Bernard Hinault

Who is Bernard Hinault?

Bernard Hinault is a former French cyclist who won the Tour de France five times. He is one of only five cyclists to have won all three Grand Tours, and the only cyclist to have won each more than once. He won the Tour de France in 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982 and 1985. He came second in 1984 and 1986 and won 28 stages, of which 13 were individual time trials. The other three to have achieved five Tour de France victories are Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx and Miguel Indurain. Of these, Hinault is the only one to have finished either first or second in each Tour de France he finished. He remains the last French winner of the Tour de France.

Hinault was nicknamed Le Blaireau, as he would often don a hairband, thus resembling a shaving brush. In an interview in the French magazine Vélo, however, Hinault said the nickname had nothing to do with the animal. He said it was a local cyclists' way of saying "mate" or "buddy" in his youth – "How's it going, badger?" – and that it came to refer to him personally.