NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Charly Gaul

Charly Gaul (December 8, 1932 – December 6, 2005) was a road professional cyclist from Luxembourg. He was an accomplished time trialist, however, he was renowned as a climbing specialist. His climbing ability earned him the nickname of The Angel of the Mountains in the 1958 Tour de France which he won overall and took four stage victories. He was also successful in the Giro d'Italia, winning in 1956 and 1959, and claiming several further high places. Gaul was known for his strong performances in cold and wet weather conditions, of which he often took advantage to attack his rivals. He was known for his high pedaling cadence in a day when it was very uncommon. December 8 is the 342nd day of the year (343rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1932 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... December 6 is the 340th day of the year (341st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... June 14 is the 165th day of the year (166th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... The UCI Road World Championships, often referred to as the World Cycling Championships, is the annual world championship for bicycle road racing organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). ... December 8 is the 342nd day of the year (343rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1932 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... December 6 is the 340th day of the year (341st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A climbing specialist is a road bicycle racer who can ride especially well on highly inclined roads, such as those found among hills or mountains. ... Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Tour de France is the worlds best-known cycling race, a three-week-long road race that covers a circuit of most areas around France, and sometimes neighbouring countries. ... The Giro dItalia, also simply known as the Giro, is a long distance road bicycle racing stage race for professional cyclists held over three weeks in May or early June in and around Italy. ... Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Early life

Gaul worked in a butcher's shop and as a slaughterman in an abattoir at Bettembourg before turning professional. In 1952 he finished second in the Tour of Austria. He won his first professional event in his native Luxembourg in 1953, and was second in the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré stage race. The following year he was second in his country's road race championship (an event he later won six times), won a stage in the Dauphiné Libéré, and won a bronze medal in the 1954 World Cycling Championship. Workers and cattle in a slaughterhouse. ... Bettembourg is a city in southern Luxembourg. ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1953 (MCMLIII) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... The CritÃ©rium du DauphinÃ© LibÃ©rÃ© is an annual cycling road race, run over eight stages in the DauphinÃ© region in France during the first half of June. ... The UCI Road World Championships, often referred to as the World Cycling Championships, is the annual world championship for bicycle road racing organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). ...

Tour de France career

Early years

Gaul rode his first Tour de France in 1953, but abandoned on the sixth stage. He also started the 1954 Tour but again abandoned before the finish. The 1953 Tour de France was the 40th Tour de France, taking place July 3 to July 27, 1953. ... The 1954 Tour de France was the 41st Tour de France, taking place July 8 to August 1, 1954. ...

In the 1955 Tour , he finished third overall, won two stage victories and the overall mountains classification. He won stage 8 to Briançon and looked set for a second straight win the next day, but crashed while in the lead on a rain-soaked Alpine descent. He retained hopes of a high finishing position, and attacked in the Pyrenees, winning stage 17 (Toulouse to Saint-Gaudens) ahead of eventual overall winner Louison Bobet. This effort paid off earning him third place on general classification and victory in the "King of the Mountains" competition. The 1955 Tour de France was the 42nd Tour de France, taking place July 7 to July 30, 1955. ... BrianÃ§on is a town and commune in the French dÃ©partment of Hautes-Alpes (Provence-Alpes-CÃ´te dAzur), of which it is the sous-prÃ©fecture. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... New city flag (Occitan cross) Traditional coat of arms Motto: (Occitan: For Toulouse, always more) Location Coordinates Time Zone CET (GMT +1) Administration Country Region Midi-PyrÃ©nÃ©es Department Haute-Garonne (31) Intercommunality Community of Agglomeration of Greater Toulouse Mayor Jean-Luc Moudenc (UMP) (since 2004) City Statistics Land... Louison Bobet (March 12, 1925 - March 13, 1983) was a French professional road cyclist. ... The King of the Mountains is the title given to the best climber in a cycling road race. ...

After a hard-fought victory in the 1956 Giro d'Italia (in which he had also taken three stage wins - including an epic eight-minute victory in the Dolomites stage from Merano to Trento), Gaul was almost half an hour down after just six days' racing in the 1956 Tour de France , but he was confident he could close the gap in the mountains. He won the Mountains classification again, and two more stages - a mountain individual time trial on stage 3 and stage 18 to Grenoble. But his efforts did little good in the overall classification: he finished 13th overall. Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Dolomites (Italian: Dolomiti; German: Dolomiten) are a section of the Alps. ... Merano (Italian: Merano; German: Meran; Ladin: Meran; Latin: Merona; Note that many of the regions Italian languages/dialects use Meran), is a city in the Trentino-Alto Adige/SÃ¼dtirol region of Italy. ... Panorama of Trento. ... The 1956 Tour de France was the 43rd Tour de France, taking place July 5 to July 28, 1956. ... An Individual Time Trial (ITT) is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock (in French: contre la montre - literally against the watch). There are also track-based time trials where riders compete in velodromes, and team time trials (TTT). ... Grenoble (Arpitan: GrasanÃ²bol) is a city and commune in south-east France, situated at the foot of the Alps, at the confluence of the Drac into the IsÃ¨re River. ...

Gaul started the 1957 Tour, but abandoned after just two days of racing, with no stage wins. The 1957 Tour de France was the 44th Tour de France, taking place June 27 to July 20, 1957. ...

1958 victory

Gaul returned to the Tour with a vengeance in 1958. Third in that year's Giro, he started the French tour in dominant fashion and won four stages, three of them time trials, including the stage 18 ascent of Mont Ventoux. He faced competition in the mountains from fellow climbing specialist, the Spaniard Federico Bahamontes, but used his time trialling abilities to limit any losses. On Mont Ventoux, he beat Bahamontes by 31 seconds to move into third place overall, but he lost more than ten minutes, partly through mechanical difficulties, the following day. On the last day in the Alps, he launched one last do-or-die attack and gained 15 minutes on the then race leader, Raphaël Géminiani by the finish at Aix-les-Bains. It proved decisive and Gaul's Tour victory was assured. The 1958 Tour de France was the 45th Tour de France, taking place June 26 to July 19, 1958. ... Mont Ventoux is a mountain in the Provence region of southern France, located some 20 km north-east of Carpentras, Vaucluse. ... Federico Martin Bahamontes was a professional cyclist born on 9 July 1928 in Santo Domingo, Spain. ... RaphaÃ«l GÃ©miniani (born June 12, 1925) is a French former road bicycle racer. ... Aix-les-Bains is a spa town of eastern France, near the Lac du Bourget, and 9 m. ...

1959 Tour

In 1959, the defending champion was 12th overall in the Tour de France. He lost time in the sweltering heat of the Pyrenees stages, but won at Grenoble again, with Bahamontes second (on his way to overall victory). The 1959 Tour de France, occuring between June 25th and July 18th of the year, featured 120 riders, of which 65 finished. ...

Late Tours

Gaul missed the 1960 edtion of the Tour. In 1961 he returned, earning third place overall and one stage victory, Stage 9 to Grenoble. In this tour he was hampered by injury: in the Alps he crashed on the descent of the Cucheron, bruising his hip, shoulder and knee. At the beginning of the final stage Gaul was second to Jacques Anquetil. Breaking the traditions of the Tour, Guido Carlesi attacked as the Tour entered its final kilometre overcoming a four second deficit to Gaul. This moved him to second overall, relegating Gaul to third. The 1960 Tour de France was the 47th Tour de France, taking place June 26 to July 17, 1960. ... The 1961 Tour de France was the 48th running of the Tour de France, from June 25 to July 16. ... Grenoble (Arpitan: GrasanÃ²bol) is a city and commune in south-east France, situated at the foot of the Alps, at the confluence of the Drac into the IsÃ¨re River. ... Jacques Anquetil (January 8, 1934 - November 18, 1987), was a French cyclist and the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times, in 1957 and from 1961 to 1964. ...

In 1962 he finished the race in 9th place with no stage victories. It is worth noting, however, that the 1962 Tour was contested by trade teams for the first time in years, rather than national teams and Gaul's team was not one of the strongest that year. Coming from a small country, Gaul was usually placed in a mixed team, poorly supported by riders of limited abilities as domestiques. His final contested Tour was the 1963 edition, but unfortunately he abandoned before the finish and before earning any stage placings. The 1962 Tour de France was the 49th Tour de France, taking place June 24 to July 15, 1962. ... A domestique is a road bicycle racer who works solely for the benefit of his or her team and leader. ... The 1963 Tour de France was the 50th Tour de France, taking place June 23 to July 14, 1963. ...

Giro d'Italia

Gaul twice won the Giro d'Italia, in 1956 and 1959. In the 1959 Giro d'Italia he also won the Giro's mountains classification and three stages. His stage victory at Courmayeur had seen him take a 10-minute advantage over Jacques Anquetil over the final two climbs of the day. In the 1960 Giro he earned another stage victory on his way to third place overall. In 1961 he finished fourth overall in the Giro. The Giro dItalia, also simply known as the Giro, is a long distance road bicycle racing stage race for professional cyclists held over three weeks in May or early June in and around Italy. ... Courmayeur is a French-speaking Italian town and commune in the autonomous region of Aosta Valley, in northern Italy. ... Jacques Anquetil (January 8, 1934 - November 18, 1987), was a French cyclist and the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times, in 1957 and from 1961 to 1964. ...

Other major victories

Tour de Luxembourg is an annual stage race in professional road bicycle racing held in Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ...

Retirement

Charly Gaul retired from cycling in 1963. He made an abortive comeback in 1965 that accomplished no victories. Afterwards he spent six months running a café near the main train station in the centre of Luxembourg city then slipped out of public view. For a quarter of a century his whereabouts were practically unknown. He was discovered in the middle of the Ardennes forest, following a hermitic lifestyle in a small hut. The Ardennes (pronounced ar-DEN) (Dutch: Ardennen) is a region of extensive forests and rolling hill country, primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, but stretching into France (lending its name to the Ardennes dÃ©partement and the Champagne-Ardenne rÃ©gion). ...

He was invited by the Tour Society in 1989 to make an appearance at the Tour de France in Luxembourg. He attended and began following cycling again and taking part as a guest official at many races. He attended a reunion of former Tour de France winners when the centenary race was presented in October 2002. On December 6, 2005, Gaul died, two days before his 73rd birthday. December 6 is the 340th day of the year (341st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Trivia

Charly Gaul's victory in the 1958 Tour de France occurred in the same year as Charles De Gaulle (similar name) came to power in France. This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Bibliography

Roland Barthes Roland Barthes (November 12, 1915 â€“ March 25, 1980) (pronounced ) was a French literary critic, literary and social theorist, philosopher, and semiotician. ...

External links

Categories: 1932 births | 2005 deaths | People from Luxembourg City | Luxembourgian cyclists | Tour de France winners | Giro d'Italia winners | Tour de France Yellow Jersey wearing cyclists Two Luxembourgian Sportspeople of the Year awards are granted each year, with one category for sportsmen and one for sportswomen. ... Year 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Fiorenzo Magni is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. ... The Giro dItalia, also simply known as the Giro, is a long distance road bicycle racing stage race for professional cyclists held over three weeks in May or early June in and around Italy. ... Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Gastone Nencini was a Italian cyclist who won the 1960 Tour de France and the 1957 Giro dItalia. ... Jacques Anquetil (January 8, 1934 - November 18, 1987), was a French cyclist and the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times, in 1957 and from 1961 to 1964. ... The Tour de France is the worlds best-known cycling race, a three-week-long road race that covers a circuit of most areas around France, and sometimes neighbouring countries. ... Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Federico Martin Bahamontes was a professional cyclist born on 9 July 1928 in Santo Domingo, Spain. ... Two Luxembourgian Sportspeople of the Year awards are granted each year, with one category for sportsmen and one for sportswomen. ... Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Ercole Baldini is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. ... The Giro dItalia, also simply known as the Giro, is a long distance road bicycle racing stage race for professional cyclists held over three weeks in May or early June in and around Italy. ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jacques Anquetil (January 8, 1934 - November 18, 1987), was a French cyclist and the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times, in 1957 and from 1961 to 1964. ...

Contents

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