Bordeaux-Paris
| Bordeaux-Paris | |
|---|---|
| Region: | France |
| Date: | Abandoned |
| Type: | One-day race |
| First Edition: | 1891 |
| Last Edition: | 1988 |
| Editions: | 85 |
| First Winner: | Georges Pilkington Mills (GBR) |
| Last Winner: | Jean-François Rault (FRA) |
| Most Wins: | Herman van Springel (BEL), 7 times |
The Bordeaux-Paris professional cycle race was one of mainland Europe's Classic cycle races, and the longest in the professional calendar, covering a distance of approximately 560 kilometres (350 miles) - more than twice the distance of most single day races. It would start at Bordeaux in south-west France at 2am and finish in the French capital Paris approximately 14 hours later.
History
The event was first run in 1891, and the Derby of the Road (as it was sometimes called) was particularly notable in that riders were 'paced' - allowed to slipstream behind team-mates mounted, in the early events, on tandem bicycles or other conventional cycles. From 1931, the pacing was provided by motorcycles or small pedal-assisted Dernys.
In the inaugural events, pacing was provided from Bordeaux. In later events, the pacing was introduced part-way towards Paris. From 1946 to 1985, more than half the race distance was paced, the Dernys being introduced at, for example, Poitiers or Chatellerault, roughly half-way through the race.
The organisers of the inaugaral event, the Bordeaux Vélo Club, envisaged riders might take a few days to complete the race, but Englishman George Pilkington Mills raced through the night to win the 600km long event in just over a day. Another Englishman (Arthur Linton) won the event in 1896, but only one Englishman won the race in the modern era: Tom Simpson in May 1963. Other post-war winners included Louison Bobet (1959) and Jacques Anquetil (1965). The record for the most victories is held by Herman Van Springel who won seven times between 1970 and 1981.
Last races
By this time, however, the race was beginning to lose its prestige. It required special training, and clashed with riders' plans to compete in the Vuelta a Espana or Giro d'Italia stage races. Fields began to dwindle and the last motor-paced version was held in 1985; three non-paced versions were held from 1986 but the 1988 proved to be the last running of the event as a professional cycle race.
