The King of the Mountains is the title given to the best climber in a cycling road race. While the title may be given to the rider who achieves the highest position over several designated climbs in a single-day road race, it is more usually applied to stage races (for example, the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia or Vuelta a España) where points are accumulated over the duration of the whole race. 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. ... Cycling is a recreation, a sport, and a means of transport across land. ... The Tour de France (French for Tour of France), often referred to as La Grande Boucle, Le Tour or The Tour, is an epic long distance road bicycle racing competition for professionals held over three weeks in July in and around France. ... The Giro dItalia, also simply known as the Giro, is a long distance road bicycle race for professional cyclists held over three weeks in May or early June in and around Italy. ... The Vuelta a España bicycle race is one of the three Grand Tours of Europe and, after the Tour de France and the Giro dItalia, the third most important road cycling stage race in the world. ...

In the Tour de France, at the top of each significant climb, points are awarded to the riders who are first over the top. The climbs are categorised from 1 (most difficult) to 4 (least difficult) based on their steepness and length. A fifth category, called Hors categorie (outside category) applies to mountains rated even more severe than first category. Similar ratings apply to climbs in the other major Tours.

In the Tour de France, the leader in the mountains competition wears a distinctive polka dot jersey (French: maillot à pois rouge). Although the King of the Mountains was first recognised in the 1933 Tour de France, the distinctive jersey was not introduced until 1975; in the Giro and Vuelta, the King of the Mountains leader wears a green jersey. The polka dot jersey (French: maillot à pois rouge) is awarded for the best climber during the mountain stages of the Tour de France cycle race. ... 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1975 calendar). ... The maillot vert (French for green jersey) is the jersey or t-shirt worn by the leader of the Tour de Frances points classification. ...

Two riders have won the "King of the Mountains" in the Tour de France six times: Federico Bahamontes (Spain) and Lucien Van Impe (Belgium), while Richard Virenque (France) holds the record with seven wins. Gino Bartali holds the record for the Giro d'Italia, also with seven wins, while Jose Luis Laguia has won the Vuelta equivalent five times. Federico Martin Bahamontes was a professional cyclist born on 9 July 1928 in Santo Domingo, Spain. ... Lucien Van Impe (born 20 October 1946 in Mere, Belgium) was a Flemish cyclist from 1969 to 1987. ... Richard Virenque (born 19 November 1969) is a French cyclist, born in Casablanca, Morocco. ... Gino Bartali - il Ginettaccio - (born in Ponte a Enna near Florence, 18 July 1914; died 5 May 2000) was an Italian professional racing cyclist. ...

No rider has won the "King of the Mountains" in all three Grand Tours in the same year. Indeed, only two riders, Federico Bahamontes and Luis Herrera, have won all three competitions in different years. Ten riders have achieved doubles. In bicycle racing a Grand Tour refers to one of the three major European professional cycling stage races: Tour de France - Tour of France Giro dItalia - Tour of Italy Vuelta a España - Tour of Spain Collectively they are termed the Grand Tours, and all three are similar in... Federico Martin Bahamontes was a professional cyclist born on 9 July 1928 in Santo Domingo, Spain. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

The Tour/Giro double has been achieved by four riders:

• Fausto Coppi (1949)
• Charly Gaul (1956)
• Lucien Van Impe (1983)
• Claudio Chiapucci (1992)

The Giro/Vuelta double has been achieved by two riders: Fausto Coppi (September 15, 1919 in Castellania (Province of Alessandria), Italy, - January 2, 1960 in Tortona, Italy) was an Italian racing cyclist. ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) is a common year starting on Saturday. ... Charly Gaul (December 8, 1932 – December 6, 2005) was a leading professional cyclist of the 1950s. ... 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Lucien Van Impe (born 20 October 1946 in Mere, Belgium) was a Flemish cyclist from 1969 to 1987. ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ...

• Manuel Fuente (1972)
• Andres Oliva (1975, 1976)

The Tour/Vuelta double has also been achieved by four riders: 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year that started on a Tuesday. ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1975 calendar). ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ...

• Federico Bahamontes (1958)
• Julio Jiminez (1965)
• Luis Herrera (1987)
• Tony Rominger (1993)

Federico Martin Bahamontes was a professional cyclist born on 9 July 1928 in Santo Domingo, Spain. ... 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link goes to calendar). ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Tony Rominger (born 27 March 1961 in Velje, Denmark) is a Swiss cyclist who won major tours four times in his career—the Vuelta a España three consecutive years (1992, 1993, 1994) and Giro dItalia once (1995). ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ...

Grand Tours: Kings of the Mountains

Alfredo Binda (August 11, 1902 - January 1, 1986) was an Italian cyclist, one of the best road racers before the Second World War. ... Gino Bartali - il Ginettaccio - (born in Ponte a Enna near Florence, 18 July 1914; died 5 May 2000) was an Italian professional racing cyclist. ... Giovanni Valetti is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. ... Fausto Coppi (September 15, 1919 in Castellania (Province of Alessandria), Italy, - January 2, 1960 in Tortona, Italy) was an Italian racing cyclist. ... French cycling star Louison Bobet (March 12, 1925 - March 13, 1983) is one of just eight riders to win the Tour de France at least three times. ... Hugo Koblet Hugo Koblet (March 21, 1925 – November 6, 1964) was a Swiss champion cyclist. ... Federico Martin Bahamontes was a professional cyclist born on 9 July 1928 in Santo Domingo, Spain. ... Charly Gaul (December 8, 1932 – December 6, 2005) was a leading professional cyclist of the 1950s. ... Gastone Nencini was a Italian cyclist who won the 1960 Tour de France and the 1957 Giro dItalia. ... Rik (Henrik) Van Looy (born 20 December 1933) was one of the greatest Belgian professional cyclists of the post-war period, when he was nicknamed the King of the Classics or Emperor of Herentals (after the small Belgian town where he lived). ... Aurelio Gonzales (born July 26, 1940) is a Spanish cyclist. ... Aurelio Gonzales (born July 26, 1940) is a Spanish cyclist. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Luis Ocaña (June 9, 1945 - May 19, 1994) was a Spanish cyclist who won the Tour de France in 1973. ... Lucien Van Impe (born 20 October 1946 in Mere, Belgium) was a Flemish cyclist from 1969 to 1987. ... Gerardus Joseph (Joop) Zoetemelk is a Dutch cyclist. ... Giovanni Battaglin is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. ... Robert Millar (born 13 September 1958) was a Scottish professional cyclist who won the “King of the Mountains” competition and finished fourth in the 1984 Tour de France – the highest ever finishing position in the Tour for a British cyclist. ... Royal motto: Nemo me impune lacessit (English: No one provokes me with impunity) Scotlands location within the UK Languages English, Gaelic, Scots Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow First Minister Jack McConnell Area - Total - % water Ranked 2nd UK 78,782 km² 1. ... Laurent Fignon (born August 12, 1960 in Paris) is a French cyclist, who won the Tour de France twice in 1983 and 1984, and missed winning it a third time, in 1989, by a very narrow margin. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Bernard Hinault (born 14 November 1954) is a French cyclist best known for his five victories in the Tour de France. ... Andrew Hampsten (born April 7, 1962 in Columbus, Ohio) is an American cyclist, best remembered for winning the 1988 Giro dItalia and the prestigious Alpe dHuez stage of the 1992 Tour de France. ... Tony Rominger (born 27 March 1961 in Velje, Denmark) is a Swiss cyclist who won major tours four times in his career—the Vuelta a España three consecutive years (1992, 1993, 1994) and Giro dItalia once (1995). ... Richard Virenque (born 19 November 1969) is a French cyclist, born in Casablanca, Morocco. ... Luc Leblanc (born on August 4, 1966 in Limoges, France) was a professional male cyclist from France. ... Marco Pantani Marco Pantani (Cesena, January 13, 1970 – February 14, 2004) was an Italian cyclist widely regarded as being one of the best climbers of his generation in professional road bicycle racing. ... Santiago Botero Echeverry (born October 27, 1972 in Medellín, Colombia) is a Colombian professional road bicycle racer. ... Francesco Casagrande is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. ... Sastre during the Stage 20 individual time trial (St Etienne) of the 2005 Tour de France. ... Photograph of Laurent Jalabert, present at the arrival of the Tour dAlsace at the Ballon dAlsace, France, 2005 // Biography Laurent Jalabert was born in France in 1968, a professional cyclist from 1989-2002. ... Michael Rasmussen (born June 1, 1974) is a Danish cyclist. ...

See also

• Climbing specialist