Roberto Heras Hernández (born 1 February 1974) is a Spanish former professional

road bicycle racer Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most com ...

who won the

Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; ) is an annual stage race, multi-stage bicycle racing, bicycle race primarily held in Spain, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. Inspired by the success of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Ital ...

a record four times. Between

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 ...

and

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

he finished in the top 5 of the Vuelta every year except

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

when he finished 6th. He won a record-tying three times, and then broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but he was eventually disqualified after being accused of taking EPO. Heras chose to fight the accusations and this resulted in a lengthy court case and appeal process. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court of

Castilla y León Castile, Castille or Castilla may refer to: Places Spain * Castile (historical region), a vaguely defined historical region of Spain covering most of Castile and León, all of the Community of Madrid and most of Castilla–La Mancha * Kingdom o ...

, and this decision was upheld in the Spanish supreme court in December 2012. The Spanish cycling federation subsequently reinstated Heras as 2005 Vuelta champion.

Early career

Heras turned professional in 1995 for the Spanish

cycling team A cycling team is a group of cycle sport, cyclists who join a team or are acquired and train together to compete in bicycle racing, bicycle races whether amateur or professional – and the supporting personnel. Cycling teams are most important i ...

Kelme. His first win as a pro came in 1996 in the

Subida al Naranco Subida al Naranco is a professional cycle road race held in Spain in early June each year. The event was first run in 1941 but was not held consistently until 1981. Between 2005 and 2010, the race has been organised as a 1.1 event on the UCI Eur ...

. Later that year he won the 12th stage of the Vuelta a España. Next year he won another stage at the Vuelta and the Clásica de Amorebieta. In 1999 he won stages at the

Volta a Catalunya The Volta a Catalunya (; Tour of Catalonia, ) is a road bicycle race held annually in Catalonia, Spain. It is one of three World Tour stage races in Spain, together with the Vuelta a España and the Tour of the Basque Country. The race has had ...

and the

Giro d'Italia The Giro d'Italia (; ), also known simply as the Giro, is an annual stage race, multiple-stage bicycle racing, bicycle race primarily held in Italy, while also starting in, or passing through, other countries. The first race was organized in 19 ...

, and he stood for the first time on the Vuelta's podium, third despite not winning a stage. In 2000 he took two stages and the overall win, which attracted the US Postal cycling team.

Riding with Lance Armstrong

From 2001, he raced alongside

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 ...

on the

US Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal serv ...

team. As a

climbing specialist A climbing specialist or climber, also known as a grimpeur, is a road bicycle racer who can ride especially well on highly inclined roads, such as those found among hills or mountains. Role of climber in a race In a sustained climb, the average ...

, he assisted Armstrong in the 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 ...

. Heras achieved his highest position in the Tour when he finished fifth in

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

. During the

2002 Tour de France The 2002 Tour de France was a multiple-stage bicycle race held from 6 to 28 July, and the 89th edition of the Tour de France. The event started in Luxembourg and ended in Paris. The Tour circled France counter-clockwise, visiting the Pyrenees b ...

was in 2nd place overall going into stage 11 where the race entered the high mountains. Going up the final climb on 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 ...

Heras set such a dominating pace at the front of the fragmented

Peloton In a road Cycle sport, bicycle race, the peloton (, originally meaning ) is the main group or pack of riders. Riders in a group save energy by riding close (drafting (racing), drafting or slipstreaming) to (particularly behind) other riders. The ...

that all of Armstrong's rivals were dropped with the exception of

Joseba Beloki Joseba Beloki Dorronsoro (born 12 August 1973) is a Spanish Basques, Basque former professional road bicycle racer. Tour successes Beloki turned professional in 1998 with , joined in 2000, and then in 2001. A strong climber in the high mount ...

. The ride put in by Heras set up Armstrong to take over 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 ...

from the

ONCE–Eroski ONCE cycling team, () also known as Liberty Seguros, Liberty Seguros–Würth and in succession in its final year, Astana–Würth and Astana was a Spanish cycling team. It road bicycle racing, competed in the Union Cycliste Internationale, UCI U ...

team led by Beloki,

Abraham Olano Abraham Olano Manzano (born 22 January 1970) is a Spanish retired professional road racing cyclist, who raced as a professional from 1992 to 2002. He won the UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, World Road Championship in 1995 UCI ...

and

Igor González de Galdeano Igor González de Galdeano Aranzábal (born 1 November 1973) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer and most recently, the team manager of UCI ProTeam . Following a promising start to his career at Vitalicio Seguros, where he fin ...

who was in the overall lead at the start of Stage 11. Beloki finished 2nd overall in the stage as Heras came in 3rd with both riders behind Armstrong who finally launched his attack for the stage win. The next day in Stage 12 once again Roberto Heras set such a furious pace on the final climb that all of Armstrong's rivals were dropped with the exception of Beloki except this time it was Heras who crossed in 2nd while Beloki took third.

Dominating the Vuelta a España

He had, however, already established himself as a contender for honours in other Tours. He was fifth and a stage winner in the 1997 Vuelta, sixth (and another stage victory) a year later, and third in 1999; that year he finished sixth and won a stage in the

. His first Vuelta win came in 2000 (when he also won two stages and the points classification), and he won again in

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

. At the end of 2003, he left US Postal to lead the Spanish

Liberty Seguros Liberty Mutual Insurance Company is an American diversified global insurer and the sixth-largest property and casualty insurer in the world. It ranks 87th on the ''Fortune'' 100 list of largest corporations in the United States based on 2024 re ...

team. He was thought to be a contender for the 2004 Tour de France but abandoned after the 16th stage due to lack of fitness. Heras entered the

and won, equalling

Tony Rominger Tony Rominger (born 27 March 1961) is a Swiss former professional road racing cyclist who won the Vuelta a España in 1992, 1993 and 1994 and the Giro d'Italia in 1995. Career He began cycling late, allegedly spurred by competition with his br ...

's record three wins. During the first mountain stages, it seemed an easy win but in the last week he had a challenge from Santiago Pérez. In the

2005 Vuelta a España These are the results for the 2005 edition of the Vuelta a España cycling race. Roberto Heras was the original champion but the win was awarded to Russian Denis Menchov after Heras tested positive in a doping test. Heras made an appeal through t ...

, Heras won two mountain stages (including the Estación de Esquí de Pajares) and lost the last time trial by less than a second, something nobody expected from the non-time-trial-specialist Heras. Heras won for the fourth time, a record. However, a drug test in November 2005, two months after the race, showed a positive test for EPO from the day of time trial (stage 20). Heras was fired and faced a two-year suspension. His Vuelta win was given to second-place finisher, Russian

Denis Menchov Denis Nikolayevich Menshov (often mistakenly romanized as Menchov, ; born 25 January 1978) is a former professional Russian road bicycle racer, who rode as a professional between 2000 and 2013. He was best known as a general classification rider ...

. Heras appealed, alleging inaccuracies in the testing and mishandling of his samples. He appealed this decision in the civil court of

, and was successful. The Spanish cycling federation appealed at the Spanish supreme court, but in December 2012 this court upheld the decision; the Spanish cycling federation subsequently reinstated Heras as 2005 champion and Heras went on to sue the federation for over one million euro in purported lost earnings. In January 2016, Heras was awarded €724,000 in compensation from the Spanish state, a sentence that was confirmed on 9 May 2017.

Career achievements

Major results

;1996 : 10th Klasika Primavera de Amorebieta ;1997 : 1st

: 3rd

Clásica a los Puertos de Guadarrama Clásica a los Puertos de Guadarrama is a professional cycle road race held in the Sierra de Guadarrama, Spain in late August each year. The event was first run in 1978 and since 2005 it has been organised as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour T ...

: 5th Overall

::1st Stage 12 : 8th Overall

Vuelta a Murcia The Vuelta Ciclista a Murcia () is a road bicycle race held in and around Murcia, Spain. The first four editions were reserved to amateurs. Originally the race was held in early March and consisted of five stages. However, due to Spain's fina ...

: 9th Overall

Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme The Catalan Cycling Week (''Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme'' in Catalan language, Catalan) was a stage race, multi-stage road bicycle race held in Catalonia, Spain. Held annually from 1963 until 2005, it was run as a 2.HC race on the UCI Europe Tour ...

;1998 : 1st Klasika Primavera de Amorebieta : 2nd

: 3rd

: 4th Trofeo Forla de Navarra : 5th Overall

Vuelta a La Rioja The Vuelta a La Rioja () is a regional Spanish road bicycle race held in La Rioja. From 2005 to 2008, it was a 2.1 category race on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were int ...

: 6th Overall

::1st Stage 19 : 6th Overall

Vuelta a Asturias Vuelta Asturias is a professional cycle road race held in Spain in early May each year. The event was first run in 1925 but has not been held consistently until 1968 to present. Since 2005, the race has been organised as a 2.1 event on the UCI ...

: 8th Overall

Vuelta a Aragón Vuelta a Aragón is a professional bicycle road race held in Spain in May of each year. The event was first run in 1939, and was not held between 2006 and 2017. The future of the race is uncertain; there had been plans to organise it again, but an ...

: 10th Overall

Paris–Nice Paris–Nice is a professional road bicycle racing, cycling stage race in France, held annually since 1933. Raced over eight days, the race usually starts with a prologue in the Paris region and ends with a final stage either in Nice or on the ...

: 10th Overall

;1999 : 1st Klasika Primavera de Amorebieta : 2nd Road race, National Road Championships : 2nd Overall

::1st Stage 6 : 2nd

Gran Premio de Llodio Gran Premio Internacional de Llodio (also known as Clásica de Álava) is a Spanish professional cycle road race that was held in Llodio, Basque Country, between 1949 and 2011. From 2005 to 2011, the race was organised as a 1.1 event on the UCI ...

: 3rd Overall

: 5th Overall

::1st Stage 21 : 5th Overall

Tour of Galicia The Tour of Galicia (; ) is an annual cycling race held in Galicia, Spain. It was first held in 1933 and was held a further five times between 1934 and 1984. The tour did not take place from the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, until ...

;2000 : 1st Jersey gold

Overall

::1st

Points classification The points classification is a secondary award category in road bicycle racing. Points are given for high finishes and, in some cases, for winning sprints at certain places along the route, most often called ''intermediate sprints''. The points c ...

::1st Stages 7 & 20 : 1st Stage 5

Euskal Bizikleta Euskal Bizikleta (Spanish: ''Bicicleta Vasca'', English: ''Basque Bicycle'') was an annual road cycling stage race held in the Basque Country in June. From 2005 to 2008, the race was organized as a 2.HC event on the UCI Europe Tour. In 2009, it ...

: 3rd Overall

: 3rd Klasika Primavera de Amorebieta : 3rd

: 5th Overall

: 6th Overall

;2001 : 2nd Overall

: 4th Overall

;2002 : 1st MaillotVolta

Overall

::1st Stage 1 ( TTT) : 2nd Overall

::1st

Combination classification ::1st Stages 6 & 15 ::Held Jersey gold

after Stages 15–20 ::Held Jersey orange

after Stage 18 : 8th Overall

Vuelta a Burgos Vuelta Ciclista a Burgos is an elite professional road bicycle racing event held annually in the Burgos (province), Burgos province of Spain. The men's Vuelta a Burgos has been a multi-day stage race as part of the UCI Europe Tour since 2005. In ...

: 9th Overall

;2003 : 1st Jersey gold

Overall

::1st Stage 20 : 1st Stage 4 ( TTT)

: 2nd Overall

;2004 : 1st Jersey gold

Overall

::1st

Combination classification ::1st Stage 12 ::Held Jersey granate

after Stages 12–16 : 1st Jersey blue

Overall

: 5th Overall

Clásica Internacional de Alcobendas The Clásica Internacional de Alcobendas was a three-day professional cycle road race held in Spain in May. The event was first run in 1984 but was not held in 1988 and 1990. From 2005 until its final edition in 2008, the race was organised as a ...

;2005 : 1st Jersey gold

Overall

::1st Stages 6 & 15 ::Held after Stages 15–20 ::Held after Stage 6 ::Held after Stages 6–8 : 9th Overall

;2009 : 1st Brompton World Championships

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Heras, Roberto 1974 births Living people People from Béjar Sportspeople from the Province of Salamanca Cyclists from Castile and León Doping cases in cycling Vuelta a España winners Spanish Vuelta a España stage winners Spanish Giro d'Italia stage winners Spanish male cyclists

Early career

Riding with Lance Armstrong

Dominating the Vuelta a España

Career achievements

Major results

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

See also

References

External links