France and the Tour de France honored the memory of Raphaël Géminiani ahead of stage 8 of the race on Saturday following the passing of the French former racer and directeur sportif who died at 99.
Géminiani was a prominent climber in the sport during the 1940s and 1950s, winning seven stages of the Tour de France, finishing second in the 1951 race, and earning three king of the mountains titles in both the Tour and Giro d’Italia.
Groupama-FDJ manager Marc Madiot paid tribute to Géminiani, stating, “An era is slowly passing away. A giant is leaving us. Salut Gem,” in a social media post from the team.
The French team Arkéa-B&B Hotels also honored Géminiani before the start of the race, acknowledging, “Illustrious rider and directeur sportif, Raphaël Géminiani, passed away yesterday. We send our most sincere condolences to his family and loved ones at the start of stage 8 of the Tour de France.”
Known for his storytelling and larger-than-life personality, Géminiani raced for Metropole-Dunlop, Bianchi supporting Fausto Coppi, and his own team, St-Raphael-Géminiani. He continued to manage his team after retiring from racing, guiding riders like Jacques Anquetil, Lucien Aimar, and Luis Ocaña to success.
Under his leadership, his riders achieved great victories, including five Tours de France, two Vuelta a Españas, and a Giro d’Italia. He also managed legendary cyclists such as Rudi Altig, Jean Stablinski, Joaquin Agostinho, Stephen Roche, Fabio Parra, and Eddy Merckx towards the end of his career.
During his racing career, Géminiani had a fiery temperament and often clashed with rivals like Jean Robic and Louison Bobet. He famously named a donkey ‘Marcel’ after being left off the French national team by manager Bidot during the 1958 Tour.
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As a cyclist, Géminiani remains the only person to finish in the top 10 of all three Grand Tours in the same year. He wore the yellow jersey for three days in 1958 and was the first Frenchman to wear the pink jersey in the Giro – a significant achievement for someone whose Italian parents fled fascist Italy in the 1920s.
Géminiani passed away at the age of 99 near his home in Clermont-Ferrand in central France on Friday morning.
