Hi mate,it was so Amazing, Lemond waved to me and my brother's on his morning warm up on the Champs earlier in the day. I ended up counting down the seconds to Fignons ride.I remember 20 different nationalities, but Absolutely no trouble at all.
I was there as well, not in space but in time. I mean, I remember vividly watching this on TV. Amazing performance by both cyclists, but only one could win
Looking at Fignon and he appears as such an anomaly. He had the thick legs of a sprinter and was not a walking skeleton like the climbers we are used to seeing today, but he could ride with the best in mountain stages. A truly great rider.
I remember thinking there was no chance but Phil's voice kept going higher and higher and then he was practically shouting when Greg crossed the line. Totally epic.
When they finish it shows the difference between the two. You can tell Fignon gave it his all and was done for, LeMond looked like he was ready for another week of racing.
Greg used one the First Carbon Composit frames. A Look frame that was rebadged : "Bottechia". The Aero Helmet, Relaxed Handelbars and Look Clipless pedals proved how far "ahead of the curve" he was.
I was in Europe visiting my girlfriend (who became my wife the next year) the summer of 1989, so I made sure to be there on the Champs Elysses for the final. It was crowded but it was awesome!
Always remember that Delgado lost by 3m34 and started the tour 2m40 late, if he had started on time he would have been less then a minute behind the other two, this was one of the craziest Tour in history from start to finish
That's true, but to be fair, he was allowed to go in breaks because he had already lost too much time to be a GC threat. Had he not lost so much time in the prologue and TTT, they would have marked all his moves (or tried to).
@@jb6879 Only source I caould find on that is a French book quoted by french wikipedia saying "his entourage" talked about him having a new digital watch that didnt display minutes properly.
A book called "get shot in the stomach, then cycle the second fastest ever time trial on an old shitty bike" describes how Lemond was definitely taking drugs.
5:11 - Every time i do my local TT (similar distance too) towards the end i think of my kids (pictured on my stem) and i hear Trautwig say "...and Daddy is trying to get home as fast as he can." -U10
it’s hard to believe Fignon riding with his arms spread out, catching maximum wind at 50kph. He did have the car right behind him, which we know saved him probably 10-15 secs, but only with two bikes instead of a full rack (similar to UAE in this year’s TDF). Basically, Fignon’s setup cost him at least a minute, probably 90 secs.
You could see Fignon getting ragged way earlier than he should have been. When the organizers refused Fignon’s coach’s objection to Greg’s tri bars, the team mechanics should have found a set for the French racer.
Read Fignons book We Were Young and Carefree. The irony of the final time trial according to him was that it was his fastest time trial over that distance in his career. Another irony was that he was offered the same equipment that Lemond had before the first time trial. So the decision not to use the new aero bars probably lost him the tour.
Watching cycling in the 80’s meant a few hours once a week with Mr. Tesh and his noodly music. Some say that Dave Tesh wrote a lot of the music that is credited to John. Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour de France Give me that bike I’m going to ride it.
It was a combination of factors that led to victory for Lemond. Fignon had developed some kind of swelling in his testicles ( which made it VERY uncomfortable to apply full pressure on the pedals) combined with Lemond using the aero bars , which , definitely provide a boost for shorter distances because they make you draw more power from the back , buttocks and hips . The third thing was that before the time trial Fignon was already congratulating Lemond for a second place finish and this ignited a fire within Greg that served as fuel to power him through the time trial.
@@KeithChegwin24 Hate to tell you -the fourth reason that Lemond did the impossible was due to the fact that he had an extremely high 92 value VO2 max. He was never, ever suspected by anyone of taking PED's.
@@bellavia5 Hate to tell you, the French team he rode for was known as the Kings of cortisone, every one of his team mates was doping. You sound like an Armstrong fanboy and LeMond does not have a VO2 Max of 92. Where do you get this? Greg? He was tested with a VO2 Max of 79 early on, and he said in an interview he had a "calculated" VO2 max later on in the 90's. This is one of the biggest urban legends out there. Educate yourself.
@@KeithChegwin24 Oy vey -. First off -cortisone is not a PED. Second off -have you ever heard of a thing called Google.? Look up Lemonds' VO2 max and you'll find it listed as 92. What you did ( beanhead) is get Armstrong stats (of 79 ) mixed up with Lemonds -probably because Lemond is quoted as saying that there was no way that Armstrong could have achieved what he did without PED's since he had such a low VO2. What a dope.
@@KeithChegwin24 results of Google search -quote : May 6 , 2015 "Armed with an almost superhuman VO2 max of 92.5 ml/kg/min -one of the highest ranking......" OK -let me see you contradict this one.
Absolytely. Still don't know why he was late, but it was mentioned in this recap video (th-cam.com/video/Aq35h8dpFXI/w-d-xo.html) that Delgado was late to start the prologue by 2:42 and it would "haunt him the entire race". Hard to make up that much time lost, not to mention the psychological effect something like that has on a rider.
Greg probably went 95% while Lauren went 100% all-in as he looked " cook " after crossing the finishing line giving everything he got..my heart go out to Lauren for finished 2nd--the worst feeling..even worse than finished in last place. This year 2023 it's going to be another close match between Jonas and Tedej..i am rootimg for Jonas.
This TDF ended on the right note for Greg, I thought Fignon was the stronger rider during the race, especially in the mountains but Greg was the better time trialist and utilized better technology to get more out of his time trialing efforts.
I’m glad Greg won but seeing Fignon’s arms so wide apart he could not come close to the tuck Greg was capable of using the tri bars kind of cast a pall on Greg’s win. Were tri bars banned after this upset? Because were it not for the bars, I think Fignon would have squeaked out a victory.
Not only were they not banned, but everyone began using them and other experiments and innovations in the next few years until UCI set more restrictive rules. Check out Fignon's bike in '91 th-cam.com/video/qzGxwypMisg/w-d-xo.html
Bicycling magazine did wind tunnel testing back in 89 to get an idea of the time Lemond saved with his aerodynamic choices, keeping in mind they didn't have LeMond there to use as the subject, they used a physically similar individual for the testing procedures, with that in mind there conclusion was if Fignon did nothing more than cut his ponytail off before the final time trial that would have saved him enough time to win by just slightly more than 8 seconds.
13:00 That's the most dramatic slow-mo fall I've ever seen. 😂 Sure, he just did a hard effort. I get it. But I can't think of many times I've seen a rider collapse in slow motion at the end of a stage, even a TT. 🤔 I think he was being dramatic on purpose. Years later, he said he didn't know the result right away. Someone came and told him, and THAT'S when he started crying. I think he fell on purpose, thinking he had won, so the story in the local press would be one of a traditional Frenchman giving everything he had and holding on to the win, against the rowdy American who used aerodynamics to his advantage. Greg had his own idea of what would happen!
Meh I've seen it nearly happen plenty of times just on this tour alone. Generally though the teams have someone ready to help to stop them falling over. Though that said it's normally mountain stages where they've pushed way beyond a normal persons pain threshold. Granted that said, you're probably right since it was a flat TT stage. And also ya the way he fell isn't anything like the complete collapse cyclists normally would do if they were completely gassed. Probably done for drama, but there's probably also an aspect of him being emotionally drained as well. I still can't get over Fignon not even using a helment and wearing what looks like fairly normal glasses as well.
This was an amazing ride...How did Lemond pull off the second fastest ever time trial on an old steel bike after just cycling 2000 miles and after being shot in the stomach. Either he was superman or taking PEDs. 🤔
I'd say he was pretty close to being superman back in the late 80s. He was a rider who can climb, sprint, and time trial, a rare combination. Saw the movie The Last Rider recently which shed some light on what was going on. He was not expected to podium that year so there was no pressure for him that year.
@@petescyclingvideos I'll have to give that movie a look, thanks for the heads up about it. I'm on the fence for a couple of reasons: All his rivals were and have admitted to taking PEDs. His 89 TDF winning time trial - still the 4th fastest ever and a minute faster than the next admitted doper, faster than Armstrong and Froome. There is footage of him finishing and he calmly gets off his bike smiling - no suffering. Either he was doping, as his rivals all were, or he is a genuine super human. Since retiring he certainly doesn't look super humam, I would suggest the former is the case. I could be wrong of course but I believe doping was taking place.
That was the storyline to get Americans to watch the TDF: Greg Lemond the all-American boy as pure as your grandmother's homemade apple pie, vs all these European jerks - especially Hinault and Fignon!!!!
Excellent clip !!! I was there on the Champs Elysee that very day.Absolutely Beautiful memories.
That must have been incredible to see in person!
Hi mate,it was so Amazing, Lemond waved to me and my brother's on his morning warm up on the Champs earlier in the day. I ended up counting down the seconds to Fignons ride.I remember 20 different nationalities, but Absolutely no trouble at all.
I was there as well, not in space but in time. I mean, I remember vividly watching this on TV. Amazing performance by both cyclists, but only one could win
@@elyepes19 Where in the World were you watching it from ??
Aerodynamics studies showed that the pony tail in itself cost Fignon more than 8 seconds
LOL! I heard they were telling him that exact same thing during his wind tunnel testing. :O
That front disc wheel didn't help at all either.
The weight of his ego killed the aero gains from his dual disc wheels. 😂
But on the other hand it told him which way the wind was blowing,...
@@westboundbadgerand he definitely blew it
Looking at Fignon and he appears as such an anomaly. He had the thick legs of a sprinter and was not a walking skeleton like the climbers we are used to seeing today, but he could ride with the best in mountain stages. A truly great rider.
It seemed a completely different sport than what we see today and required a different build to dominate.
How has no one made a movie about this race yet? It is such a classic.
It'll be a challenge to make a movie that all of us will like.
I know!!!!!!!
I remember watching this on tv. It was a nail biter then and still is.
I remember thinking there was no chance but Phil's voice kept going higher and higher and then he was practically shouting when Greg crossed the line. Totally epic.
An epic day for the Tour
When they finish it shows the difference between the two. You can tell Fignon gave it his all and was done for, LeMond looked like he was ready for another week of racing.
Watched it live, hooked me on cycling 👏🇺🇸
How old are you?
@@shinobusensui9395 59 🇺🇸
Greg used one the First Carbon Composit frames. A Look frame that was rebadged : "Bottechia". The Aero Helmet, Relaxed Handelbars and Look Clipless pedals proved how far "ahead of the curve" he was.
This gear won Greg the Tour and forced the organizers to clamp down on the aero advantage, which shows how important it was.
Greg Lemmon forever and ever since Ipiales Nariño Colombia América Latina 🎉🎉🎉❤❤❤🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
I was in Europe visiting my girlfriend (who became my wife the next year) the summer of 1989, so I made sure to be there on the Champs Elysses for the final. It was crowded but it was awesome!
Always remember that Delgado lost by 3m34 and started the tour 2m40 late, if he had started on time he would have been less then a minute behind the other two, this was one of the craziest Tour in history from start to finish
That's true, but to be fair, he was allowed to go in breaks because he had already lost too much time to be a GC threat. Had he not lost so much time in the prologue and TTT, they would have marked all his moves (or tried to).
Why was he late by 2:40? was he waiting for his wife to finish her hair? :O)
@@jb6879 Only source I caould find on that is a French book quoted by french wikipedia saying "his entourage" talked about him having a new digital watch that didnt display minutes properly.
Ohmygahd!
The other real story is Phil Ligget is still around
Phil and Paul were the best commentating duo IMO.
@@petescyclingvideos. Don’t forget Bob.
Thanks for explaining distance with football fields.
Excellent rider i loved watching him ✌️
Arguably one of the most accomplished American cyclists of all time.
A book called "How bad do you want it?" Describes how Lemond really won time trial.Good old fashioned hard work and determination.
A book called "get shot in the stomach, then cycle the second fastest ever time trial on an old shitty bike" describes how Lemond was definitely taking drugs.
@@KeithChegwin24what a moronic comment. Greg never doped. His equipment was better and so was his aero. That's what won it.
Greg is THE MAN!
Greg is the GOAT, still the only American to win the Tour de France.
@@petescyclingvideosoh shut up. Not even close. Respect what lance did. Greg took drugs too you fool
One of the greatest moments in the history of modern sport!
For a while I thought this year might beat the 8 seconds!
@@petescyclingvideos And then Jonas won by 7 and a half minutes!
That was an incredible time trial too but the '89 record stands!
5:11 - Every time i do my local TT (similar distance too) towards the end i think of my kids (pictured on my stem) and i hear Trautwig say "...and Daddy is trying to get home as fast as he can." -U10
Lemond was a reason I got into cycling
Fignon didn't think LeMond could make up 50 seconds in the time trial.
Yup, a lesson that's repeated time and again over the years - arrogance never pays.
same as Moser cant make up 81 sec gap against him in Giro
it’s hard to believe Fignon riding with his arms spread out, catching maximum wind at 50kph. He did have the car right behind him, which we know saved him probably 10-15 secs, but only with two bikes instead of a full rack (similar to UAE in this year’s TDF). Basically, Fignon’s setup cost him at least a minute, probably 90 secs.
You could see Fignon getting ragged way earlier than he should have been. When the organizers refused Fignon’s coach’s objection to Greg’s tri bars, the team mechanics should have found a set for the French racer.
@@johntechwriter lemond said that fignon had access to aerobars but wasnt able to use them comfortably.
Read Fignons book We Were Young and Carefree. The irony of the final time trial according to him was that it was his fastest time trial over that distance in his career. Another irony was that he was offered the same equipment that Lemond had before the first time trial. So the decision not to use the new aero bars probably lost him the tour.
Sounds like interesting reading. I will definitely check it out. Thanks for the recommendation!
I got into cycling because of Lemond, inspiring story.
Same here! I joined the collegiate team and started racing crits hoping one day to turn pro. Ah to be young and dream big...
Lemond seems to really understand aero
Watching cycling in the 80’s meant a few hours once a week with Mr. Tesh and his noodly music.
Some say that Dave Tesh wrote a lot of the music that is credited to John.
Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour de France
Give me that bike
I’m going to ride it.
It was a combination of factors that led to victory for Lemond. Fignon had developed some kind of swelling in his testicles ( which made it VERY uncomfortable to apply full pressure on the pedals) combined with Lemond using the aero bars , which , definitely provide a boost for shorter distances because they make you draw more power from the back , buttocks and hips . The third thing was that before the time trial Fignon was already congratulating Lemond for a second place finish and this ignited a fire within Greg that served as fuel to power him through the time trial.
The third was Lemond taking PEDs.
@@KeithChegwin24 Hate to tell you -the fourth reason that Lemond did the impossible was due to the fact that he had an extremely high 92 value VO2 max. He was never, ever suspected by anyone of taking PED's.
@@bellavia5 Hate to tell you, the French team he rode for was known as the Kings of cortisone, every one of his team mates was doping. You sound like an Armstrong fanboy and LeMond does not have a VO2 Max of 92. Where do you get this? Greg? He was tested with a VO2 Max of 79 early on, and he said in an interview he had a "calculated" VO2 max later on in the 90's. This is one of the biggest urban legends out there.
Educate yourself.
@@KeithChegwin24 Oy vey -. First off -cortisone is not a PED. Second off -have you ever heard of a thing called Google.? Look up Lemonds' VO2 max and you'll find it listed as 92. What you did ( beanhead) is get Armstrong stats (of 79 ) mixed up with Lemonds -probably because Lemond is quoted as saying that there was no way that Armstrong could have achieved what he did without PED's since he had such a low VO2. What a dope.
@@KeithChegwin24 results of Google search -quote : May 6 , 2015 "Armed with an almost superhuman VO2 max of 92.5 ml/kg/min -one of the highest ranking......" OK -let me see you contradict this one.
Probably a time trial helmet or also just the handlebar that LeMond had would have made possible for Fignon to win the tour.
To this day the statement that Pedro Delgato fell out of the race in the Alps is false. He lost it because he showed up at the Prologue late.
Absolytely. Still don't know why he was late, but it was mentioned in this recap video (th-cam.com/video/Aq35h8dpFXI/w-d-xo.html) that Delgado was late to start the prologue by 2:42 and it would "haunt him the entire race". Hard to make up that much time lost, not to mention the psychological effect something like that has on a rider.
Greg probably went 95% while Lauren went 100% all-in as he looked " cook " after crossing the finishing line giving everything he got..my heart go out to Lauren for finished 2nd--the worst feeling..even worse than finished in last place. This year 2023 it's going to be another close match between Jonas and Tedej..i am rootimg for Jonas.
I tend to root for the underdog which was Greg back in '89. This year I feel Jonas is the underdog, but his team is stronger.
Great memories😊
Definitely!
a time machine to bring me there, oh my lord please
I can't imagine what it would be like to witness the stage live and in person
Wide World of Sports
"The thrill of victory... And the agony of defeat"
Just waiting for the ski jumper to go frisbeeing down the ramp
What a pleasant surprise to hear the familiar voice of Phil Liggett! Had no idea he had been commenting the tour for so many decades.
This year was his 51st Tour!
@@petescyclingvideos Wow, amazing! A shame that we lost Paul Sherwen a few years ago, but Phil is the undeniable voice of the Tour.
This TDF ended on the right note for Greg, I thought Fignon was the stronger rider during the race, especially in the mountains but Greg was the better time trialist and utilized better technology to get more out of his time trialing efforts.
Totally agree! For me that year was the epitome of the race, when the best man won. No backstabbing teammates, no scandals, no dramas.
グレッグレモン、ローランフィニョン。2人とも大好きなライダーです。超カッコいい^_^
Greatest athletic achievement of all time and a beast pushing a 54/12 for a win. Fignon was pushing 55/12, maybe a little too much?
That title goes to free soloing El Capitan
Didn't look like he was in 12. Looked like he was spinning too fast. The aerobars were te key.
I’m glad Greg won but seeing Fignon’s arms so wide apart he could not come close to the tuck Greg was capable of using the tri bars kind of cast a pall on Greg’s win. Were tri bars banned after this upset? Because were it not for the bars, I think Fignon would have squeaked out a victory.
Not only were they not banned, but everyone began using them and other experiments and innovations in the next few years until UCI set more restrictive rules. Check out Fignon's bike in '91 th-cam.com/video/qzGxwypMisg/w-d-xo.html
Bicycling magazine did wind tunnel testing back in 89 to get an idea of the time Lemond saved with his aerodynamic choices, keeping in mind they didn't have LeMond there to use as the subject, they used a physically similar individual for the testing procedures, with that in mind there conclusion was if Fignon did nothing more than cut his ponytail off before the final time trial that would have saved him enough time to win by just slightly more than 8 seconds.
34mph average!
Wish they had intros like this today.
Right there with you, I miss the old coverage. John Tesh and Yanni soundtracks made it even better!
Front disc wheel is definitely much faster than Lemond's standard front wheel. Aerobars are much faster.
reminds me of Tour de France 2020 Stage 20 - Pogačar vs Roglič
2024 roadies of the Aero is everything persuasion are watching Fignon in total horror…😂
That was the genesis of all the aero breakthroughs of today. It is amazing how some are quick to adapt and some refuse until it bites them hard.
13:00
That's the most dramatic slow-mo fall I've ever seen. 😂
Sure, he just did a hard effort. I get it. But I can't think of many times I've seen a rider collapse in slow motion at the end of a stage, even a TT. 🤔
I think he was being dramatic on purpose. Years later, he said he didn't know the result right away. Someone came and told him, and THAT'S when he started crying.
I think he fell on purpose, thinking he had won, so the story in the local press would be one of a traditional Frenchman giving everything he had and holding on to the win, against the rowdy American who used aerodynamics to his advantage.
Greg had his own idea of what would happen!
Meh I've seen it nearly happen plenty of times just on this tour alone. Generally though the teams have someone ready to help to stop them falling over. Though that said it's normally mountain stages where they've pushed way beyond a normal persons pain threshold.
Granted that said, you're probably right since it was a flat TT stage. And also ya the way he fell isn't anything like the complete collapse cyclists normally would do if they were completely gassed. Probably done for drama, but there's probably also an aspect of him being emotionally drained as well.
I still can't get over Fignon not even using a helment and wearing what looks like fairly normal glasses as well.
This was an amazing ride...How did Lemond pull off the second fastest ever time trial on an old steel bike after just cycling 2000 miles and after being shot in the stomach. Either he was superman or taking PEDs. 🤔
I'd say he was pretty close to being superman back in the late 80s. He was a rider who can climb, sprint, and time trial, a rare combination. Saw the movie The Last Rider recently which shed some light on what was going on. He was not expected to podium that year so there was no pressure for him that year.
@@petescyclingvideos I'll have to give that movie a look, thanks for the heads up about it.
I'm on the fence for a couple of reasons: All his rivals were and have admitted to taking PEDs. His 89 TDF winning time trial - still the 4th fastest ever and a minute faster than the next admitted doper, faster than Armstrong and Froome. There is footage of him finishing and he calmly gets off his bike smiling - no suffering. Either he was doping, as his rivals all were, or he is a genuine super human.
Since retiring he certainly doesn't look super humam, I would suggest the former is the case.
I could be wrong of course but I believe doping was taking place.
Fignon could be a jerk
He was arrogant and we see often what happens to arrogance in the peloton.
No he was not, he was a very kind guy. RIP.
It was sad to see how much one event affected him for the rest of his life.
Ah, he’s French. They can’t help themselves.
That was the storyline to get Americans to watch the TDF: Greg Lemond the all-American boy as pure as your grandmother's homemade apple pie, vs all these European jerks - especially Hinault and Fignon!!!!
Best. American. Cyclist. Ever!
LANCE
Shouuld have gone aero….
Fignon apparently tried the aero bars but felt he could not breathe properly in the position.
Awesome...I was only 3 so don't remember but it is great to watch the live tv footage. Very intense. Fignon was as sick as a parrot😅
Shame he ruins his legacy by non stop crying about Lance Armstrong.
Agreed. An otherwise excellent interview sullied by their obsession with that asshole.
The all out war Armstrong waged against LeMond was not a small thing
He was the first to notice what/who Armstrong was dealing with. Nobody believed him, Armstrong tried to ruin him
Also, you gotta remember that Trek tried to destroy Lemond's cycling business. For that alone I would never own a Trek. I don't care how good it is.
Greg Lemond, still the only American to win the Tour de France!
🤦♂️
Ratio
Amphetamines were not tested.
that day aerodynamics won. simple.