1986 Tour de France

Système U rider Thierry Marie (pictured in 1993) won the opening prologue, taking the lead of the 1986 Tour.

The prologue was won by Thierry Marie (Système U), with Hinault in third place, just two seconds slower. Fignon and LeMond placed seventh and eighth, both four seconds back.[7] On stage 1, Alex Stieda (7-Eleven) attacked 40 km (25 mi) from the finish and collected time bonuses at the intermediate sprint, which would move him into the race lead. He was then joined in his breakaway by five other riders.[37] The sextet held a small margin until the finish, with Pol Verschuere (Fagor) taking the victory. Stieda, a Canadian, became the first rider from North America to wear the race leader's yellow jersey.[38]

The same afternoon, the team time trial was held. The attempt at defending Stieda's race lead by his 7-Eleven team proved unsuccessful. A crash by Eric Heiden slowed the team and forced several riders to take evasive action in order not to run into him, in the process scraping their tyres at the street curbing, which caused several punctures. In addition, Stieda was tired by his morning effort and fell back, getting in danger of missing the time limit. Chris Carmichael and Jeff Pierce had to fall back to lead him to the finish, which he reached in time but the yellow jersey was lost. It was regained by Marie, whose Système U team won the time trial, while La Vie Claire lost almost two minutes.[39] Hinault personally instructed the team to wait for Niki Rüttimann and Guido Winterberg, who were nursing the after-effects of crashes during the morning stage, accounting for La Vie Claire's comparatively poor performance.[40] Café de Colombia–Varta lost significant time and four of the team's riders were eliminated because they missed the time limit.[23]

7-Eleven bounced back from their disappointment the following day, with Davis Phinney becoming the first American to win a road race stage. Phinney won the stage from a bunch sprint, even though he had been in the day's breakaway for most of the stage.[39] Stage 4 went through Normandy, on rolling terrain. Régis Simon (RMO–Cycles Méral–Mavic) broke away from the peloton and at 80 km (50 mi) from the finish, he held a lead of over ten minutes. He was eventually caught by a counterattack from Federico Echave (Teka). On the finishing straight, Pello Ruiz Cabestany (Seat–Orbea) overtook Echave to win the stage. Dutch champion Jos Lammertink (Panasonic–Merckx–Agu) retired after suffering a broken skull in a crash, while Fabio Parra (Café de Colombia–Varta) also dropped out, courtesy of knee problems, leaving his team with only five of their original ten starters. Dominique Gaigne took over the yellow jersey from his teammate Marie, who he now led by six seconds.[41]

Johan van der Velde (Panasonic–Merckx–Agu) won stage 5 and through time bonuses at both intermediate sprints and the stage finish, moved into the overall lead. He got the better of Joël Pelier (Kas) at the finish line. Both had been in a breakaway together, started after 16 km (9.9 mi) ridden. They finished 39 seconds ahead of van der Velde's teammate Eddy Planckaert, who in turn was followed by Miguel Induráin (Reynolds), while the field, led by Alfonso Gutiérrez (Teka), was 1:15 minutes behind. The stage saw a demonstration by workers in Lisieux, which did not impede the race.[42] Van der Velde kept the race lead the following day. A five-man breakaway decided the outcome of the stage, won by Guido Bontempi of Carrera Jeans–Vagabond ahead of Roberto Pagnin (Malvor–Bottecchia–Sidi).[43]

The yellow jersey changed hands again after stage 7. The stage began slowly, with the first breakaway established only after 105 km (65 mi). The peloton was back together after 150 km (93 mi), but another attack went shortly thereafter, including Ludo Peeters (Kwantum–Decosol–Yoko), Jørgen V. Pedersen (Carrera Jeans–Vagabond), and Induráin. Other riders joined them 20 km (12 mi) later, but it was Peeters who eventually won the sprint from the group to win the stage, ahead of Ron Kiefel (7-Eleven). Pedersen took the race lead.[44] On stage 8, after 70 km (43 mi) the peloton allowed Yvon Madiot (Système U) to drive ahead of the field to greet his family. Planckaert, not realising the situation, followed what he considered an attack in the company of Pelier, but all three were brought back. About 20 km (12 mi) later, another group broke away, containing Adrie van der Poel (Kwantum–Decosol–Yoko), Mathieu Hermans, (Seat–Orbea) and Andrew Hampsten. Hampsten was considered a threat to the overall classification, which led the field to give chase. The peloton was united before their arrival in the finishing town, Nantes, where Silvano Contini (Gis Gelati) launched an unsuccessful breakaway attempt. Planckert, who only started the stage with the help of analgesic pills from his masseur due to back pain, won the sprint, beating out his teammate Eric Vanderaerden. Pedersen retained the overall lead.[45]

The first real test for the general classification contenders came on stage 9, a 61.5 km (38.2 mi) individual time trial around Nantes. Hinault won the stage, 44 seconds ahead of LeMond, with Roche third, 1:01 minutes slower. Hinault benefited from a puncture by LeMond, which cost him time.[46] Fignon finished in 32nd place, 3:42 minutes behind Hinault, a result he later described as "unworthy of my status".[21] Pedersen did enough to retain the yellow jersey. Roche moved into second place, 1:05 minutes behind Pedersen, with Hinault a further five seconds behind in third. LeMond was eighth, 1:59 minutes behind the lead.[46][47]

Stage 10 was won by Ángel Sarrapio (Teka), who had been in a breakaway with Jean-Claude Bagot (Fagor) during the stage. Pedersen kept the race lead, while Pelier used bonus seconds on the road to move ahead of Roche into second place in the general classification.[48] On stage 11, a 12-man breakaway reached the finishing town of Bordeaux together. Rudy Dhaenens (Hitachi–Robland) escaped from the group 5 km (3.1 mi) from the finish. On the finishing straight, he was almost caught by the fast approaching Hermans and just held on to take the stage victory. Hermans would later say that the public announcer had aided Dhaenens' victory by warning him of Hermans over the PA system.[49]

Pedro Delgado (pictured in 2016) won stage 12, but later dropped out after his mother passed away.

Following a train transfer from Bordeaux to Bayonne at the foot of the Pyrenees in the morning, stage 12 led the riders over 217 km (135 mi) to Pau. The stage featured five mountain passes, with the first-category rated Col de Marie-Blanque at the end, before a descent into the finishing town. Several attacks occurred over the first part of the stage, each covered by riders of La Vie Claire. At around 90 km (56 mi) from the finish, Hinault raised the pace on the ascent of the Col de Burdincurutcheta, forcing other contenders to chase back on, such as Herrera.[50] Others, such as Roche, Fignon, and race leader Pedersen, dropped behind and would lose a lot of time by the end of the stage.[51] Shortly before an intermediate sprint after 125 km (78 mi), Hinault told his teammate Jean-François Bernard to accelerate,[52] and the two, accompanied by Delgado, made the bridge to a lead group containing Eduardo Chozas (Teka). These four riders then broke clear at the front, before Chozas lost contact about 25 km (16 mi) later. Bernard, the work for his team leader done, fell back another 15 km (9.3 mi) down the road.[51] Delgado and Hinault worked well together to extend their advantage to the chasers, where LeMond, bound by team tactics, was unable to give chase himself.[53] According to Delgado, Hinault clearly wanted to make time for the overall classification, and without any negotiating between the two, he gifted the stage win to Delgado. LeMond managed to break clear of the rest of the chase group with Herrera, but still arrived in Pau 4:37 minutes behind Hinault, who was now leading the race overall.[54][55] After the stage, LeMond was overheard telling his father: "Goddamnit, Dad, I am going to finish second again!"[56] Other favourites lost even more time: Robert Millar (Panasonic–Merckx–Agu)[lower-alpha 2] finished 11th, 5:31 minutes behind. In 20th place was Fignon, arriving 11 minutes after Hinault.[56] Roche lost 21 minutes, Phil Anderson (Panasonic–Merckx–Agu) 33 minutes.[58]

Stage 13 led the race through the Pyrenees again, over 186 km (116 mi) and four high mountain passes. The first was the Col du Tourmalet, coming after 75 km (47 mi), followed by the Col d'Aspin, the Col de Peyresourde, and the final climb up to the ski resort of Superbagnères. Laurent Fignon had fallen ill with a fever and did not start the stage. Shortly after the start of the stage, Dominique Arnaud (Reynolds) attacked. When he began the ascent of the Tourmalet, he held a lead of 13 minutes over the field. A select group of favourites crossed the summit, led by Millar, now just over 7 minutes behind Arnaud. As they began the descent, Hinault attacked again, opening a gap to his opponents. As he reached the valley, his lead was at 43 seconds. Behind him, LeMond found himself again in a situation where he was unable to chase his teammate himself, while this time, the entire La Vie Claire team was stunned by Hinault's attack, explicitly breaking the tactics the team had agreed upon in the morning, which was to sit back and have the other teams attack them. At the summit of the Aspin, Hinault's lead had increased to two minutes and he caught up with Arnaud on the subsequent descent. However, unlike the day before, the other favourites worked together to give chase, with Millar, Herrera, and Urs Zimmermann (Carrera Jeans–Vagabond) committed to bringing Hinault back as the group reached the climb of the Peyresourde. They made contact with him on the descent and as the group began the final climb to Superbagnères, it became clear that Hinault had overexerted himself, falling back quickly. Hampsten, who had caught up with the LeMond group, attacked during the early part of the climb to soften up the opposition for LeMond. While Herrera suffering from cramp dropped back to his team car, LeMond counter-attacked, leaving Zimmermann and Millar behind and joined his teammate at the head of the race. With Hampsten falling behind soon after, LeMond continued to the finish alone and won the stage. Hinault trailed in eleventh, 4:39 minutes behind LeMond. He therefore maintained the lead of the race overall, but now just 40 seconds ahead of second-placed LeMond.[60] Incidentally, LeMond had gained back the exact amount of time he had lost the previous day.[61] At the team hotel later in the evening, La Vie Claire owner Bernard Tapie had to intervene in an argument between his two leaders and Andrew Hampsten described the mood on the squad from then on as "super tense".[62]

The fourteenth stage led the race to Blagnac and was won by Niki Rüttimann (La Vie Claire). The team had placed riders in every escape group of the day, and after about 100 km (62 mi), Rüttimann managed to stay away with three other riders. They exchanged attacks in the final 5 km (3.1 mi) of the stage, with Rüttimann putting in the decisive move to win solo ahead of his pursuers, jumping into eighth place in the general classification. LeMond managed to gain six bonus seconds at an intermediate sprint, closing the gap on Hinault in the general classification to 34 seconds.[63][64] Frank Hoste (Fagor) won stage 15 in a two-man sprint against Silvano Contini (Gis Gelati). The main field came in just eight seconds behind, but Luis Herrera lost 49 seconds, due to missing a break in the peloton.[65]

The final day before the Alps was stage 16, ending in the town of Gap. The peloton had to endure significant crosswinds during the stage, accompanied by several attacks from the field. After 120 km (75 mi), Hinault was part of a group of four riders splitting away from the field in the winds, quickly making contact with another four-man break to form an escape of eight riders. While Hinault was joined by teammates Rüttimann and Winterberg, the group also contained Zimmermann, third overall. LeMond, crucially, had missed the move, but his three teammates in the breakaway still rode hard tempo, drawing out an advantage of 52 seconds. LeMond, again bound not to chase his own teammates, asked Robert Millar for help, who agreed to have his Panasonic–Merckx–Agu team do the chase work, while LeMond promised to gift Millar a stage should they finish close together.[66] After 28 km (17 mi), the groups were back together. Jean-François Bernard from La Vie Claire won the stage after the two other riders in the final breakaway both punctured a tyre on the descent of the Col d'Espreaux. He moved up into thirteenth place in the general classification, which meant that La Vie Claire now had five riders in the top thirteen places.[67] Following Hinault's repeated attempt to put LeMond into difficulty, the latter threatened to resign from the race and had to be calmed by Tapie. According to Hampsten, the team was split into three groups: the French riders around Hinault, the two Swiss riders in between, and the other riders on LeMond's side.[68] Jean-François Bernard supported this view, saying: "The division was real. Even if it wasn't evident day-to-day, or on the surface, it was there the whole Tour. You could feel it."[69] Hinault was unapologetic, saying: "What's his [LeMond's] problem? Are his legs hurting? It might be just as well if he quits if he doesn't want to win the race any more."[66]

Bernard Hinault climbing the Col d'Izoard during stage 17. It was here that he lost significant time on rival Greg LeMond, losing the yellow jersey by the end of the stage.

Stage 17 finished on the Col du Granon, the highest mountain-top finish in Tour history up to that point, at an elevation of 2,413 m (7,917 ft).[70][lower-alpha 3] Before the Col du Granon, the riders also had to ride across the Col de Vars and the Col d'Izoard. Eduardo Chozas (Teka) was in a 150 km (93 mi) solo breakaway and won the stage. Behind him, Hinault began to struggle on the climb of the Izoard, falling behind the others contenders.[72] He suffered from pain in his left knee, a recurrence of an injury sustained in 1983.[70] Zimmermann, third overall at this point, sensed weakness in La Vie Claire, and attacked, a move that was covered by LeMond. Zimmermann took second place on the stage, 6:26 minutes behind Chozas, with LeMond right behind him. Hinault came in thirteenth, losing 3:21 minutes to LeMond, who took over the race lead. LeMond led Zimmermann by 2:24 minutes, with Hinault a further 23 seconds behind. It was the first time that a rider from the USA wore the yellow jersey in the history of the Tour.[73]

The night before stage 18 to L'Alpe d'Huez, Hinault called a team meeting, complaining about the fact that Zimmermann now split the two La Vie Claire riders. He called for the team to attack Zimmermann the following day, "until he was broken". Another dispute broke out with LeMond, who pointed out that with a time trial still to come, a discipline that did not favour Zimmermann, there was no need for an all-out attack.[74] Tapie had to talk to the riders until four o'clock in the morning to handle the situation.[75] Shortly after the start of the stage in Briançon, the first climb of the day was the Col du Lautaret. A breakaway formed, including Herrera and Winterberg, who left their companions on the following climb, the Col du Galibier. Behind them, in the group of favourites, Zimmermann was closely guarding LeMond, while Hinault made several small accelerations to test the opposition. On the descent of the Galibier, Hinault attacked, only 150 km (93 mi) into the stage. He caught Herrera and Winterberg and they were joined by LeMond, Bauer and Ruiz Cabestany. As they reached the next small climb, the Col du Télégraphe, Hinault attacked again, going clear on his own. LeMond, having strict instructions from his team not to work with Zimmermann, was again stuck behind. LeMond dropped back to his team car for instructions by coach Paul Köchli, who urged him to attack Zimmermann instead of leading him towards Hinault, who at that point had a lead of about one-and-a-half minutes. LeMond attacked shortly before the summit and opened up a gap to Zimmermann on the descent, eventually catching up to Hinault, together with Bauer and Ruiz Cabestany. Bauer then did the lead work until the foot of the next climb, the Col de la Croix de Fer, where he dropped back. Ruiz Cabestany fell behind soon after.[76] On the ascent, Hinault asked LeMond to ease the tempo, due to his aching knee, and set the pace himself. By the summit, they led Zimmermann by 2:50 minutes. On the descent, both set a high tempo, extending the lead over Zimmermann to 4:30 minutes as they reached the climb of Alpe d'Huez.[77] Sensing that the French public, clearly favouring Hinault, made LeMond nervous,[78] the former led all the way up the climb, with both riders steadily increasing their advantage over everybody else.[79] Close to the finish line, LeMond drove alongside Hinault, putting his arm around him for a short conversation. At the finish, Hinault took LeMond's hand in an apparent gesture of comradery and they crossed the line together, with Hinault taking the stage win.[77][80] Tapie later revealed that he had orchestrated the moment, having told LeMond before the climb to Alpe d'Huez that he had effectively won the race and that he should let Hinault take the stage.[81] Zimmermann finished third, 5:15 behind the pair.[78]

The illusion of a détente between the two La Vie Claire leaders lasted only a few hours. In the evening, both appeared on French television in a joint interview with Jacques Chancel. Asked if the battle between them was over, Hinault answered that it would not be until the final time trial in Saint-Étienne.[82] He reiterated the statement on the following day, the only rest day of the Tour. During a press conference, he declared: "I'm very proud of what we did together, but let me say one more time: the Tour isn't over. Who was stronger on the climb? Go on, ask Greg."[83] LeMond felt betrayed by Hinault's apparent unwillingness to honour the deal between the two riders. Hinault in turn promised that, should LeMond still lead the Tour after the final time trial, he would not attack again. This pledge came at the insistence of Tapie, after LeMond had once again threatened to leave the race should Hinault continue attacking.[83] Pedro Delgado, winner of stage 12 and lying fifth overall, retired from the race during stage 18, having learned of the death of his mother.[84] Robert Millar, having been fourth at the summit of the Galibier, lost over 19 minutes during the later part of the stage, dropping from fourth to eighth overall.[85] In 2015, cycling journalist Peter Cossins called stage 18 "the best remembered on the mountain [Alpe d'Huez]", while describing it as "a victory parade rather than a sporting contest."[86]

La Vie Claire's Greg LeMond (pictured in 1990) took the lead in the general classification on stage 17 and went on to win the race.

As the conclusion of the race drew closer, LeMond suspected that the public and a large part of the riders would prefer a record-breaking victory for Hinault. Before the start of stage 19, a journalist suggested to him that 80 percent of the riders would support Hinault, to which he jokingly replied that he was surprised if twenty percent supported him.[87] Indeed, Hinault attacked once more during the stage, during the feed zone, a clear breach of cycling etiquette which dictates that no rider should attack while his competitors take on food and drinks. Bauer and Hampsten assisted LeMond in bringing Hinault back into the field.[88][89] During an intermediate sprint, Hinault gained back two seconds to cut his disadvantage to 2:43 minutes. Julián Gorospe won the stage for Reynolds, ahead of Anderson.[87] Under growing suspicion that other riders would interfere with his race to favour Hinault, LeMond stated after the stage: "If they want to crash me, I'd rather they tell me now. I'd rather give the race to them."[88] Hinault's tactics were confusing to other riders as well. Speaking of the stage, Hampsten later recalled: "It's the only time I ever chased a teammate in my life. It felt weird; I felt sick doing it. [...] I knew it was the right thing to do."[90] Phil Anderson, riding for Panasonic–Merckx–Agu, was equally angry with Hinault, scolding him publicly after the stage for attacking his teammate in the yellow jersey.[90] The night before the time trial, Tour director Jacques Goddet came to see LeMond at dinner and warned him to watch his water bottles and other equipment, saying: "There are many who do not want you to win."[91] LeMond heeded this advice, with his parents buying his own food.[89] At the daily doping controls, he left his fingerprint in the sealing wax and photographed the urine bottles.[92] According to LeMond, one rider even offered Hinault to cause a crash for LeMond, but Hinault refused.[93][lower-alpha 4]

The decisive stage of the race was the following day, a 58 km (36 mi) time trial around Saint-Étienne. After 20 km (12 mi), LeMond was eight seconds faster than Hinault.[94] However, with 37 km (23 mi) raced, LeMond crashed in a right-hand corner. While he was able to get up quickly and resume, his brake rubbed on the front wheel, making it necessary to change bikes.[95] Hinault profited from LeMond's mishap to win the stage, but managed to only claw back 25 seconds to his teammate, who finished second.[96] Both were in a class of their own, with Hinault catching up with Zimmermann at the finish line, even though the latter had started three minutes ahead of him.[89] Following the stage, Hinault acknowledged his defeat, stating: "After today, we won't fight any more."[96] LeMond now led Hinault by 2:18 minutes.[97]

Stage 21 was the last to feature significant climbing, finishing at the Puy de Dôme. Hinault, now no longer trying to dislodge LeMond, instead focused on securing his lead in the mountains classification, which he did by collecting maximum points at the top of the Croix de l'Homme, the first climb of the day.[98] Erich Maechler (Carrera Jeans–Vagabond) won the stage, having moved clear of a leading group at the start of the final ascent. Second was Ludo Peeters (Kwantum–Decosol–Yoko), 34 seconds behind. LeMond came in 6:06 minutes behind, in eighteenth place. Hinault, having worked for his teammate during the stage, fell back on the final climb and lost 43 seconds to LeMond, who extended his overall advantage to 3:10 minutes.[99] Robert Millar, fighting sickness, dropped out during this stage.[100]

Guido Bontempi won the final two stages of the race, first stage 22 into Nevers, edging out Hoste and Vanderaerden in a sprint finish.[101] On the final, ceremonial stage into Paris, LeMond crashed and Hinault made a point to personally escort him back into the field.[102][103] Hinault then contested the final sprint, won by Bontempi, and finished fourth to close out his Tour de France career.[104] LeMond became the first rider from an English-speaking country to win the event,[100] at an average speed of 36.92 km/h (22.94 mph).[105] Only 132 of the 210 starters finished the race in Paris.[100][106] Robert Millar described the race as "by far the hardest" Tour he had ridden, adding: "I don't think we ever climbed the mountains so fast."[107] La Vie Claire was the only team to arrive in Paris with all ten starters.[108] The lanterne rouge, the last-placed finisher of the race, was Ennio Salvador (Gis Gelati), 2:55:51 hours behind LeMond.[32]

Perception of the 1986 Tour de France and the rivalry between LeMond and Hinault remain divided. LeMond felt betrayed by Hinault's failure to live up to the clear assertion that he would assist him to win the Tour, saying: "He made promises to me he never intended to keep. He made them just to relieve the pressure on himself."[111] He showed disappointment when the public alleged that he had only won due to Hinault allowing it.[105] Hinault's view of the 1986 Tour differs from LeMond's. In his autobiography, he wrote:

I gave my word to him that I would work for him, and that's what I did. It wasn't my fault if he didn't understand how I lead a race. What I did, I did only for him. When I think of some of the things he has said since the race ended, I wonder whether I was right not to attack him... How dare he say that he didn't need me to win? I spent all my time wearing out his opponents. Throughout my career I worked hard for others without having the kind of problems I had with him.[112][113]

After the final time trial, Hinault claimed to have attacked repeatedly to toughen LeMond up, adding: "Next year maybe he'll have to fight off another opponent who will make life miserable for him. Now he'll know how to fight back."[114] Cycling historians Bill and Carol McGann refuse this argument, writing: "Of course, Hinault reneged on his promise. His words, that he was trying to toughen LeMond or get him to earn his Tour, are obvious nonsense."[113]

In France, Hinault's aggressive riding style was widely celebrated and did much to improve his public image, which had suffered due to an alleged lack of panache during his Tour wins and his behaviour towards fans and officials.[109] Robert Millar suggested that he specifically rode the way he did in 1986 to win over the French public.[115] Friction between LeMond and Hinault continued into the Coors Classic later in the year, the last stage race of Hinault's career. When LeMond attacked during a stage to move up from third to second place overall, Hinault accused him of riding against him, who was in the lead. LeMond countered, assuring him of his assistance and adding: "That's a promise, which is something that you can't keep."[116]

Hinault, as he had announced previously, retired at the end of the season, on his 32nd birthday.[117][118] LeMond meanwhile was unable to defend his Tour title, suffering a near-fatal hunting accident on Easter 1987. He returned to the Tour in 1989, winning the event for a second time and adding a third victory in 1990.[119]

The rivalry between Hinault and LeMond in both the 1985 and 1986 Tours was the subject of the documentary Slaying the Badger, part of ESPN's series 30 for 30. Based on the book by the same name by journalist Richard Moore, it premiered on 22 July 2014.[120]