The 5 best victories of Miguel Indurain's career - Tour de France record holder made a mark in the 1990's
Cycling
Miguel Induráin is one of the best cyclists of all time. If we talk only about time trials, he is in the discussion of the greatest of all time. But the Spanish rider was much more than that, he also had the ability to hold off the great climbers in the high mountains. That led him to have a legendary record with five Tour de France wins, two editions of the Giro d'Italia, a World and an Olympic title. But which of his wins were the best?
Induráin was a rider who made his professional debut in 1984, began to triumph in 1988, entered the big leagues in 1991 and retired from cycling in 1996, when he was 32 years old and still at the top of the sport. Currently, he continues to be a very vocal voice in the sport. These are five of the most representative triumphs of his career.
1. 1991 Tour de France
His first Tour victory. He started 7th in the Lyon prologue. He had a modest initial week, until the Alençon time trial and he won, placing 4th in the general classification. He was 7th in Jaca and 2nd in Val Louron, being beaten only by Claudio Chiappucci, one of his great rivals, in the sprint, and taking the yellow jersey.
He was second on the Alpe d'Huez, beaten by his other great Italian contender, Gianni Bugno, and finished the Tour by winning the time trial in Mâcon. He was joined on the final podium by Bugno and Chiappucci. It would be the first of Miguel Induráin's five consecutive victories in the Tour de France, a record for the time.
2. 1992 Tour de France
Induráin arrived with the responsibility of defending his title, being the top favorite to do so. He sent a message from day 1, winning the prologue in San Sebastian. He was 6th in Pau, 7th in the team time trial in Libourne and was only out of the provisional Top 10 overall for one stage. Then came the Luxembourg time trial and he was second and never dropped again.
He took three minutes from the second, who was Armand de las Cuevas, in one of the greatest displays in the history of cycling. Pascal Lino was the only one ahead of him in the classification. He snatched the yellow jersey from him in Sestriere, after coming third behind Claudio Chiappucci and Franco Vona. From that moment on, he never let go and won for the second time in a row.
He was 6th on the Alpe d'Huez, 7th in La Bourboule and won the time trial in Blois. He won the race and was joined on the podium again by Chiappucci and Bugno, this time in a different order.
Miguel Induráin, in the Luxembourg time trial during the 1992 Tour de France. Imago
3. 1992 Giro d'Italia
The month before the Tour, Induráin had already won the Giro. It was to be the first of his two consecutive double victories. He started the Corsa Rosa by finishing 2nd in the opening time trial in Genoa behind Thierry Marie, but took his revenge in the Sansepolcro time trial three days later, setting the fastest time. He did so with the maglia rosa, and would not relinquish it at any time until the arrival in Milan.
He was 9th in Sulmona, 5th in Monte Terminillo, 2nd in Corvara, 5th in Monte Bondone, 4th in Sondrio, 3rd in Pian del Re, 5th in Pila, 4th in Verbania and conquered the final time trial in Milano. Hewon the overall classification, joined by Chiappucci and Franco Chiocciolo, two of the great local stars of the time.
4. World Time Trial 1995 (Duitama, Colombia)
Induráin arrived on Colombian soil to make his debut in the World Time Trial Championships. He did not disappoint anyone and took the rainbow jersey after taking 49 seconds from his compatriot Abraham Olano, with whom the roles would be reversed a few days later in the road race, and 2:03 from the German Uwe Peschel. Fourth was local rider Dubán Alberto Ramírez, more than 3 minutes behind.
5. Olympic gold medal in time trial (Atlanta 1996)
The Atlanta Olympic Games were the first to have a time trial. And of course, the first winner could not be anyone else. Less than two months before hanging up his bicycle, Induráin went to the United States to win the gold medal. He won by 12 seconds over Olano and 31 seconds over Britain's Chris Boardman, the first ever world champion in the sport.
Original: Victor Gonzalez.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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