Commentator Daniel Mangeas pays tribute to Federico Bahamontes: "I felt like someone privileged to have met Federico"
Cycling
Federico Bahamontes, one of the greatest climbers in the history of cycling, died on Tuesday at the age of 95. Winner of the Tour de France in 1959, six times best climber of the Grande Boucle and winner of seven stages left its mark on the 1950s and 1960s, leaving cycling enthusiasts in awe... Former long-time cycling commentator Daniel Mangeas spoke about the legacy of the mythical climber for Cyclism'Actu.
"Federico Bahamontes is my whole childhood. I had the pleasure of meeting him often, he was an empathetic and pleasant person to be around. He was above all an immense champion, one of the greatest and most emblematic climbers of all time. For people of my generation, it was a champion who accompanied us, with this image of an irresistible climber who flew over the passes and his opponents. He fascinated the children of my generation."
"His relations with the French champions of the time? They were good. There was mutual admiration. Raymond Poulidor and Jacques Anquetil admired Federico Bahamontes, and vice versa. They respected each other deeply, and as you go through life and meet each other, respect becomes friendship, and that's what I felt about them."
"I remember my first meeting with him, it was on the Mediterranean Tour organized at the time by another former winner of the Tour, Lucien Aimar. I have the photo at home because around him, there was Raymond Poulidor, Jacques Anquetil, Henri Anglade, Julio Jimenez, Raphaël Géminiani, François Mahé... It is an indelible memory for me to have brought together all these champions in the same photo. If someone had told me one day that I would meet Federico, I would have said that it was impossible. That day, I felt like someone privileged."
Read also
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
Loading
🕊️It is with deep sadness that we learn of the passing of Federico Bahamontes, winner of the 1959 Tour de France. Aged 95, the Eagle of Toledo was the oldest Tour de France winner, the first Spanish winner, and a six-time winner of the Mountain classification. Our thoughts and
Write a comment