Although the two riders crested the Alpe d'Huez together in a show of unity, it was clear that Hinault had been riding aggressively against his teammate. By stage 12, Hinault had built up a five-minute lead over LeMond, but he cracked in the mountains the next day and soon LeMond was in the lead. LeMond later asserted in an interview that the team management and his coach Paul Koechli had lied to him during a crucial stage, telling him that Hinault was close behind him when in fact Hinault lagged LeMond by over three minutes.Ī year later in 1986, Hinault and LeMond were co-leaders of the La Vie Claire team. LeMond finished second, 1:42 behind Hinault, who was able to claim his fifth Tour victory. In the 1985 Tour the managers of his La Vie Claire team ordered the 24-year-old LeMond to ride in support of his team captain Bernard Hinault who was leading the race and was suffering from injuries sustained in a crash caused by other riders, instead of riding to win the race. LeMond rode his first Tour de France in 1984 and finished third, winning the prestigious White Jersey as the Tour's best young rider. He soon began preparing for the more demanding Grand Tours. He proved to be a forceful one-day rider with a silver medal at the 1982 World Cycling Championship and the first American to win a road cycling World Championship the following year. LeMond began racing professionally in 1981 with the Renault-Elf-Gitane team. With the guidance of Cyrille Guimard he joined the European peloton. He was named the 1980 Olympic cycling team but was unable to compete due to the US boycott of the summer Moscow games. Greg went on to win gold, silver and bronze medals at the 1979 Junior World Championships in Argentina and amazed spectators with his spectacular victory in the road race. Soon after his initial racing success, he began competing against older, more seasoned racers and gained the attention of the US national cycling team. Greg was a standout junior rider and quickly established himself as a phenomenal talent. He won the Tour again in 19, becoming one of only eight cyclists to have won the Tour three or more times. In 1986, he became the first American cyclist to win the Tour de France. Gregory James "Greg" LeMond (born Jin Reno, Nevada) is a former professional road bicycle racer from the United States. In another team it would have been his second.LeMond at the start of the last stage in the 1990 Tour de France. After three weeks he became the first American to win the Tour de France. Without these problems he would have won his second stage. Greg crashed during the race and had a flat tire. Before the final time trial to Saint-Etienne LeMond was leading Hinault in the overall. In the stage to the Puy the Dome it was LeMond who gained time to Hinault. The battle between two teammates became very stressfull for Greg and askes for his own cook, fearing a conspiracy against him. After the stage Hinault told LeMond that the race wasn't over. Greg offered Hinault the stage, but knew that he could attacked him. Hinault and LeMond attacked together and crossed the finishline hand in hand. The day after one of the most memorable moments of cycling happened in the stage to L'Alpe d'Huez. The following days Greg appeared to be better than Hinault and took the yellow jersey in the stage to the Col de Granon. Hinault finished minutes after Greg but saved his yellow jersey. After an attack of Hinault, Greg attacked him on the last climb to Superbagnères and won the stage. LeMond, not permitted to counterattack him, lost more than 4 minutes. But instead of helping him he attacked him in the stage to Pau. The frenchman promised Greg helping him to win his first Tour after LeMond was forced by his own team to give up his chances in the stage to Luz Ardiden in 1985. In 1986 Greg won his first Tour de France in a battle with his teammate Hinault.
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