In
road bicycle racing
Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on Road surface, paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The ...
, a domestique is a rider who works for the benefit of their
team
A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal.
As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to in ...
and leader, rather than trying to win the race. In French, ''domestique'' translates as "servant".
[However, in French, the term used is ''équipier''. In Italy and Spain, the term used is ''gregario'' (meaning "soldier of the Roman legions" or "one of the group", se]
etymology
. In Belgium and the Netherlands the term ''knecht'' (meaning "servant" or "helper" in Dutch) is used. The use of the term dates back to 1911, although such riders had existed before then.
Theoretical basis
Much of a cyclist's effort is to push aside the air in front of them. Riding in the
slipstream
A slipstream is a region behind a moving object in which a wake of fluid (typically air or water) is moving at velocities comparable to that of the moving object, relative to the ambient fluid through which the object is moving. The term slips ...
of another rider is easier than taking the lead. The difference increases with speed. Racers have known this from the start and have ridden accordingly, often sharing the lead between them. From there it is a small step to employing a rider to create a slipstream while their leader rides behind them.
More complicated tactics become possible as the number of domestiques available increases (''see below''). Where the domestique finishes a race is less important than the help he gives. During their role as domestiques, riders do not share the fame of their respective leaders, such as
Eddy Merckx
Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (born 17 June 1945), known as Eddy Merckx (, ), is a Belgian former professional road and track cyclist racer who is the most successful rider in the history of competitive cycling. His victories include an ...
,
Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault (; born 14 November 1954) is a French former professional road bicycle racing, road cyclist. With 147 professional victories, including five times the Tour de France, he is often named among the greatest cyclists of all time. In ...
, or
Miguel Induráin
Miguel Induráin Larraya (; born 16 July 1964) is a retired Spanish road racing cyclist. Induráin won five Tours de France from 1991 Tour de France, 1991 to 1995 Tour de France, 1995, the fourth, and last, to win five times, and the only five- ...
.
Many domestiques have ultimately gone on to achieve fame of their own, however.
Lucien Aimar
Lucien Aimar (; born 28 April 1941) is a French cyclist, who won the Tour de France in 1966 Tour de France, 1966 and the French National Road Race Championships, national road championship in 1968. He is now a race organizer.
Amateur career
Luc ...
, who supported
Jacques Anquetil
Jacques Anquetil (; 8 January 1934 – 18 November 1987) was a French road racing cyclist and the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times, in 1957 and from 1961 to 1964.
He stated before the 1961 Tour that he would gain the ye ...
, won the
1966 Tour de France
The 1966 Tour de France was the 53rd edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It took place between 21 June and 14 July, with 22 stages covering a distance of .
Lucien Aimar was a domestique of 5-time Tour winner Jacques An ...
.
Greg LeMond
Gregory James LeMond (born June 26, 1961) is an American former Road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist. He won the Tour de France thrice and the UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road Race World Championship twice, becoming t ...
won the
1986 Tour de France
The 1986 Tour de France was a cycling race held in France, from 4 July to 27 July. It was the 73rd running of the Tour de France. Greg LeMond of won the race, ahead of his teammate Bernard Hinault. It was the first ever victory for a rider outs ...
after being
Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault (; born 14 November 1954) is a French former professional road bicycle racing, road cyclist. With 147 professional victories, including five times the Tour de France, he is often named among the greatest cyclists of all time. In ...
's domestique in the
1985 Tour de France
The 1985 Tour de France was the 72nd edition of the Tour de France, one of Cycle sport, cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It took place between 28 June and 21 July. The course ran over and consisted of a individual time trial, pro ...
, as did
Jan Ullrich
Jan Ullrich (; born 2 December 1973) is a German former professional road bicycle racer. Ullrich won gold and silver medals in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, Sydney. He won the 1999 Vuelta a España and the HEW Cyclassics in fro ...
in
1997
Events January
* January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States.
* January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis.
* January 1 ...
after riding for
Bjarne Riis
Bjarne Lykkegård Riis (; born 3 April 1964), nicknamed ''The Eagle from Herning'' (), is a Denmark, Danish former professional road bicycle racer who won the 1996 Tour de France. For many years he was the owner and later manager of the Oleg Tink ...
in
1996
1996 was designated as:
* International Year for the Eradication of Poverty
Events January
* January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
,
Chris Froome
Christopher Clive Froome, (; born 20 May 1985) is a British professional road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI ProTeam . He has won seven Grand Tours: four editions of the Tour de France (in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017), one Giro d' ...
in
2013
2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years).
2013 was designated as:
*International Year of Water Cooperation
*International Year of Quinoa
Events
January
* January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
after riding for
Bradley Wiggins
Sir Bradley Marc Wiggins (born 28 April 1980) is a British former professional Road bicycle racing, road and track cycling, track racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2001 and 2016. He began his cycling career on the track, but ...
in
2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
, and
Jonas Vingegaard
Jonas Vingegaard Hansen (; ; born 10 December 1996) is a Danish professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . Described as one of the best Climbing specialist, climbers of his generation, his rivalry with Tad ...
, who scored second place at the Tour in
2021
Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...
before ultimately going on to win in
2022
The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
and
2023
Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...
after being domestique for
Primož Roglič
Primož Roglič (; born 29 October 1989) is a Slovenian professional road bicycle racing, racing cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . A former ski jumping, ski jumper, Roglič switched to cycling after an accident suffered at Planica. Despite b ...
in
2020
The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
.
The writer Roger St Pierre said:
First domestiques
The first riders known to have been employed to help a leader were
Jean Dargassies
Jean Dargaties, known as Jean Dargassies (born Grisolles, Tarn-et-Garonne, France, 15 July 1872, died Grisolles, 7 August 1965) was a French racing cyclist who rode the first Tour de France because the man who sold him a bike told him he ought ...
and Henri Gauban. They rode in the
1907 Tour de France
The 1907 Tour de France was the fifth running of the annual Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. From 8 July to 4 August, the 93 cyclists cycled 4488 km (2,788 mi) in fourteen stages around France. The winner, Lucien Petit- ...
for
Henri Pépin
Henri Pépin (18 November 1864 – 31 December 1915) was an affluent French racing cyclist who once hired two riders to escort him leisurely through the Tour de France, in which they ate at good restaurants and spent the night in expensive hotel ...
, who promised them the equivalent of first prize if they would pace him from restaurant to restaurant. The three never hurried. They took 12 hours and 20 minutes longer than
Émile Georget
Émile Georget (21 September 1881 – 16 October 1960) was a French road racing cyclist. Born in Bossay-sur-Claise, he was the younger brother of cyclist Léon Georget. He died at Châtellerault.
Career achievements
Tour de France
Georget s ...
on the stage from
Roubaix
Roubaix ( , ; ; ; ) is a city in northern France, located in the Lille metropolitan area on the Belgian border. It is a historically mono-industrial Communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, depar ...
to
Metz
Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...
– they were far from last – and the judges were powerless because the race was decided not on time but points. It mattered less what speed riders competed than the order in which they crossed the line. In an era when riders could be separated by hours, there was no point in hurrying after a rival who could not be caught and passed. The judges had to wait for everyone.
The rules of the Tour in its first decades forbade team riding, but Pépin did little to affect the result. He dropped out on stage five.
Terminology origin
The word was first used in cycling as an insult for
Maurice Brocco
Maurice Brocco (28 January 1883 – 26 June 1965) was a French professional road bicycle racer between 1906 and 1927. He was born into a family of Swiss-Italian immigrants. In 1911 he won a stage in the Tour de France. He participated six ti ...
, known as Coco,
[Chany, Pierre, (1988), ''La Fabuleuse Histoire du Tour de France'', La Martinière, France, p131] in 1911. Brocco started six Tours de France between 1908 and 1914, finished none of them, although a stage he won in 1911 caused the coining of ''domestique''. Brocco's chances in 1911 ended when he lost time on the day to
Chamonix
Chamonix-Mont-Blanc (; ; (no longer in use)), more commonly known simply as Chamonix (), is a communes of France, commune in the departments of France, department in the regions of France, region in Southeastern France. It was the site of the f ...
. Unable to win, the next day he offered his services to other riders, for which he had a reputation.
François Faber
François Faber (; 26 January 1887 – 9 May 1915) was a Luxembourgish racing cyclist. He was born in France. He was the first foreigner to win the Tour de France in 1909, and his record of winning 5 consecutive stages still stands. He died in ...
was in danger of being eliminated for taking too long and the two came to a deal. Brocco waited for Faber and paced him to the finish.
Henri Desgrange
Henri Desgrange (; 31 January 1865 – 16 August 1940) was a French cycle sport, bicycle racer and Sports journalism, sports journalist. He set twelve world track cycling records, including the hour record of on 11 May 1893. He was the first o ...
, the organiser and chief judge, wanted to disqualify him for breaking the rules. But he had no proof and feared Brocco would appeal to the national cycling body, the Union Vélocipédique Française. He limited himself to scorn in his newspaper, ''
L'Auto'', writing: "He is unworthy. He is no more than a ''domestique''."
Next morning Brocco greeted Desgrange with: "Today, ''monsieur'', we are going to settle our accounts." He won the day by 34 minutes. Desgrange followed him and the
yellow jersey
The general classification of the Tour de France is the most important classification of the race and determines the winner of the race. Since 1919, the leader of the general classification has worn the yellow jersey ( ).
History
For the first t ...
,
Gustave Garrigou
Cyprien Gustave Garrigou (; 24 September 1884 – 23 January 1963) was one of the best professional racing cyclists of his era. He rode the Tour de France eight times and won once. Of 117 stages, he won eight, came in the top ten 96 times a ...
, as they climbed the
Tourmalet
Col du Tourmalet (; elevation ) is one of the highest paved mountain passes in the French Pyrenees, in the department of Hautes-Pyrénées. Sainte-Marie-de-Campan is at the foot on the eastern side and the ski station La Mongie two-thirds ...
. "So, am I forbidden to ride with him?" Brocco shouted. On the following mountain, the
Aubisque, he dropped Garrigou, passed
Paul Duboc
Paul Duboc (2 April 1884 – 19 August 1941) was a French professional road bicycle racer from 1907 through 1927. Despite winning 5 career stages in the Tour de France, he may be most remembered for being disqualified at the 1919 Tour de Fran ...
, who had been poisoned and was in agony beside the road, and took the lead with
Émile Georget
Émile Georget (21 September 1881 – 16 October 1960) was a French road racing cyclist. Born in Bossay-sur-Claise, he was the younger brother of cyclist Léon Georget. He died at Châtellerault.
Career achievements
Tour de France
Georget s ...
. Desgrange was still watching. "''Alors, quoi''", Brocco shouted, "do I have the right to stay with him?" And then he rode off alone and won. He had made two points to Desgrange. The first was that he was a talented rider and not a servant. The second was that he had so much talent that his poor riding with Faber could only have been through a commercial arrangement. Desgrange replied that any rider with such flair had clearly been selling the race. "He deserves his punishment", Desgrange wrote, "immediate disqualification."
Domestiques had long been accepted in other races. Desgrange believed the Tour should be a race of individuals and fought repeatedly with the sponsors, bicycle factories, who saw it otherwise. Desgrange got rid of the factories' influence only by reorganising the Tour for national teams in 1930, with the effect that he thereby acknowledged teamwork and therefore domestiques.
Devoted domestiques
The dominant climber of the 1950s,
Charly Gaul
Charly Gaul Sporting Cyclist, UK, undated cutting (8 December 1932 – 6 December 2005)[Luxembourger
Luxembourgers ( ; ) are an ethnic group native to their nation state of Luxembourg, where they make up around half of the population. They share the culture of Luxembourg and speak Luxembourgish, a West Germanic language.
Luxembourgers were ...](_blank)
Marcel Ernzer
Marcel Ernzer (23 March 1926 – 1 April 2003) was a Luxembourgish cyclist. He competed in the individual and team road race events at the 1948 Summer Olympics.
Major results
;1949
:3rd Overall Tour de Luxembourg
:9th Overall Tour de Suis ...
. The two men were of similar size and rode bikes of exactly the same dimensions, even though that made Ernzer a little low in the saddle. He was always there to give his bike to Gaul when it was needed.
Andrea Carrea
Andrea Carrea (14 August 1924 – 13 January 2013) was an Italian professional road bicycle racer. He was the first to ride the Alpe d'Huez in the yellow jersey of leadership in the Tour de FranceL'Équipe, 13 July 2003 and probably the only ri ...
was a domestique for
Fausto Coppi
Angelo Fausto Coppi (; 15 September 1919 – 2 January 1960) was an Italian cyclist, the dominant international cyclist of the years after the World War II, Second World War. His successes earned him the title ''Il Campionissimo'' ("Champio ...
. "He was a ''gregario'' par excellence", said the journalist Jean-Luc Gatellier, "the incarnation of personal disinterest ... showing to perfection the notion of personal sacrifice. He refused the slightest bit of personal glory."
Carrea was riding the
Tour de France of 1952 and joined an attack to
Lausanne
Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...
to protect his leader's interests.
Carrea said: "Without knowing it, I had slid into the important break of the day and at Lausanne, to my great surprise, I heard I had inherited a jersey destined for champions. For me, it was a terrible situation."
Carrea had no idea he had become race leader. When officials told him, he burst into tears. He had ousted Coppi and he dreaded the consequences. He wept as he received his jersey, looking constantly down the road for the main field that included his leader.
Jean-Paul Ollivier said: Carrea thought the sky had fallen in. How would Fausto take it? When the champion arrived a few minutes later, Carrea went towards him in tears to offer his excuses. "You must understand that I did not want this jersey, Fausto. I have no right to it. A poor man like me, the yellow jersey?"
Coppi said: "I wondered how Carrea, so shy and so emotional, was going to take it. When I went to congratulate him on the track at Lausanne, he didn't know what face he ought to adopt".[''L'Équipe'', 13 July 2003]
José Luis Arrieta
José Luis Arrieta Lujambio (born 15 June 1971, in San Sebastián) is a retired Spanish professional road racing cyclist. He last rode for UCI ProTour team . He is now a sporting director for , the same franchise for which he rode earlier in his ...
was a domestique for
Miguel Induráin
Miguel Induráin Larraya (; born 16 July 1964) is a retired Spanish road racing cyclist. Induráin won five Tours de France from 1991 Tour de France, 1991 to 1995 Tour de France, 1995, the fourth, and last, to win five times, and the only five- ...
. ''
L'Équipe
''L'Équipe'' (, French for "the team") is a French nationwide daily newspaper devoted to sport, owned by Éditions Philippe Amaury. The paper is noted for coverage of association football, rugby, motorsport, and cycling. Its predecessor, '' ...
'' said: "He no longer counts the hours, the years, spent with his nose in the wind trying to protect his leader for as long as possible".
[''L'Équipe'', 7 July 2007] Arrieta said:
Types of support
Basic support
Domestiques bring water and food from team cars and shield teammates from opponents. They help teammates with mechanical disasters – should the leader puncture a tire, the domestique will cycle in front to create a
slipstream
A slipstream is a region behind a moving object in which a wake of fluid (typically air or water) is moving at velocities comparable to that of the moving object, relative to the ambient fluid through which the object is moving. The term slips ...
allowing him to reclaim their position. A domestique may also sacrifice his bicycle or wheel.
Tactical support
Domestiques race in the interest of the team, or against opposing teams. By putting themselves in a breakaway they force other teams to chase. In turn, they chase a breakaway that threatens their team.
Domestiques lead out
sprinters by letting them '
draft
Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to:
Watercraft dimensions
* Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel
* Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail
* Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...
' behind to conserve energy until the last few hundred meters. The lead-out train sometimes starts 10–15 km to the finish with up to eight domestiques setting a pace to discourage others from breaking away. One by one, worn-out teammates drop off. The last to lead a sprinter is often a good sprinter himself. The sprinter will launch into a dash to the line with one or two hundred meters to go.
In mountainous races, domestiques help their leaders by setting a pace or thwarting attacks from others.
Super-domestique
There is a hierarchy among domestiques; the more accomplished, often called lieutenants or super-domestiques, are called upon during critical times. The lieutenant stays with the leader as long as possible during demanding periods. For example,
Lance Armstrong
Lance Edward Armstrong (''né'' Gunderson; born September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist. He achieved international fame for winning the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times fro ...
used teammates
Roberto Heras
Roberto Heras Hernández (born 1 February 1974) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record four times. Between 1997 Vuelta a España, 1997 and 2005 Vuelta a España, 2005 he finished in the top 5 o ...
and
José Azevedo
José Bento Azevedo Carvalho (born 19 September 1973) is a Portuguese retired road racing cyclist, and most recently, general manager of UCI WorldTeam . During his racing career, Azevedo rode for between 2001 and 2003 and for between 2004 and ...
as climbing domestiques to set pace during mountain stages of the
Tour de France
The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...
before making a decisive attack. Experienced super-domestiques often also have the role of captain, passing on tactical instructions to other riders and making tactical decisions when there is little or no contact with the coaching staff. Examples of traditional super-domestiques are
Andreas Klöden
Andreas Klöden (born 22 June 1975) is a German former professional road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional between 1998 and 2013. His major achievements include a bronze medal at the 2000 Olympic Games and finishing second in the gene ...
with
Astana Pro Team
XDS Astana Team () is a professional road bicycle racing team sponsored by the Samruk-Kazyna, a coalition of state-owned companies from Kazakhstan and named after its capital city Astana. Astana attained UCI ProTeam status in its inaugural year ...
and
George Hincapie
George Anthony Hincapie (born June 29, 1973) is an American former racing cycle sport, cyclist, who competed professionally between 1994 and 2012. Hincapie was a key domestique of Lance Armstrong. Hincapie was also a domestique for Alberto Contad ...
who was a key lieutenant of
U.S. Postal Team. Hincapie was also a domestique for
Alberto Contador
Alberto Contador Velasco (; born 6 December 1982) is a Spanish former professional cyclist. He is one of the most successful riders of his era, winning the Tour de France twice (2007, 2009), the Giro d'Italia twice (2008, 2015), and the Vuelta ...
in
2007
2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year.
Events
January
* January 1
**Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
and for
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans (; born 14 February 1977) is an Australian former professional racing cyclist who competed professionally in both mountain biking and road bicycle racing. A four-time Olympian, Evans is one of three non-Europeans – along with ...
in
2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
, when both went on to win the Tour.
Recent developments in the compositions of the rosters of leading teams have led to an increasing number of high-status riders fulfilling super-domestique duties, especially during the
Grand Tours
In road bicycle racing, a Grand Tour is one of the three major European professional cycling stage races: Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and Vuelta a España. Collectively they are termed the ''Grand Tours'', and all three races are similar in fo ...
. This approach was largely originated by
Team Sky
Ineos Grenadiers () (stylised as INEOS Grenadiers) (formerly Team Sky from 2010 to 2019, and Team Ineos from 2019 to 2020) is a British professional cycling team that competes at the UCI WorldTeam level. The team is based at the National Cyclin ...
, beginning with their success at the
2012 Tour de France
The 2012 Tour de France was the 99th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It started in the Belgian city of Liège on 30 June and finished on the Champs-Élysées stage in the Tour de France, Champs ...
, where
Chris Froome
Christopher Clive Froome, (; born 20 May 1985) is a British professional road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI ProTeam . He has won seven Grand Tours: four editions of the Tour de France (in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017), one Giro d' ...
finished second on the overall podium behind his teammate and compatriot
Bradley Wiggins
Sir Bradley Marc Wiggins (born 28 April 1980) is a British former professional Road bicycle racing, road and track cycling, track racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2001 and 2016. He began his cycling career on the track, but ...
. This finish came after some tension between the two lead riders, in particular during Stage 17 of the race, where Froome was forced to wait for Wiggins – his defined team leader – three times on the climb to the summit finish at Peyragudes, allowing
Alejandro Valverde
Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish cyclist, who competed as a professional in road bicycle racing from 2002 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2022, and now competes in gravel cycling for the Movistar Team Gravel Squad.
During ...
to win the stage, while both Wiggins and Froome cemented their overall general classifications standings. Following this, a number of teams have adopted fluid, or shared team leadership at the Tour de France and the other Grand Tours. The
2017
2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly.
Events January
* January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
,
2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
, and
2019
This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year.
Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...
editions of the Tour de France all saw Sky – in 2019, changing sponsorship to become known as – successfully capture the yellow jersey, while a second rider from the team finished elsewhere within the top four: 2017 saw Froome win, with
Mikel Landa
Mikel Landa Meana (born 13 December 1989) is a Spanish Basques, Basque professional road bicycle racing, road cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . His career breakthrough came at the 2015 Giro d'Italia where he won two stages and finished third ...
coming fourth; in 2018,
Geraint Thomas
Geraint Howell Thomas, ( , ; born 25 May 1986) is a Welsh professional racing cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam , Wales and Great Britain. He is one of the few riders in the modern era to achieve significant elite success as both a track and ...
won his first
Tour de France
The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...
, while Froome finished third; and in 2019,
Egan Bernal
Egan Arley Bernal Gómez (born 13 January 1997) is a Colombian professional cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . In 2019 he won the Tour de France, becoming the first Latin American rider to do so, and the youngest winner since 1909. At the 202 ...
, who had himself served as a super-domestique to Froome and Thomas the previous year, subsequently finished first himself, with Thomas finishing second.
This top-heavy strategy has also been a feature of other teams in contention, with mixed results. The for the 2018 and 2019 Tours saw the deployment of the so-called 'Trident' of
Mikel Landa
Mikel Landa Meana (born 13 December 1989) is a Spanish Basques, Basque professional road bicycle racing, road cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . His career breakthrough came at the 2015 Giro d'Italia where he won two stages and finished third ...
, who had moved from Sky for the 2018 season, alongside long-term Movistar leaders and general classification contenders
Nairo Quintana
Nairo Alexánder Quintana Rojas, Order of Boyacá, ODB, (born 4 February 1990) is a Colombian racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam .
Nicknamed "Nairoman" and "El Cóndor de los Andes", Quintana is a specialist climber, known fo ...
and
Alejandro Valverde
Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish cyclist, who competed as a professional in road bicycle racing from 2002 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2022, and now competes in gravel cycling for the Movistar Team Gravel Squad.
During ...
. This tactic was largely unsuccessful for Movistar, who experienced difficulties in coordinating their three leaders, none of whom appeared willing to sacrifice their own ambitions to serve as super-domestiques for one of the other two.

Comparatively, a more successful and more hierarchical example of the super-domestique system featured at the
2020 Tour de France
The 2020 Tour de France was the 107th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's three Grand Tours. Originally scheduled to start on 27 June 2020, it was postponed until 29 August 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France. The race began ...
through having entered the Tour with shared leadership between
Tom Dumoulin
Tom Dumoulin (; born 11 November 1990) is a retired Dutch professional road bicycle racer who last rode for UCI WorldTeam . He has won the Giro d'Italia and nine stages across the three Grand Tours, five medals in three different World Champion ...
and
Primož Roglič
Primož Roglič (; born 29 October 1989) is a Slovenian professional road bicycle racing, racing cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . A former ski jumping, ski jumper, Roglič switched to cycling after an accident suffered at Planica. Despite b ...
– both of whom were previous Grand Tour winners, alongside high finishes at the Tour de France itself – Dumoulin recognised that he would be unable to maintain his own general classification campaign, and voluntarily assumed a super-domestique role to Roglič. This allowed Jumbo-Visma to operate with similar tactics to those used by Sky/INEOS in previous years, by setting a higher pace throughout difficult climbs, buoyed by the fact that Dumoulin and other Jumbo-Visma support riders such as
Sepp Kuss
Sepp Kuss (born September 13, 1994) is an American professional cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . He won the 2023 Vuelta a España, becoming the first American to win a Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tour since Chris Horner in 2013 Vuelta a Espa ...
would remain present in breakaways and leaders' groups to protect Roglič, while the weaker support riders surrounding other contenders would be whittled away. However, their defensive tactics had the unforeseen consequence of Jumbo-Visma helping eventual winner and rival
Tadej Pogačar
Tadej Pogačar (; born 21 September 1998) is a Slovenia, Slovenian professional road bicycle racing, cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . His victories include three Tour de France, Tours de France (2020 Tour de France, 2020, 2021 Tou ...
of
UAE Team Emirates
UAE Team Emirates XRG () is an Emirati road bicycle racing team. The team competes at UCI WorldTeam level and has done so since the UCI World Tour was formed as the top category of road cycling in 2005.
Since becoming UAE Team Emirates in 2018, ...
.
Nonetheless, the traditional domestique role remains an important one, and a 2020 poll of riders in the professional peloton by
cyclingnews.com named
Tim Declercq
Tim Declercq (born 21 March 1989 in Leuven) is a Belgian cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . His brother Benjamin was also a professional cyclist before retiring at the end of 2022.
Declerq is known to be a powerful rider who general ...
as the best domestique in the world, followed by
Luke Rowe
Luke Rowe (born 10 March 1990) is a British former racing cyclist from Wales, who rode professionally for and its later iterations between 2012 and 2024. Largely deployed as a domestique during his professional career, Rowe took two wins – st ...
,
Michael Mørkøv
Michael Mørkøv Christensen (; born 30 April 1985) is a Danish former Cycle sport, racing cyclist, who competed as a professional from 2005 to 2024. He is the brother of racing cyclists Jacob and Jesper Mørkøv.
Career
Born in Kokkedal, Mørk� ...
,
Andrey Amador
Andrey Amador Bikkazakova (born 29 August 1986) is a Costa Rican former road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional from 2009 to 2024.
Career
Amador is the son of Rodolfo Amador, a Costa Rican, and Raisa Bikkazakova, a Russian immigrant ...
,
Imanol Erviti
Imanol Erviti Ollo (born 15 November 1983) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 2005 and 2023, entirely for and its successors. Primarily working as a domestique, Erviti took three victories as a ...
,
Michael Schär
Michael Schär (born 29 September 1986) is a Switzerland, Swiss former professional Road bicycle racing, road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional from 2006 to 2023. He now works as a directeur sportif for UCI WorldTeam .
Born in Geuen ...
and
Iljo Keisse
Iljo Keisse (born 21 December 1982) is a Belgian former racing cyclist, who competed as a professional from 2005 to 2022. Keisse races on the track and on the road, specializing himself until recently in riding six-day races. He notably has won ...
.
Individual glory
Domestiques sometimes get a chance to win stages in stage racing. Typically this would be late in a stage race. Domestiques whose standings do not threaten the leaders will often not be chased if they break away. Domestiques can progress to more senior roles if they show ability. For example, at the 2012 Tour de France
Tejay van Garderen
Tejay van Garderen (born August 12, 1988) is an American former professional road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2008 and 2021 for the , , and . Following his retirement as a cyclist, van Garderen became a directeur sportif for ...
of
BMC Racing Team
CCC Pro Team () was a UCI WorldTeam co-owned and managed by American cyclist Jim Ochowicz, who founded the 7-Eleven Cycling Team. After its last title sponsor, CCC SA, CCC, a Polish shoe retailer, pulled out due to financial difficulties resultin ...
began the tour as a domestique for 2011 winner
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans (; born 14 February 1977) is an Australian former professional racing cyclist who competed professionally in both mountain biking and road bicycle racing. A four-time Olympian, Evans is one of three non-Europeans – along with ...
but later became team leader due to Evans struggling and eventually won the young rider classification.
Chris Froome
Christopher Clive Froome, (; born 20 May 1985) is a British professional road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI ProTeam . He has won seven Grand Tours: four editions of the Tour de France (in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017), one Giro d' ...
of
Team Sky
Ineos Grenadiers () (stylised as INEOS Grenadiers) (formerly Team Sky from 2010 to 2019, and Team Ineos from 2019 to 2020) is a British professional cycling team that competes at the UCI WorldTeam level. The team is based at the National Cyclin ...
also won a stage while riding in support of winner
Bradley Wiggins
Sir Bradley Marc Wiggins (born 28 April 1980) is a British former professional Road bicycle racing, road and track cycling, track racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2001 and 2016. He began his cycling career on the track, but ...
, and became team leader the following year, where he eventually won the general classification.
Assigned team roles vary substantially from race to race based on a variety of factors, including the course, the team members riding the race, their current physical condition, or even commercial factors. For instance,
Stuart O'Grady
Stuart O'Grady (born 6 August 1973) is a retired Australian road bicycle racer, who rode as a professional between 1995 and 2013. A former track cyclist, O'Grady and Graeme Brown won a gold medal in the Cycling at the 2004 Summer Olympics – M ...
, a veteran professional rider riding for
Leopard-Trek, served as a domestique supporting
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil (; born 22 April 1975) is a former Spanish professional road bicycle racer and winner of the 2008 Tour de France. He consistently achieved outstanding results in the Vuelta a España and in the Tour de France. Sastre establis ...
in the 2008 Tour de France. By contrast, in the 2008
Herald Sun Tour
The Herald Sun Tour is an Australian professional bicycle race held in Melbourne and provincial Victoria, sanctioned by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). The first tour was held in October 1952 as a six-day event. It is now held annuall ...
, a much less-prominent race in which Sastre (and other high-profile members of the team) did not ride, the Australian O'Grady acted as team leader and was assisted by his teammates to win two stages and the general classification.
Evolution of the domestique
The
UCI UCI most commonly refers to:
* University of California, Irvine, a public university in Irvine, California, United States
* Union Cycliste Internationale, the world governing body for the sport of cycling
UCI may also refer to:
* Uganda Cancer In ...
points system changed the relationship between domestiques and leaders. Previously, domestiques were not concerned with their finishing order. However, riders now get points for their finish position. This presses domestiques to also consider their own performance in addition to their leader's.
The 1990s saw the introduction of radio communication, allowing managers to assign tasks to domestiques wherever they are on the road. The influence of radios on race tactics is a topic of discussion amongst the cycling community, with some arguing that the introduction of radios in the 1990s has devalued the tactical knowledge of individual riders and has led to less exciting racing. In September 2009, the
Union Cycliste Internationale
The Union Cycliste Internationale (; UCI; ) is the world governing body for sports cycling and oversees international competitive cycling events. The UCI is based in Aigle, Switzerland.
The UCI issues racing licenses to riders and enforces di ...
(UCI), the governing body of pro cycling, voted to phase in a ban on the use of team radios in men's elite road racing. Finally radio found its undisputed place in peloton for good and, as some races with imposed radio ban proved, the ban changed nothing in racing tactics.
In track cycling
In track cycling's
team pursuit
The team pursuit is a track cycling event similar to the individual pursuit, except that two teams, each of up to four riders, compete, starting on opposite sides of the velodrome.
Race format
Both men's and women's events are competed over ...
event, a team of four riders must complete 4 km, with the third rider being used to stop the clock. Therefore, one rider often sprints towards the finish line to tow the teammates.
See also
*
Outline of cycling
Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding bicycles or other Human-powered transport, human-powered vehicles with Wheel, wheels, for transportation, recreation, exercise, sport, and other purposes.
People who engage i ...
Notes
References
External links
''BBC Sport'' portrait of domestique Sean Yates.at the
Tour de France
The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...
.
''Roanoke Times'' column on the team roles in cycling.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cycling Domestique
Domestique
In road bicycle racing, a domestique is a rider who works for the benefit of their cycling team, team and leader, rather than trying to win the race. In French, ''domestique'' translates as "servant".However, in French, the term used is ''équip ...