage 7:
1. Johan Museeuw: 34hr 41min 6sec
2. Sean Yates @ 6sec
3. Gianluca Bortolami @ 7sec
4. Flavio Vanzella @ 10sec
5. Frankie Andreu @ 11sec
6. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov @ 19sec
7. Miguel Indruain @ 26sec
8. Lance Armstrong @ 38sec
9. Thierry Marie @ 43sec
10. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 44sec
Stage 8: Sunday, July 10, Poitiers - Trélissac, 218.5 km
1. Bo Hamburger: 5hr 9min 27sec
2. Angel Carmago @ 1sec
3. Rolf Aldag @ 5sec
4. Luc Leblanc s.t.
5. Emmanuel Magnien @ 2min 16sec
6. Jan Svorada s.t.
7. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
8. Silvio Martinello s.t.
9. Nicola Minali s.t.
10. Gianluca Bortolami s.t.
GC after Stage 8:
1. Johan Museeuw: 39hr 52min 45sec
2. Gianluca Bortolami @ 5sec
3. Sean Yates @ 10sec
4. Frankie Andreu @ 13sec
5. Flavio Vanzella @ 14sec
6. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov @ 23sec
7. Miguel Indurain @ 30sec
8. Lance Armstrong @ 42sec
9. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 48sec
10. Tony Rominger @ 58sec
Stage 9: Monday, July 11, Périgueux - Bergerac 64 km Individual Time Trial
1. Miguel Indurain: 1hr 15min 58sec
2. Tony Rominger @ 2min
3. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 4min 22sec
4. Thierry Marie @ 4min 45sec
5. Chris Boardman @ 5min 27sec
6. Bjarne Riis @ 5min 33sec
7. Thomas Davy @ 5min 35sec
8. Abraham Olano @ 5min 45sec
9. Arturas Kasputis @ 6min 1sec
10. Piotr Ugramov @ 6min 4sec
GC after stage 9:
1. Miguel Indurain: 41hr 9min 13sec
2. Tony Rominger @ 2min 28sec
3. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 4min 40sec
4. Gianluca Bortolami @ 5min 47sec
5. Thierry Marie @ 5min 51sec
6. Thomas Davy @ 6min 4sec
7. Chris Boardman @ 6min 6sec
8. Sean Yates @ 6min 30sec
9. Abraham Olano @ 6min 31sec
10. Lance Armstrong @ 6min 35sec
Stage 10: Tuesday, July 12, Bergerac - Cahors, 160.5 km
1. Jacky Durand: 3hr 38min 11sec
2. Marco Serpellini @ 5sec
3. Stephen Hodge @ 59sec
4. Gianluca Bortolami s.t.
5. Christain Henn s.t.
6. Jean-Claude Colotti @ 1min 3sec
7. Mario Chiesa @ 1min 18sec
8. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov @ 1min 55sec
9. Jan Svorada s.t.
10. Silvio Martinello s.t.
GC after Stage 10:
1. Miguel Indurain: 44hr 49min 19sec
2. Tony Rominger @ 2min 28sec
3. Gianluca Bortolami @ 4min 37sec
4. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 4min 40sec
5. Thierry Marie @ 5min 51sec
6. Thomas Davy @ 6min 4sec
7. Chris Boardman @ 6min 6sec
8. Sean Yates @ 6min 30sec
9. Abraham Olano @ 6min 31sec
10. Lance Armstrong @ 6min 35sec
Stage 11: Wednesday, July 13, Cahors - Lourdes (Hautacam), 263.5 km
Major Ascent: Lourdes (Hautacam)
1. Luc Leblanc: 6hr 58min 4sec
2. Miguel Indurain @ 2sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 18sec
4. Richard Virenque @ 56sec
5. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 58sec
6. Pavel Tonkov @ 1min 26sec
7. Piotr Ugramov s.t.
8. Enrico Zaina @ 1min 36sec
9. Roberto Conti @ 1min 46sec
10. Laudelino Cubino @ 1min 50sec
GC after Stage 11:
1. Miguel Indurain: 51hr 47min 25sec
2. Tony Rominger @ 4min 47sec
3. Armand De las Cuevas @ 5min 36sec
4. Piotr Ugramov @ 8min 32sec
5. Luc Leblanc @ 8min 35sec
6. Bjarne Riis @ 8min 59sec
7. Gianluca Bortolami @ 9min 14sec
8. Abraham Olano @ 9min 20sec
9. Thomas Davy @ 9min 46sec
10. Enrico Zaina @ 11min 15sec
Stage 12: Friday, July 15, Lourdes - Luz Ardiden, 204.5 km
Major Ascents: Peyresourde, Aspin, Tourmalet, Luz-Ardiden. Virenque was first to the top of the last three.
1. Richard Virenque: 6hr 8min 32sec
2. Marco Pantani @ 4min 34sec
3. Oscar Pellicioli @ 5min 52sec
4. Nelson Rodriguez @ 7min 2sec
5. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 7min 42sec
6. Miguel Indurain s.t.
7. Luc Leblanc s.t.
8. Laudelino Cubino @ 8min 14sec
9. Hernan Buenahora @ 9min 43sec
10. Angel Camargo s.t.
GC after Stage 12:
1. Miguel Indurain: 58hr 3min 39sec
2. Tony Rominger @ 7min 56sec
3. Richard Virenque s.t.
4. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 8min 2sec
5. Luc Leblanc @ 8min 35sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 11min 30sec
7. Bjarne Riis @ 11min 44sec
8. Marco Pantani @ 11min 55sec
9. Thomas Davy @ 12min 26sec
10. Piotr Ugramov @ 13min 17sec
Stage 13: Saturday, July 16, Bagnères de Bigorre - Albi, 223 km
Tony Rominger abandoned.
1. Bjarne Riis: 5hr 14min 48sec
2. Jan Svorada @ 9sec
3. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
4. Silvio Martinello s.t.
5. Christophe Capelle s.t.
6. Jean-Paul Van Poppel s.t.
7. Andrei Tchmil s.t.
8. Emmanuel Magnien s.t.
9. Francois Simon s.t.
10. Marc Sergeant s.t.
GC after Stage 13:
1. Miguel Indurain: 63hr 18min 36sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 7min 56sec
3. Armand De Las Cuevas: 8min 2sec
4. Luc Leblanc @ 8min 35sec
5. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 11min 30sec
6. Bjarne Riis @ 11min 35sec
7. Marco Pantani @ 11min 55sec
8. Thomas Davy @ 12min 26sec
9. Piotr Ugramov @ 13min 17sec
10. Abraham Olano @ 14min 5sec
Stage 14: Sunday, July 17, Castres - Montpellier, 202 km
Major Ascent: La Fontasse
1. Rolf Sorensen: 5hr 11min 4sec
2. Neil Stephens s.t.
3. Rolf Jaermann @ 1min 13sec
4. Massimo Ghirotto s.t.
5. Pascal Herve @ 1min 15sec
6. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov @ 5min 56sec
7. Jan Svorada s.t.
8. Silvio Martinello s.t.
9. Marc Sergeant s.t.
10. Emmanuel Mangien s.t.
GC after Stage 14:
1. Miguel Indurain: 68hr 35min 36sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 7min 56sec
3. Armand De La Cuevas @ 8min 2sec
4. Luc Leblanc @ 8min 35sec
5. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 11min 30sec
6. Marco Pantani @ 11min 55sec
7. Bjarne Riis s.t.
8. Thomas Davy @ 12min 26sec
9. Piotr Ugramov @ 13min 37sec
10. Abraham Olano @ 14min 5sec
Stage 15: Monday, July 18, Montpellier - Carpentras, 231 km
Major Ascent: Mont Ventoux
1. Eros Poli: 6hr 31min 59sec
2. Alberto Elli @ 3min 39sec
3. Pascal Lino s.t.
4. Roberto Conti @ 3min 41sec
5. Richard Virenque @ 4min
6. Armand De Las Cuevas s.t.
7. Piotr Ugramov s.t.
8. Alex Zulle s.t.
9. Miguel Indurain s.t.
10. Marco Pantani s.t.
GC after Stage 15:
1. Miguel Indurain: 75hr 11min 35sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 7min 56sec
3. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 8min 2sec
4. Luc Leblanc @ 8min 35sec
5. Vladimir Poulnikov @11min 30sec
6. Marco Pantani @ 11min 55sec
7. Piotr Ugramov @ 13min 37sec
8. Thomas Davy @ 16min 12sec
9. Alex Zulle @ 16min 12sec
10. Abraham Olano @ 17min 51sec
Stage 16: Tuesday, July 19, Valréas - L'Alpe d'Huez, 224.5 km
Major Ascents: Meneé, Ornon, L'Alpe d'Huez
1. Roberto Conti: 6hr 6min 45sec
2. Hernan Buenahora @ 2min 2sec
3. Udo Bolts @ 3min 49sec
4. Alberto Elli s.t.
5. Giancarlo Perini @ 4min 3sec
6. Jorg Muller @ 4min 39sec
7. Bruno Cenghialta @ 5min 5sec
8. Marco Pantani @ 5min 41sec
9. Roberto Torres @ 5min 55sec
10. Angel Camargo @ 7min 15sec
GC after Stage 16:
1. Miguel Indurain: 81hr 26min 16sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 7min 21sec
3. Luc Leblanc @ 8min 35sec
4. Armand De Las Cuevas @ 9min 15sec
5. Marco Pantani @ 9min 40sec
6. Roberto Conti @ 9min 57sec
7. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 11min 37sec
8. Alberto Elli @ 13min 57sec
9. Piotr Ugramov @ 14min 8sec
10.Alex Zulle @ 16min 44sec
Stage 17: Wednesday, July 20, Bourg d'Oisans - Val Thorens, 149 km.
Major Ascents: Glandon, Madeleine, Val Thorens
1. Nelson Rodriguez: 5hr 13min 52sec
2. Piotr Ugramov @ 3sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 1min 8sec
4. Richard Virenque @ 2min 37sec
5. Miguel Indurain s.t.
6. Alex Zulle s.t.
7. Luc Leblanc @ 2min 40sec
8. Roberto Conti @ 2min 44sec
9. Hernan Buenahora @ 2min 45sec
10. Udo Bolts @ 2min 52sec
GC after Stage 17
1. Miguel Indurain: 86hr 42min 45sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 7min 21sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 8min 11sec
4. Luc Leblanc @ 8min 38sec
5. Roberto Conti @ 10min 4sec
6. Piotr Ugramov @ 11min 34sec
7. Alberto Elli @ 14min 12sec
8. Alex Zulle @ 16min 44sec
9. Udo Bolts @ 18min 55sec
10. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 19min 15sec
Stage 18: Thursday, July 21, Moutiers - Cluses, 174.5 km
Major Ascents: Saises, Croix Fry, Colombière
1. Piotr Ugramov: 4hr 52min 19sec
2. Miguel Indurain @ 2min 39sec
3. Richard Virenque @ 2min 40sec
4. Fernando Escartin @ 3min 25sec
5. Marco Pantani s.t.
6. Roberto Conti @ 3min 26sec
7. Pascal Lino @ 3min 30sec
8. Luc Leblanc s.t.
9. Arturas Kasputis @ 4min 55sec
10. Oscar Pellicioli s.t.
GC after Stage 18:
1. Miguel Indurain: 91hr 37min 43sec
2. Richard Virenque @ 7min 22sec
3. Piotr Ugramov @ 8min 55sec
4. Marco Pantani @ 8min 57sec
5. Luc Leblanc @ 9min 29sec
6. Roberto Conti @ 10min 51sec
7. Alberto Elli @ 16min 30sec
8. Alex Zulle @ 19min 2sec
9. Udo Bolts @ 21min 13sec
10. Pascal Lino @ 21min 13sec
Stage 19: Friday, July 22, Cluses - Morzine Avoriaz 47.5 km Individual Time Trial.
Major Ascents: Les Gets, Avoriaz
1. Piotr Ugramov: 1hr 22min 59sec
2. Marco Pantani @ 1min 38sec
3. Miguel Indurain @ 3min 16sec
4. Luc Leblanc @ 3min 50sec
5. Charly Mottet @ 4min 12sec
6. Enrico Zaina @ 4min 17sec
7. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 4min 26sec
8. Jean-François Bernard @ 4min 31sec
9. Alex Zulle @ 4min 49sec
10. Roberto Conti @ 4min 54sec
GC after stage 19:
1. Miguel Indurain: 93hr 3min 58sec
2. Piotr Ugramov @ 5min 39sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 7min 19sec
4. Luc Leblanc @ 10min 3sec
5. Richard Virenque @ 10min 10sec
6. Roberto Conti @ 12min 29sec
7. Elberto Elli @ 20min 17sec
8. Alex Zulle @ 20min 35sec
9. Udo Bolts @ 25min 19sec
10. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 25min 28sec
Stage 20: Saturday, July 23, Morzine - Lac St. Point, 208.5 km
Major Ascent: Faucille
1. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov: 5hr 50min 37sec
2. Jan Svorada s.t.
3. Silvio Martinello s.t.
4. Phil Anderson s.t.
5. Bjarne Riis s.t.
6. Angel Edo s.t.
7. Gianluca Bortolami s.t.
8. Massimo Ghirotto s.t.
9. Giovanni Fidanza s.t.
10. François Simon s.t.
GC after Stage 20:
1. Miguel Indurain: 98hr 54min 35sec
2. Piotr Ugramov @ 5min 39sec
3. Marco Pantani @ 7min 19sec
4. Luc Leblanc @ 10min 3sec
5. Richard Virenque @ 10min 10sec
6. Roberto Conti @ 12min 29sec
7. Alberto Elli @ 20min 17sec
8. Alex Zulle @ 20min 35sec
9. Udo Bolts @ 25min 19sec
10. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 25min 28sec
21st and final stage: Sunday, July 24, Disneyland Paris- Paris (Champs Elysées), 175 km
1. Eddy Seigneur: 4hr 43min 34sec
2. Frankie Andreu @ 3sec
3. Bo Hamburger @ 6sec
4. Jorg Muller s.t.
5. Arturas Kasputis @ 25sec
6. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
7. Viatcheslav Ekimov @ 27sec
8. Silvio Martinello @ 29sec
9. Angel Edo s.t.
10. Olaf Ludwig s.t.
Complete Final 1994 Tour de France General Classification
The Story of the 1994 Tour de France:
This excerpt is from "The Story of the Tour de France", Volume 2. If you enjoy it we hope you will consider purchasing the book, either print, eBook or audiobook. The Amazon link here will make the purchase easy.
In the 1994 Giro d'Italia, cracks in the impenetrable wall of Indurain's invulnerability started to show. Or at least seemed to. There were 3 time trials and Indurain did not win any of them. In the stage 1b 7-kilometer individual time trial, eventual Giro winner Evgeni Berzin beat Indurain by 3 seconds. Stage 8 was a fairer contest at 44 kilometers. This time Berzin beat the Spaniard by 2 minutes, 34 seconds. In the final time trial, stage 18, Berzin was 20 seconds faster over the 35 kilometers. Counting the final time trial in the 1993 Tour de France, this made 4 successive time trial losses for Indurain.
Moreover, Marco Pantani, a true pure climber, was able to get away on 2 consecutive days and gain enough time on Indurain to finish ahead of him in the General Classification. This put a dagger in the heart of the Indurain strategy: contain the climbers in the hills, letting them gain only insignificant amounts of time. Then, as Frankie Andreu said, kill them in the time trial. In the 1994 Giro, he could do neither.
The final podium for the 1994 Giro:
1. Evgeni Berzin
2. Marco Pantani @ 2 minutes 51 seconds
3. Miguel Indurain @ 3 minutes 23 seconds
Was this a portent for the Tour or just a careful training ride crafted so that Indurain would not be too tired to contest the final days of the Tour? In the 1993 Tour he ran out of gas. He was not the "extra-terrestrial" he had been called. He was instead, just a gifted athlete at the top of his game.
Owen Mulholland has noted that this Tour had a particularly large crop of good climbers. Given Indurain's past inability to ride in the mountains with the very best mountain goats, riders such as Richard Virenque, Marco Pantani and Piotr Ugrumov were eagerly looking forward to contesting the Tour.
The Tour's 7.2-kilometer prologue in Lille was Chris Boardman's first day in his first Tour de France. What a spectacular result for him when he won the prologue, beating Indurain by 15 seconds and Rominger by 19. He was now the Yellow Jersey, the first Englishman to own it since Tommy Simpson, 32 years before. Simpson's last day in Yellow was 4 years before Boardman was born.
The next day, a 234-kilometer sprinter's stage from Lille to Armentieres, saw one of the most spectacular crashes in Tour history. A policeman leaned out into the road to take a picture of the final sprint. Wilfried Nelissen slammed into him, breaking his collarbone and taking down Laurent Jalabert. Jalabert, who had won 7 stages and the points competition in the Vuelta earlier that year, was looking forward to repeating the process in his home country. Instead, after receiving terrible wounds to his face, he was taken to the hospital. Jalabert said that the crash changed his way of riding. Apparently under pressure from his devoted wife, Sylvie, for the remainder of his career he no longer sought out the dangerous bunch sprints. Marguerite Lazell says that although Nelissen returned to racing, he was never again the racer he was before that crash.
Boardman was able to keep his Yellow Jersey until the stage 3 team time trial, 66.5 kilometers contested at Calais. MG-GB won the stage with Motorola just missing the win by 6 seconds. That must have deeply pained the team's manager Jim Ochowicz, who had dreamed of winning this event for years.
The MG-GB win gave Johan Museeuw the lead. Boardman, desperate to get the Yellow Jersey back for the next day's stage in England had hammered his team. Being a fairly inexperienced professional with extraordinary power (he had only turned pro in August 1993), he, as Armstrong did in his early team time trials, took such hard pulls that his teammates struggled to stay with him. I remember watching this stage on TV, yelling at Boardman on the television screen to take slower, longer pulls. Didn't do any good.
The Tour made another crossing of the English Channel, the first time since that less than successful journey in 1974. Back in 1974, the crowds were sparse and the racing was uninteresting, being held on an unopened expressway. This time, with 2 stages in England, the crowds were huge and the racers rode as if it was the Tour de France. Boardman did manage a fourth place in 1 of the stages, but he had lost too much time (1 minute, 17 seconds) in the team time trial to get back in Yellow. Ironically, Sean Yates, also a British rider, donned the Yellow Jersey on the Tour's first day back in France.
The Tour really started on stage 9, a 64-kilometer individual time trial. Was Indurain faltering? Was his Giro performance a guide to his Tour? Look at the times.
1. Miguel Indurain: 1 hour 15 minutes 58 seconds
2. Tony Rominger @ 2 minutes
3. Armand de las Cuevas @ 4 minutes 22 seconds
4. Thierry Marie @ 4 minutes 45 seconds
5. Chris Boardman @ 5 minutes 27 seconds
With the exception of Rominger, Indurain had humiliated the field. Boardman was the reigning Olympic Pursuit Champion and would go on that year to become the World Time Trial Champion. For all of his ability, he was over 5 minutes slower than Indurain. Almost half the field finished over 12 minutes behind than the Spaniard. The General Classification after the time trial:
1. Miguel Indurain
2. Tony Rominger @ 2 minutes 28 seconds
3. Armand de las Cuevas @ 4 minutes 40 seconds
4. Gianluca Bortolami @ 5 minutes 47 seconds
5. Thierry Marie @ 5 minutes 51 seconds
The time gaps were already beyond what could ever be recaptured from an in-form Indurain unless misfortune took him down.
Stage 11 would reveal all with its new climb up the Hautacam to Lourdes. Different measurements rate the climb slightly differently. Some call it a 17.3 kilometer climb with 1,170 meters of elevation gain and an average gradient of 6.8%. Others start the true climb further up the road and make it a 13.6 kilometer run up 1,000 meters of elevation gain. Either way, it's rated hors category and has a patch in the center that's 10% before relaxing to a leg-breaking 8%+ gradient. This is what the small, specialist climbers live for with their high power-to-weight ratio. Indurain may kill them in the time trials, but this was a chance to take the time back.
The first to take off up the mountain was Marco Pantani, second in the Giro earlier this year. Jean-François Bernard, who a few years earlier had been expected to inherit the mantle of Bernard Hinault as France's and the world's next great stage racer, was riding as a domestique for Indurain. Maybe he wasn't Hinault, but Bernard set a fiery pace up the Hautacam that shed most of the peloton. Halfway up the mountain, exhausted, he pulled off to let Indurain and the others take over. In past years Indurain would not let his climbing domestiques go all out in the high mountains because he couldn't match their pace. This year he could take what they could dish out and still be ready to hand out heaping helpings of suffering to those still on his wheel.
Indurain took over from Bernard and rode in his steady, smooth style with a high cadence that was so surprising in such a large man. He was finally left with only 2 riders, both Frenchmen. Luc Leblanc and Richard Virenque were the only men who could match Indurain that day. Then, after another couple of kilometers even Virenque couldn't take it. It was down to Leblanc and Indurain. The duo caught and passed Pantani. Leblanc tried to shed Indurain but could only gain a temporary gap that Indurain, with extreme effort, was able to close. At the summit Leblanc sprinted ahead for a close win.
This was a new Indurain. In the past, the mountains posed a threat, a manageable threat, but a danger to him nonetheless. Now Indurain could attack the field in the mountains and beat the best climbers at their own game. Look at the times for the stage:
1. Luc Leblanc
2. Miguel Indurain @ 2 seconds
3. Marco Pantani @ 18 seconds
4. Richard Virenque @ 56 seconds
5. Armand de las Cuevas @ 58 seconds
6. Pavel Tonkov @ 1 minute 26 seconds
7. Piotr Ugrumov @ s.t.
16. Rominger @ 2min 21sec
Suffering from stomach problems:
168. Claudio Chiappucci @ 23 minutes 57 seconds
The General Classification:
1. Miguel Indurain
2. Tony Rominger @ 4 minutes 47 seconds
3. Armand de las Cuevas @ 5 minutes 36 seconds
4. Piotr Ugrumov @ 8 minutes 32 seconds
5. Luc Leblanc @ 8 minutes 35 seconds
The peloton was in tatters after the first real climb of the Tour.
The next day was another Pyrenean stage with the Peyresourde, the Aspin, Tourmalet and the final climb to Luz-Ardiden. With the field put in its place, Indurain let a group of non-contenders get away. Richard Virenque led over the last 3 climbs and won the stage with a lead of over 4½ minutes on Marco Pantani. Rominger, not well, withdrew from the Tour.
The Tour headed towards the Alps. On the way, there was stage 15, 231 kilometers from Montpellier to Carpentras with Mont Ventoux in the way. Early in the day the biggest man in the peloton, Eros Poli, took off. I clearly remember seeing this stage on TV. Back then, the weekend network coverage was spotty, spending infuriating amounts of time explaining the basics of bicycle racing and other needless garbage. But this stage and this adventure they covered.
The big man pedaled away from a completely indifferent peloton. Before he reached Mont Ventoux he had a lead of nearly half an hour. He couldn't get that big a lead without drawing down his stores of energy. The climb up Mont Ventoux seemed to be almost beyond him. Exhausted, he could barely turn over the cranks, looking terribly overgeared. He cleared the summit with several minutes in hand and sped down the other side. His big mass may have slowed him to a near standstill going up the hill, but going down, being big came in good stead. He won the stage 3 minutes, 39 seconds ahead of the first chasers. The contenders, Indurain, Pantani, Ugrumov, Virenque, and others came in together 4 minutes later. While Poli's ride was epic, nothing changed in the General Classification.
The first day in the Alps with the climb up L'Alpe d'Huez didn't change much either. Riders with no General Classification hopes were allowed to escape while Indurain stayed close enough to Leblanc and Virenque to keep them from becoming dangerous.
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| Stage 16: Roberto Conti wins at L'Alpe d'Huez |
Stage 17 with its ascents of the Glandon, the Madeleine and an hors category finish at Val Thorens was the day Piotr Ugrumov finally came out and tried for a real shot at glory. On a long break he dragged Colombian Nelson Rodriguez to the finish where the Colombian sprinted ahead of Ugrumov for the win. Ugrumov was now up to sixth in the General Classification at a little over 11 minutes behind Indurain. Note that the interesting story of this Tour is the race for the minor placings. No one believed that the 1994 Indurain could be shaken from his place at the top of the standings.
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| Stage 17: Nelson Rodriguez wins at Val Thorens. |
The next day with the Saisies, Croix-Fry and the Colombière, all tough climbs, Ugrumov again escaped and this time achieved his solo victory. Indurain, unworried, came in second, 2 minutes, 39 seconds later. Ugrumov's solo adventure allowed him to leap past Pantani and others to make it to the podium. Now he was sitting third at 8 minutes, 55 seconds to Virenque's second place at 7 minutes, 22 seconds in the overall.
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| Stage 18 in Cluses: Ugrumov gets one. The second place finisher, Indurain, is 2 minutes, 39 seconds back. |
Stage 19 was the clincher for the 1994 Tour. It was a 47.5-kilometer individual time trial that climbed the second category Les Gets and the first category Avoriaz. Ugrumov turned in a stunning performance. Here are the stage results:
1. Piotr Ugrumov
2. Marco Pantani @ 1 minute 38 seconds
3. Miguel Indurain @ 3 minutes 16 seconds
4. Luc Leblanc @ 3 minutes 50 seconds
5. Charly Mottet @ 4 minutes 12 seconds
Virenque came in eighteenth at 6 minutes, 4 seconds. With that stunning collapse, he lost his place on the podium. Ugrumov moved up to second place and Marco Pantani dropped to third.
The final stage on the Champs Elysées was a fantastic, exciting race with Eddy Seigneur riding like a man possessed to take a solo win. Frankie Andreu was right on his heels, second at only 3 seconds.
The final 1994 Tour de France General Classification:
1. Miguel Indurain (Banesto): 103 hours 38 minutes 38 seconds
2. Piotr Ugrumov (Gewiss-Ballan) @ 5 minutes 39 seconds
3. Marco Pantani (Carrera) @ 7 minutes 19 seconds
4. Luc Leblanc (Festina) @ 10 minutes 3 seconds
5. Richard Virenque (Festina) @ 10 minutes 10 seconds
Climbers' Competition:
1. Richard Virenque: 392 points
2. Marco Pantani: 243 points
3. Piotr Ugrumov: 219 points
Points Competition:
1. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov: 322 points
2. Silvio Martinello: 273 points
3. Jan Svorada: 230 points
That made four sequential Tours for Miguel Indurain. Clearly, he was better than ever.