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William Fotheringham
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Bernard Hinault and the Fall and Rise of French Cycling Hardcover – International Edition, June 25, 2015

by William Fotheringham (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 247 ratings
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The definitive biography of France's greatest cyclist by the number one bestselling author of Merckx: Half Man, Half Bike.
     Bernard Hinault is one of the greatest cyclists of all time. He is a five-time winner of the Tour de France and the only man to have won each of the Grand Tours on more than one occasion. Three decades on from his retirement, he remains the last Frenchman to win the Tour de France. His victory in 1985 marks the turning point when the nation who had dominated the first eight decades of the race they had invented suddenly found they were no longer able to win it.
     Hinault is the last 'old-school' champion: a larger-than-life character from a working-class background, capable of winning on all terrains, in major Tours and one-day Classics. Nicknamed the 'Badger' for his combative style, he led a cyclists' strike in his first Tour and instigated a legendary punch-up with demonstrators in 1982 while in the middle of a race. Hinault's battles with team-mates Laurent Fignon and Greg LeMond provide some of the greatest moments in Tour history. 
     In Bernard Hinault and the Fall and Rise of French Cycling, number one bestselling author William Fotheringham finally gets to the bottom of this fascinating character and explores the reasons why the nation that considers itself cycling's home has found it so hard to produce another champion.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    320 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Yellow Jersey Press
  4. Publication date
    June 25, 2015
  5. Dimensions
    5.58 x 1.44 x 8.76 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0224092049
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0224092043
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

WILLIAM FOTHERINGHAM writes for the Guardian and Observer on cycling and rugby. A racing cyclist and launch editor of Procycling and Cycle Sport magazines, he has reported on over twenty Tours de France. He is the critically lauded author of Fallen Angel, Roule Britannia, and Put Me Back on My Bike, which Vélo magazine called 'The best cycling biography ever written and the Sunday Times number one bestseller, Merckx: Half Man, Half Bike.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Yellow Jersey Press (June 25, 2015)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0224092049
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0224092043
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.28 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.58 x 1.44 x 8.76 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 247 ratings

About the author

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William Fotheringham

William Fotheringham

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
247 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Stefan Butler
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic and interesting insight into the world of the Badger ...
Reviewed in the United States on June 27, 2015
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Fantastic and interesting insight into the world of the Badger and a lot of his (mainly) French counterparts. What a fighter... Awesome. Great for cycling fans who want to learn more about the last true 'patron' of the peloton.
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Anthony
4.0 out of 5 stars A pleasure to read
Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2016
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A pleasure to read. A lot of facts about french cycling and the Tour de France
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Sebastian
5.0 out of 5 stars This book does a nice job of fleshing out Hinault beyond the rather narrow ...
Reviewed in the United States on June 9, 2015
This book does a nice job of fleshing out Hinault beyond the rather narrow role he plays in Anglo-American cycling mythology. Growing up in the U.S., I mostly met Hinault as the villain of the Lemond saga; with the emergence of YouTube, though, I was able to start appreciating the man's astonishing feats for myself: holding off both Roger de Vlaeminck and Francesco Moser at Paris-Roubaix '81; falling into and climbing out of a ravine en route to his first Dauphine Libérè victory; single-handedly demolishing entire pelotons at the '79 Giro di Lombardia and the '80 Worlds. Fotheringham continues that reeducation by introducing us to Hinault the tactical thinker, Hinault the embracer of technical innovation, etc. He also (in another rare move) gives a thoughtful assessment of the state of French cycling, asking where exactly its post-Hinault slump came from and why it might be on the rebound. The wealth of interviews that the book draws on is a special plus: it's really nice to hear the sport's history as told from the inside by the likes of Robert Millar, Pedro Delgado, Roger de Vlaeminck, and others.
One person found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars Informative and tradesman like account of this issue
Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2016
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Informative and tradesman like account of this issue.But it lacks that oomph which is essential for compelling reading but the subject matter makes it impossible to get excited because French cycling is tepid at best. Whether a deeper investigation into French doping is offside or not professionally worthwhile left a good part of the book hanging.Walsh did it but got ostracised.
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Amazon-klant
1.0 out of 5 stars Full of errors.
Reviewed in the United States on July 27, 2015
The first chapter alone contains a bunch of really silly errors. The Hinault-Moser duel in the Giro di Lombardia was not on 1979 but in 1978; Yannick Noah didn't win Wimbledon 1985 (Becker did, of course), and Alain Prost won his last GP in 1993 and not in 1990. I returned the item for a refund after that.
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Top reviews from other countries

FrankJV
5.0 out of 5 stars His ruthless determination made Hinault succeed in many forms of cycling.
Reviewed in Australia on August 5, 2020
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Narrative on and off the bike is well told.
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Mike Gray
5.0 out of 5 stars The Badger Bites
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 26, 2016
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Splendid book by, I think, one of the best & most readable cycling authors. Aside from the story of Hinault himself there's lots of thought provoking info about the world of French cycling and why they no longer dominate (esp the TdeF) the way they did into the 1980s. The abandonment of many of the small scale club racing (even in Normandy and Brittany where many of the French stars learned their 'trade') in recent years strikes a chord - the roads are just too busy now, and small events can't afford the costs of road closures. The TdeF may have been transformed into a wealthy global event, but at base level all is not well. And the media, where the money is, sadly neglects the excellent Monuments and even the Giro and the Veluta outside of Italy and Spain. So one can understand the fall of French cycling, but its a little harder to see the logic of the rise!
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Jeremy
5.0 out of 5 stars Extremely enjoyable
Reviewed in France on June 21, 2016
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I got this book as a loan and enjoyed it so much that I bought it. It's well written and an interesting subject, if you like stories about famous riders of the Tour de France you shouldn't miss it!
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Fotheringham's book has reawakened my love affair with all things Badger
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 21, 2016
Verified Purchase
I declare an interest. I had pictures of Hinault cut out from the pages of Mirroir du Cyclisme on my bedroom walls when I was a boy racer. Fotheringham's book has reawakened my love affair with all things Badger. The real strength of the book is its explanation of the changes that took place in professional cycling which coincided with Hinault's reign as Patron of the peloton. When Hinault started, the sport looked very much like it did in the 1950s. By the time he had won the last of his 5 tours, it looked much like the modern era - specialist equipment, shorter stages, fewer races in the calendar, focus on the Tour to the exclusion of year-round competition, the advance and then dominance of the Anglos, and of course the two-speed peloton. I share Fotheringham's wistful nostalgia for the heroic days of old, when Badgers bestrode the Alps.
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P. D. Mcgill
5.0 out of 5 stars I did enjoy reading this book about this God of French cycling
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 31, 2016
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I did enjoy reading this book about this God of French cycling. A very complicated man and I felt once I had read this book I understood him and his actions a lot better. There are some humorous recollections from his past from the likes of Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and Robert Miller that add to the enjoyment. I must admit I put the book down sometimes laughing and sometimes shaking my head at some of his antics. French cycling certainly has nothing like him now! Not a book for the Greg Lamond fans, but I think you can understand the Badgers viewpoint on what went on in those Tour's during the mid 80's. Well worth the read!
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