Paris–Tours is a French one-day classicroad cycling race held every October from the outskirts of Paris to the cathedral city of Tours. It is a predominantly flat course through the Chevreuse and Loire valleys; the highest point is 200 m, at Le Gault-du-Perche. It is known as a "Sprinters' Classic" because it frequently ends in a bunch sprint at the finish, in Tours. For several decades the race arrived on the 2.7 km long Avenue de Grammont, one of cycling's best-known finishing straits, particularly renowned among sprinters. Since 2011 the finish was moved to a different location because a new tram line was built on the Avenue de Grammont.[1]
Paris–Tours was first run for amateurs in 1896, making it one of the oldest cycling races in the world. It was organised by the magazine Paris-Vélo, which described that edition won by Eugène Prévost as, "A crazy, unheard of, unhoped for success". It was five years before the race was run again and a further five years (1906) before it became an annual event for professionals, with L'Auto as organiser. L’Auto ran the Tour de France (TDF) and Paris–Tours is still run by the Tour organiser, Amaury Sport Organisation.
Paris–Tours now starts in Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines 50km south-west of Paris, runs south-west towards Tours crossing the Loire at Amboise, then over several small climbs before the finish on the Avenue de Grammont in Tours
The routeedit
Paris–Tours has had many route changes although the distance has remained about 250 km. The start was moved out of Paris in the early days, first to Versailles, then to at Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines. Since 2009, the route has started in the Department of Eure-et-Loir.[2] A loop through Chinon was added between 1919 and 1926 to make the approach to Tours hilly lanes on the south bank of the Loire and the total distance 342 km. Sprinters continued to dominate and in 1959 the organisers added three ascents of the Alouette Hill. It made little difference.
In 1965 dérailleurs were banned and riders were limited to two gears. The race was won by Dutch first-year professional Gerben Karstens who chose 53/16 and 53/15, covering 246 km at a record 45.029 km/h. The experiment was judged a failure when the 1966 race ended the same way as 1964.
The course was reversed and the route constantly changed between 1974 and 1987. It was sometimes known as the Grand Prix d'Automne and sometimes by the names of the start and finish towns. For many the event lost character as the race was run between Tours and Versailles (1974–75) Blois and Chaville (1976–77 and 1979–84), Blois to Autodrome de Montlhéry (1978) and Créteil to Chaville (1985–87). In 1988 the race reverted to its original Paris–Tours route.
The wind can often be hostile; in 1988 Peter Pieters averaged just 34kmh, slowest for 57 years. However, Paris–Tours becomes the fastest classic when the wind is behind the riders, Óscar Freire winning in 2010 at 47.730kmh. It gave him the Ruban Jaune or "Yellow Riband" for the fastest speed in a classic, in fact the Ruban Jaune has been awarded nine times (as of 2016) to riders winning Paris–Tours and posting the fastest time in a professional race.
The route for the 2018 edition of the race was changed radically with the race starting in Chartres and incorporating 12.5 kilometres' of unpaved gravel tracks inside the final 60 kilometres as the race winds it way around vineyards in the Tours area. Seven new punchy climbs were also included in the finale of the race which was reduced to a distance of 211 kilometres to compensate for the additional difficulties.[3]
Classic races and ridersedit
The 1921 edition had blizzards. Half the field abandoned in Chartres. The winner, Francis Pélissier, punctured late in the race; his hands frozen, he tore the tyre off the rim with his teeth. Riding on the rim, he caught Eugène Christophe and soloed to the finish. Rik Van Looy won the 1959 race, the first to feature the Alouette Hill. One of the best sprinters of his day, Van Looy dropped two others on the second ascent and won alone.
Eddy Merckx never won Paris–Tours; he could have triumphed in 1968 but handed victory to teammate Guido Reybrouck, pulling out of the sprint, to thank him for help earlier in the season. Later, Noël Vantyghem (winner of the 1972 edition) said "Together with Eddy Merckx, I won all classics races that could be won. I won Paris-Tours, he the rest."[4]
Erik Zabel took his first big victory at Paris–Tours in 1994. He won Paris–Tours again in 2003 and 2005. Jacky Durand, Andrea Tafi, Marc Wauters, Richard Virenque, Erik Dekker and Philippe Gilbert (two times) have all won solo or from a small group, denying sprinters a chance. Virenque had just returned from a drugs ban. He broke away with Durand shortly after the start and stayed away despite Durand's dropping back outside Tours.
The Autumn Doubleedit
The Autumn Double refers to Paris–Tours and the Giro di Lombardia, considered cycling's most important classics in Autumn, run within a week of each other in October. The races are different – Lombardia is for climbers – making the double difficult. Only four have achieved it in the same year: Belgians Philippe Thys in 1917 and Rik Van Looy in 1959, Dutchman Jo de Roo twice (1962–1963) and Belgian Philippe Gilbert in 2009.
Resultsedit
List of winnersedit
Avenue de Grammont in October, scene of the finish of Paris-Tours until 2010
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Paris Tours is a French one day classic road cycling race held every October from the outskirts of Paris to the cathedral city of Tours It is a predominantly flat course through the Chevreuse and Loire valleys the highest point is 200 m at Le Gault du Perche It is known as a Sprinters Classic because it frequently ends in a bunch sprint at the finish in Tours For several decades the race arrived on the 2 7 km long Avenue de Grammont one of cycling s best known finishing straits particularly renowned among sprinters Since 2011 the finish was moved to a different location because a new tram line was built on the Avenue de Grammont 1 Paris ToursRace detailsDateMid OctoberRegionChevreuse to Loire FranceCompetitionUCI ProSeriesTypeOne dayOrganiserAmaury Sport OrganisationWeb sitewww wbr paris tours wbr fr wbr en wbr HistoryFirst edition1896 1896 Editions117 as of 2023 First winner Eugene Prevost FRA Most wins3 wins Gustave Danneels BEL Paul Maye FRA Guido Reybrouck BEL Erik Zabel GER Most recent Riley Sheehan USA Contents 1 History 2 The route 3 Classic races and riders 4 The Autumn Double 5 Results 5 1 List of winners 5 2 Multiple winners 5 3 Wins per country 5 4 Tours Paris 6 Notes 7 References 8 External linksHistory editParis Tours was first run for amateurs in 1896 making it one of the oldest cycling races in the world It was organised by the magazine Paris Velo which described that edition won by Eugene Prevost as A crazy unheard of unhoped for success It was five years before the race was run again and a further five years 1906 before it became an annual event for professionals with L Auto as organiser L Auto ran the Tour de France TDF and Paris Tours is still run by the Tour organiser Amaury Sport Organisation The race was part of the UCI Road World Cup from 1989 to 2004 and the UCI ProTour from 2005 to 2007 From 2008 to 2019 it was part of the UCI Europe Tour before joining the UCI ProSeries in 2020 nbsp Paris Tours now starts in Saint Arnoult en Yvelines 50km south west of Paris runs south west towards Tours crossing the Loire at Amboise then over several small climbs before the finish on the Avenue de Grammont in ToursThe route editParis Tours has had many route changes although the distance has remained about 250 km The start was moved out of Paris in the early days first to Versailles then to at Saint Arnoult en Yvelines Since 2009 the route has started in the Department of Eure et Loir 2 A loop through Chinon was added between 1919 and 1926 to make the approach to Tours hilly lanes on the south bank of the Loire and the total distance 342 km Sprinters continued to dominate and in 1959 the organisers added three ascents of the Alouette Hill It made little difference In 1965 derailleurs were banned and riders were limited to two gears The race was won by Dutch first year professional Gerben Karstens who chose 53 16 and 53 15 covering 246 km at a record 45 029 km h The experiment was judged a failure when the 1966 race ended the same way as 1964 The course was reversed and the route constantly changed between 1974 and 1987 It was sometimes known as the Grand Prix d Automne and sometimes by the names of the start and finish towns For many the event lost character as the race was run between Tours and Versailles 1974 75 Blois and Chaville 1976 77 and 1979 84 Blois to Autodrome de Montlhery 1978 and Creteil to Chaville 1985 87 In 1988 the race reverted to its original Paris Tours route The wind can often be hostile in 1988 Peter Pieters averaged just 34kmh slowest for 57 years However Paris Tours becomes the fastest classic when the wind is behind the riders oscar Freire winning in 2010 at 47 730kmh It gave him the Ruban Jaune or Yellow Riband for the fastest speed in a classic in fact the Ruban Jaune has been awarded nine times as of 2016 to riders winning Paris Tours and posting the fastest time in a professional race The route for the 2018 edition of the race was changed radically with the race starting in Chartres and incorporating 12 5 kilometres of unpaved gravel tracks inside the final 60 kilometres as the race winds it way around vineyards in the Tours area Seven new punchy climbs were also included in the finale of the race which was reduced to a distance of 211 kilometres to compensate for the additional difficulties 3 Classic races and riders editThe 1921 edition had blizzards Half the field abandoned in Chartres The winner Francis Pelissier punctured late in the race his hands frozen he tore the tyre off the rim with his teeth Riding on the rim he caught Eugene Christophe and soloed to the finish Rik Van Looy won the 1959 race the first to feature the Alouette Hill One of the best sprinters of his day Van Looy dropped two others on the second ascent and won alone The record for the most victories is three held by Gustave Danneels 1934 1936 1937 Paul Maye 1941 1942 1945 Guido Reybrouck 1964 1966 1968 and Erik Zabel 1994 2003 2005 Eddy Merckx never won Paris Tours he could have triumphed in 1968 but handed victory to teammate Guido Reybrouck pulling out of the sprint to thank him for help earlier in the season Later Noel Vantyghem winner of the 1972 edition said Together with Eddy Merckx I won all classics races that could be won I won Paris Tours he the rest 4 Erik Zabel took his first big victory at Paris Tours in 1994 He won Paris Tours again in 2003 and 2005 Jacky Durand Andrea Tafi Marc Wauters Richard Virenque Erik Dekker and Philippe Gilbert two times have all won solo or from a small group denying sprinters a chance Virenque had just returned from a drugs ban He broke away with Durand shortly after the start and stayed away despite Durand s dropping back outside Tours The Autumn Double editThe Autumn Double refers to Paris Tours and the Giro di Lombardia considered cycling s most important classics in Autumn run within a week of each other in October The races are different Lombardia is for climbers making the double difficult Only four have achieved it in the same year Belgians Philippe Thys in 1917 and Rik Van Looy in 1959 Dutchman Jo de Roo twice 1962 1963 and Belgian Philippe Gilbert in 2009 Results editList of winners edit nbsp Avenue de Grammont in October scene of the finish of Paris Tours until 2010Year Country Rider Team1896 nbsp France Eugene Prevost individual1901 nbsp France Jean Fischer individual1906 nbsp France Lucien Petit Breton Peugeot1907 nbsp France Georges Passerieu Peugeot Wolber1908 nbsp France Omer Beaugendre Peugeot Wolber1909 nbsp Luxembourg Francois Faber Alcyon Dunlop1910 nbsp Luxembourg Francois Faber Alcyon Dunlop1911 nbsp France Octave Lapize La Francaise Diamant1912 nbsp Belgium Louis Heusghem Alcyon Dunlop1913 nbsp France Charles Crupelandt La Francaise Diamant1914 nbsp Switzerland Oscar Egg Peugeot Lion1917 nbsp Belgium Philippe Thys Peugeot Wolber1918 nbsp France Charles Mantelet individual1919 nbsp Belgium Hector Tiberghien individual1920 nbsp France Eugene Christophe individual1921 nbsp France Francis Pelissier J B Louvet1922 nbsp France Henri Pelissier J B Louvet1923 nbsp Belgium Paul Deman O Lapize1924 nbsp Belgium Louis Mottiat Alcyon Dunlop1925 nbsp Belgium Denis Verschueren Wonder1926 nbsp Switzerland Heiri Suter Olympique Wolber1927 nbsp Switzerland Heiri Suter Olympique Wolber1928 nbsp Belgium Denis Verschueren J B Louvet1929 nbsp Luxembourg Nicolas Frantz Alcyon Dunlop1930 nbsp France Jean Marechal Colin Wolber1931 nbsp France Andre Leducq Alcyon Dunlop1932 nbsp France Jules Moineau France Sport Dunlop1933 nbsp France Jules Merviel Colin Wolber1934 nbsp Belgium Gustave Danneels Alcyon Dunlop1935 nbsp France Rene Le Greves Alcyon Dunlop1936 nbsp Belgium Gustave Danneels Alcyon Dunlop1937 nbsp Belgium Gustave Danneels Alcyon Dunlop1938 nbsp Italy Jules Rossi Alcyon Dunlop1939 nbsp Belgium Frans Bonduel Dilecta Wolber1941 nbsp France Paul Maye Alcyon Dunlop1942 nbsp France Paul Maye Alcyon Dunlop1943 nbsp France Gabriel Gaudin Peugeot Dunlop1944 nbsp France Lucien Teisseire France Sport Dunlop1945 nbsp France Paul Maye Alcyon Dunlop1946 nbsp Belgium Alberic Schotte Alcyon Dunlop1947 nbsp Belgium Alberic Schotte Alcyon Dunlop1948 nbsp France Louis Caput Olympia Dunlop1949 nbsp Belgium Albrecht Ramon Bertin Wolber1950 nbsp France Andre Mahe Stella Dunlop1951 nbsp France Jacques Dupont Peugeot Dunlop1952 nbsp France Raymond Guegan Gitane1953 nbsp Belgium Jozef Schils Bianchi Pirelli1954 nbsp France Gilbert Scodeller Mercier BP Hutchinson1955 nbsp France Jacques Dupont La Perle Hutchinson1956 nbsp France Albert Bouvet Mercier BP Hutchinson1957 nbsp Belgium Fred De Bruyne Carpano Coppi1958 nbsp Belgium Gilbert Desmet Faema1959 nbsp Belgium Rik Van Looy Faema1960 nbsp Netherlands Jo de Haan Rapha Gitane1961 nbsp Belgium Joseph Wouters Solo Terrot Van Steenbergen1962 nbsp Netherlands Jo de Roo Saint Raphael Helyett Hutchinson1963 nbsp Netherlands Jo de Roo Saint Raphael Gitane Geminiani1964 nbsp Belgium Guido Reybroeck Flandria Romeo1965 nbsp Netherlands Gerben Karstens Televizier1966 nbsp Belgium Guido Reybroeck Romeo Smith s1967 nbsp Belgium Rik Van Looy Willem II Gazelle1968 nbsp Belgium Guido Reybroeck Faema1969 nbsp Belgium Herman Van Springel Dr Mann Grundig1970 nbsp West Germany Jurgen Tschan Peugeot BP Michelin1971 nbsp Belgium Rik van Linden Hertekamp Magniflex Novy1972 nbsp Belgium Noel Vantyghem Novy Dubble Bubble1973 nbsp Belgium Rik van Linden Rokado1974 nbsp Italy Francesco Moser Filotex1975 nbsp Belgium Freddy Maertens Flandria Carpenter1976 nbsp Belgium Ronald Dewitte Brooklyn1977 nbsp Netherlands Joop Zoetemelk Gan Mercier1978 nbsp Netherlands Jan Raas TI Raleigh1979 nbsp Netherlands Joop Zoetemelk Gan Mercier1980 nbsp Belgium Daniel Willems IJsboerke Warncke1981 nbsp Netherlands Jan Raas TI Raleigh1982 nbsp Belgium Jean Luc Vandenbroucke La Redoute1983 nbsp Belgium Ludo Peeters TI Raleigh1984 nbsp Ireland Sean Kelly Skil Sem1985 nbsp Belgium Ludo Peeters Kwantum Hallen1986 nbsp Australia Phil Anderson Panasonic1987 nbsp Netherlands Adri van der Poel PDM Concorde1988 nbsp Netherlands Peter Pieters TVM Van Schilt1989 nbsp Netherlands Jelle Nijdam Superconfex Yoko Opel Colnago1990 nbsp Denmark Rolf Sorensen Ariostea1991 nbsp Belgium Johan Capiot TVM Sanyo1992 nbsp Belgium Hendrik Redant Lotto Mavic MBK1993 nbsp Belgium Johan Museeuw GB MG Maglificio1994 nbsp Germany Erik Zabel Team Telekom1995 nbsp Italy Nicola Minali Gewiss Ballan1996 nbsp Italy Nicola Minali Gewiss Playbus1997 nbsp Ukraine Andrei Tchmil Lotto Mobistar Isoglass1998 nbsp France Jacky Durand Casino Ag2r1999 nbsp Belgium Marc Wauters Rabobank2000 nbsp Italy Andrea Tafi Mapei Quick Step2001 nbsp France Richard Virenque Domo Farm Frites2002 nbsp Denmark Jakob Piil CSC Tiscali2003 nbsp Germany Erik Zabel Team Telekom2004 nbsp Netherlands Erik Dekker Rabobank2005 nbsp Germany Erik Zabel T Mobile Team2006 nbsp France Frederic Guesdon Francaise des Jeux2007 nbsp Italy Alessandro Petacchi Team Milram2008 nbsp Belgium Philippe Gilbert Francaise des Jeux2009 nbsp Belgium Philippe Gilbert Silence Lotto2010 nbsp Spain Oscar Freire Rabobank2011 nbsp Belgium Greg Van Avermaet BMC Racing Team2012 nbsp Italy Marco Marcato Vacansoleil DCM2013 nbsp Germany John Degenkolb Argos Shimano2014 nbsp Belgium Jelle Wallays Topsport Vlaanderen Baloise2015 nbsp Italy Matteo Trentin Etixx Quick Step2016 nbsp Colombia Fernando Gaviria Etixx Quick Step2017 nbsp Italy Matteo Trentin Quick Step Floors2018 nbsp Denmark Soren Kragh Andersen Team Sunweb2019 nbsp Belgium Jelle Wallays Lotto Soudal2020 nbsp Denmark Casper Pedersen Team Sunweb2021 nbsp France Arnaud Demare Groupama FDJ2022 nbsp France Arnaud Demare Groupama FDJ2023 nbsp United States Riley Sheehan Israel Premier TechMultiple winners edit Riders in italics are still active Wins Rider Nationality Editions3 Gustave Danneels nbsp Belgium 1934 1936 1937Paul Maye nbsp France 1941 1942 1945Guido Reybrouck nbsp Belgium 1964 1966 1968Erik Zabel nbsp Germany 1994 2003 20052 Francois Faber nbsp Luxembourg 1909 1910Denis Verschueren nbsp Belgium 1925 1928Heiri Suter nbsp Switzerland 1926 1927Briek Schotte nbsp Belgium 1946 1947Jacques Dupont nbsp France 1951 1955Rik Van Looy nbsp Belgium 1959 1967Jo de Roo nbsp Netherlands 1962 1963Rik Van Linden nbsp Belgium 1971 1973Joop Zoetemelk nbsp Netherlands 1977 1979Jan Raas nbsp Netherlands 1978 1981Ludo Peeters nbsp Belgium 1983 1985Nicola Minali nbsp Italy 1995 1996Philippe Gilbert nbsp Belgium 2008 2009Matteo Trentin nbsp Italy 2015 2017Jelle Wallays nbsp Belgium 2014 2019Arnaud Demare nbsp France 2021 2022Wins per country edit Wins Country42 nbsp Belgium33 nbsp France12 nbsp Netherlands9 nbsp Italy5 nbsp Germany including nbsp West Germany 4 nbsp Denmark3 nbsp Luxembourg nbsp Switzerland1 nbsp Australia nbsp Colombia nbsp Ireland nbsp Spain nbsp Ukraine nbsp United StatesTours Paris edit In 1917 and 1918 a race was held from Tours Paris as well as Paris Tours The winners of Tours Paris were Year Country Rider Team1917 nbsp Belgium Charles Deruyter1918 nbsp Belgium Philippe ThysNotes edit Paris Tours last showdown on the Avenue de Grammont Cyclingnews com October 10 2010 Paris Tours 2013 Archived from the original on 2014 11 29 Retrieved 2013 10 14 cyclingnews com Gives details of 2018 route changes 70 Feitjes over jarige kannibaal Eddy Merckx in Dutch Sportnieuws 17 June 2015 References editThe Spring Classics Cycling s Greatest One Day Races European Cycling The Twenty Greatest Races Noel Henderson ISBN 0 941950 20 4 A Century of Cycling William Fotheringham ISBN 1 84000 654 4External links editOfficial website Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Paris Tours amp oldid 1179199886, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
