Bahamontes, first Spanish winner of the Tour de France, dies
Madrid (AFP) – Federico Bahamontes, who in 1959 became the first Spanish cyclist to win the Tour de France, has died aged 95, the mayor of Toledo announced on Tuesday.
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"It is with deep sadness that we announce the loss of Federico Martin Bahamontes, the Eagle of Toledo, a reference point for sport who raised the name of our city to the heights," wrote Carlos Velazquez on Twitter, recently rebranded X.
"The first Spaniard to have won the Tour de France is part of the history of the sport in our country, with more than 74 victories to his credit," he added.
Velazquez said the city would hold two days of mourning. He will lie in state from Tuesday evening to Wednesday morning at the city hall, allowing the public to pay their last respects to him.
The Spanish Royal Household hailed him as a "hero and pioneer" who "taught everyone with humility how to climb the highest summits."
Spanish caretaker Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez thanked Bahamontes for "inspiring us to pedal beyond our limits."
"His legacy will endure on the roads and in our hearts," Sanchez wrote on X.
The Spanish cycling federation also paid Bahamontes -- who won another of the Grand Tours the Vuelta a Espana twice (1954, 1957) -- a handsome tribute.
"A legend of our sport, he was the first Spaniard to win the Tour de France, a race in which he is also remembered as one of the best climbers in history," the federation said.
Bahamontes earned his nom de guerre the 'Eagle of Toledo' -- given to him by a French journalist -- being crowned six times the King of the Mountains in the Tour de France.
In all he won 11 mountain stages on the Grand Tours (seven in the Tour, three in the Vuelta and one in the Giro d'Italia) and as others flagged he revelled in searing temperatures.
Bahamontes put down his extraordinary ability in the mountains to his first job working in the market in Toledo.
"To deliver to clients I had a small cart which I filled with 120 kilogrammes of fruit and vegetables," he recounted.
"I did this pushing it for four years in the streets.
"It is at that time that I gained the heart and body of a climber. On the slopes, I pushed the cart on the tips of my toes like I then did on the pedals."
Although he twice more featured in the Tour de France podium (second in 1963, third in 1964) he was let down by his lack of ability in the descents from the mountaintops -- in the days when stage finishes on the summits were rare.
In retirement he stayed in the world of the sport he adorned, being a director of a team, and he also had a bicycle shop.
© 2023 AFP