Christopher Brandon Horner (born October 23, 1971) is an American retired professional

road racing cyclist 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 comm ...

, who rode professionally between 1996 and 2019. A current resident of

Bend, Oregon Bend is a city in central Oregon and the county seat of Deschutes County, Oregon, Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. It is located to the east of the Cascade Range, on the Deschutes River. The site became known by pioneers as a ford (cros ...

, Horner dominated the American road racing scene by winning the points standings in the 2002, 2003 and 2004 USA Cycling National Racing Calendar. He 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 ...

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 ...

, becoming the oldest winner of any of cycling's grand tours in the process.

Racing career

PAA–NutraFig (1995–96)

Horner turned professional in 1995 with the PAA–NutraFig team. He captured his first major victory in a stage win of the

Tour DuPont The Tour DuPont was a cycling stage race in the United States held annually between 1989 and 1996, initially called the Tour de Trump in the first two years. It was intended to become a North American cycling event similar in format and prestig ...

in 1996.

Française des Jeux (1997–99)

He was then asked to ride in Europe with French team . From 1997 to 1999 he had three frustrating seasons with this team.

Mercury, Prime Alliance, Saturn, and Webcor (2000–2004)

In 2000, Horner returned to America to resume a record-setting domestic career, riding with Mercury in 2000, Prime Alliance in 2002, Saturn in 2003 and Webcor Builders in 2004. Horner has won almost every important race in the US racing calendar, with the notable exception of the USPRO National Championships.

Saunier Duval (2004–05)

Horner decided to move to after his top-ten finish in the

2004 UCI Road World Championships The 2004 UCI Road World Championships took place in Verona, Italy, between 27 September and 3 October 2004. The event consisted of a road race and a time trial for men, women, men under 23, junior men and junior women. Events summary ...

because he wanted to give 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 ...

a try. After being injured in the beginning of 2005, Horner showed strong performance in the USPRO Championships and won his first major European victory by taking the sixth stage of the 2005 Tour de Suisse. He then earned his place on the

2005 Tour de France The 2005 Tour de France was the 92nd edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It took place between 2–24 July, with 21 stages covering a distance . It has no overall winner—although American cyclist ...

team and nearly won the Miramas to Montpellier stage when he and

Sylvain Chavanel Sylvain Chavanel'' Procycling'', UK, November 2008 (born 30 June 1979) is a French former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 2000 and 2018 for the , , and two spells with the / team. His brother Sébastien Chavanel ...

refused to cooperate in the final kilometers and were caught by the

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 ...

Davitamon and Predictor (2006–07)

He made a move to the Belgian UCI ProTour squad for the 2006 season. He took a stage victory at the

Tour de Romandie The Tour de Romandie is a stage race which is part of the UCI World Tour. It runs through the Romandie region, or French-speaking part of Switzerland. The competition began in 1947, to coincide with the 50-year anniversary of Swiss Cycling. It ...

, and finished the race in seventh overall. During both the

2006 Tour de France The 2006 Tour de France was the 93rd edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It took place between the 1st and the 23rd of July. It was won by Óscar Pereiro following the disqualification of Floyd Land ...

and the

2007 Tour de France The 2007 Tour de France the 94th running of Tour de France, the race, took place from 7 to 29 July. The Tour began with a prologue in London, and ended with the traditional finish in Paris. Along the way, the route also passed through Belgium and ...

, Horner was one of the most important

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 ...

s for general classification contender

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 ...

, who placed inside the top-five overall in both years. For 2007, Horner signed with Ed Krall Racing for the

cyclo-cross Cyclo-cross (cyclocross, CX, cyclo-X or cross) is a form of bicycle racing. Races typically take place in the autumn and winter (the international or "World Cup" season is October–February), and consist of many laps of a short (2.5–3.5&nb ...

season.

Astana (2008–09)

In 2008, Horner moved to . Horner earned the nickname "The Smiler" for his unflappable expression of happiness, even during the most excruciating physical challenges, and "The Yahoo Kid" for his wild exclamations after winning a race. Teammates

Levi Leipheimer Levi Leipheimer (born October 24, 1973) is an American former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist. He was twice US national champion, winning the time trial title in 1999 and the road race in 2007, and is an Olympic medalist. ...

and

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 ...

call him "The Redneck". In the 2008 Cascade Cycling Classic Horner carried amateur cyclist and

Nordic combined Nordic combined is a winter sport in which athletes compete in cross-country skiing (sport), cross-country skiing and ski jumping. The Nordic combined at the Winter Olympics has been held since the first 1924 Winter Olympics, Winter Olympics in ...

skier

Bill Demong William Demong (born March 29, 1980, in Vermontville, New York) is an American former Nordic combined skier and Olympic gold medalist. Demong is a five-time Olympian, having competed in Nagano, Salt Lake City, Torino, Vancouver and Sochi. Caree ...

(who was from another team) with his broken bicycle to the finish line.

RadioShack (2010–11)

2010

On October 4, 2009, it was confirmed that Horner would compete for in the next two seasons. In one of his strongest European campaigns, Horner garnered first overall at the

Tour of the Basque Country The Tour of the Basque Country (Officially: ''Itzulia Basque Country'') is an annual road cycling stage race held in the Spanish Basque Country in April. It is one of the races that make up the UCI World Tour calendar. As the Basque Country is ...

, including a stage win in the critical 6th stage

individual time trial An individual time trial (ITT) is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock (in French: ''contre la montre'' – literally "against the watch", in Italian: ''tappa a cronometro'' "stopwatch stage"). There are also trac ...

, defeating overall threat

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 ...

. Horner also achieved several top 10 placings in the Spring classics of

La Flèche Wallonne La Flèche Wallonne (, French for "The Walloon Arrow") is a men's professional cycle road race held in April each year in Wallonia, Belgium. It is part of the UCI World Tour. The first of two Belgian Ardennes classics, La Flèche Wallonne is ...

Liège–Bastogne–Liège Liège–Bastogne–Liège , also known as ''La Doyenne'' ("The Old Lady"), is a one-day classic cycling race in Belgium.Cycling Weekly, UK, 13 March 1993 First run in 1892, it is the oldest of the five ''Cycling monument, Monuments'' of the Eur ...

and the

Amstel Gold Race Amstel Gold Race may refer to: * Amstel Gold Race (men's race) The Amstel Gold Race is a one-day classic cycle races, classic road bicycle race, road cycling race held annually since 1966 Amstel Gold Race, 1966 in the province of Limburg (Netherl ...

. He and his RadioShack teammates did well at the

Tour of California The Tour of California (officially sponsored as the Amgen Tour of California) was an annual professional road cycling stage race on the UCI World Tour and USA Cycling Professional Tour that ran from 2006 to 2019. It was the only event on the ...

, with Horner putting on a particularly strong performance in the last stage of the race as a member of a final breakaway at

Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, located in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles. Approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown Los Angeles, it is named after the many oak trees pr ...

. Horner finished fourth overall, 64 seconds behind winner Michael Rogers, and just 39 seconds behind teammate Levi Leipheimer in overall time. His good form also resulted in a 9th place overall at the

, as the first-placed American rider, in spite of dedicating himself in the first stages to supporting his captain Lance Armstrong.

2011

In 2011, Horner continued his success at the

with a second-place finish, as well as 4th 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 ...

. Horner then accomplished another high-profile result by winning May's

stage race. He scored a major solo victory on the 4th stage, after making significant time gains on the day's final mountain finish in San Jose. He maintained his hold on 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 ...

until the tour's queen stage, where he completed a two-man breakaway finish with teammate

to finalize the overall lead, and at age 39 became the oldest rider in history to win that tour. His participation at the

was short lived after a crash left him out of the competition.

RadioShack–Nissan (2012–2013)

2012

In 2012, Horner signed with . He started the

Tirreno–Adriatico Tirreno–Adriatico, nicknamed the "Race of the Two Seas", is an elite road bicycle racing, road cycling stage race in Italy, run between the Tyrrhenian Sea, Tyrrhenian and Adriatic Sea, Adriatic coasts. Traditionally held in the early part of th ...

as his first race since July where he finished second after losing his lead in the final time trial to

Vincenzo Nibali Vincenzo Nibali (; born 14 November 1984) is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional from 2005 to 2022. He is one of seven cyclists who have won all three of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours i ...

. He then finished 8th in the

, failing to defend his title. He then rode the

where he ended up finishing 13th overall after putting a good performance in the mountains.

2013

After suffering an injury in the beginning of 2013, Horner returned to action after winning stage 5 in the Tour of Utah and finishing 2nd overall. Less than three weeks later, in stage 3 of the

, Horner attacked over the last kilometer to win the stage and take the overall lead in the race. By doing this, he became the oldest rider in history (41 years and 307 days) to win a stage and wear the leader's jersey in a Grand Tour. He won again on stage 10, another uphill finish, reclaiming the lead. and setting a new record of the oldest rider (41 years and 314 days) to win a stage in a Grand Tour. He lost the race lead on the following stage to

, and fell to fourth overall; however, he moved up to second place overall – 50 seconds behind Nibali – before the race's final week. He reduced Nibali's lead by 22 seconds on stage 16, and 25 seconds on stage 18, to trail by 3 seconds. A six-second swing on stage 19 resulted in Horner taking a three-second lead into the penultimate stage, which ends with the climb up the

Alto de l'Angliru Alto de L'Angliru (; ) is a steep mountain road in Asturias, near La Vega-Riosa, in northern Spain. It is considered one of the most demanding climbs in professional road bicycle racing and is often used in the Vuelta a España stage race. Origin ...

, one of the hardest climbs in all of cycling that has been both vilified as an act of "barbarism". and praised as a great challenge. Nibali – who had been looking to complete a Giro–Vuelta double – tried to distance Horner on several occasions as they climbed into the clouds on the mountains on the Angliru with fans parting as they rode up sections so steep that the camera bikes stalled and fell leaving no TV coverage for several minutes as they struggled to catch up. But Horner answered every attack by slowly reeling Nibali in before Nibali finally cracked on a hairpin turn on a 20% + section with just 1k remaining. However Horner continued opening the gap out to 28 seconds on the road by the finish line. But the second place time bonus gave him his race-winning margin of 37 seconds and Chris Horner won the Vuelta a España. It was Horner's only grand tour win in his 20+ year professional career, and in winning this race he became the oldest ever Grand Tour winner. He left at the end of the season, as his contract expired. He felt he was worth more than the team were willing to offer for a rider of his resume and ability.

Lampre–Merida (2014)

Horner joined for the 2014 season. In April, while training in Italy for 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 ...

, he was hit by a car driver who subsequently fled the scene. Horner suffered a punctured lung and broken ribs in the accident, jeopardizing his participation at the Giro d'Italia. He elected not to compete in the Giro d'Italia; on June 30, 2014, Horner was named in Lampre's

squad, with

Rui Costa Rui Manuel César Costa (; born 29 March 1972) is a Portuguese former professional footballer who is the 34th president of sports club S.L. Benfica. He also succeeded Luís Filipe Vieira as president of the club's SAD board of directors. ...

as team leader. He placed second in the mountainous Tour of Utah which he raced in preparation for the

. However, Horner withdrew from the Vuelta ahead of the first stage due to his

cortisol Cortisol is a steroid hormone in the glucocorticoid class of hormones and a stress hormone. When used as medication, it is known as hydrocortisone. Cortisol is produced in many animals, mainly by the ''zona fasciculata'' of the adrenal corte ...

levels dropping below the threshold considered healthy by the Mouvement pour un cyclisme crédible, of which Lampre–Mérida is a member. The announcement followed Horner's usage of

cortisone Cortisone is a pregnene (21-carbon) steroid hormone. It is a naturally-occurring corticosteroid metabolite that is also used as a pharmaceutical prodrug. Cortisol is converted by the action of the enzyme corticosteroid 11-beta-dehydrogenase ...

on prescription under a therapeutic use exemption to treat a case of bronchitis. Lampre–Mérida opted not to extend Horner's contract, and in December 2014 he announced he had signed a deal with UCI Continental team for 2015.

Team Illuminate (2018–2019)

In June 2018, Horner returned to racing for the United States National Road Race Championships, riding for . He said that overcoming a bronchial infection that had plagued the tailend of his career had convinced him to come out of retirement. However, he eventually did not finish the road race.

Broadcasting career

In 2019, Horner joined the team of broadcaster

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

for their coverage of the

, acting as a commentator, and in August 2020 started his own

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

show called 'The Butterfly Effect'.

Major results

;1996 : 1st

Lancaster Classic The Tom Bamford Lancaster Classic was a professional road bicycle race held in late May or early June between 1992 and 2007 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA. With the exception of the first race, which was , the Lancaster Classic covered about . ...

: 1st Stage 1

: 2nd Overall Redlands Bicycle Classic : 3rd Road race, National Road Championships : 3rd Overall

Fitchburg Longsjo Classic Fitchburg Longsjo Classic, also known as the Longsjo Classic, was an annual road bicycle racing, bicycle stage race, race held in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, Fitchburg, Massachusetts, United States. The race began in 1960 as the Arthur M. Longsjo Jr ...

;1997 : 3rd GP Ouest–France : 3rd

Nevada City Classic The Nevada City Classic (previously: Tour of Nevada City; Father's Day Bicycle Classic), was a one-day road cycling race held in Nevada City, California. Established in 1960, the Nevada City Classic commonly occurs on Father's Day and brought th ...

;1998 : 7th Overall Tour du Poitou-Charentes et de la Vienne : 9th Grand Prix des Nations ;1999 : 9th Overall

Circuit des Mines The Circuit de Lorraine is a multi-stage road bicycle racing event held annually in Lorraine, France. Since 2005, it has been organised as a 2.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing compet ...

;2000 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall

Tour de Langkawi The Tour de Langkawi is a stage race, multiple stage bicycle racing, bicycle race held in Malaysia. It is named after the archipelago Langkawi, where the first edition started and finished. The race has been held annually since 1996, primarily ...

: 1st

Overall Redlands Bicycle Classic : 8th Overall

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

: 8th Route Adélie de Vitré ;2001 : 2nd Overall Cascade Cycling Classic ::1st Stage 3 : 5th Overall Redlands Bicycle Classic ::1st Stage 5 ;2002 : 1st USA Cycling National Racing Calendar : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall Redlands Bicycle Classic ::1st Stages 1 & 2 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall Sea Otter Classic ::1st Stage 3 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall Nature Valley Grand Prix ::1st Stage 3 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall

: 2nd

Time trial In many racing sports, an sportsperson, athlete (or occasionally a team of athletes) will compete in a time trial (TT) against the clock to secure the fastest time. The format of a time trial can vary, but usually follow a format where each athle ...

, National Road Championships : 3rd Overall Cascade Cycling Classic : 9th

San Francisco Grand Prix The San Francisco Grand Prix was a road cycling race held in San Francisco, United States in early September. It was as a 1.HC event and in 2005 part of the UCI America Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing compet ...

;2003 : 1st USA Cycling National Racing Calendar : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall

Tour de Georgia The Tour de Georgia was a U.S. professional road cycling stage race across the state of Georgia. The race began in 2003 and was contested six times until 2008. It was one of the three events in North America ranked as Hors Classe ( 2.HC) stage ra ...

::1st

Mountains classification : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall Redlands Bicycle Classic : 1st

: 1st Stage 4 Cascade Cycling Classic : 2nd Overall

::1st Stages 2 & 3 : 3rd Overall Sea Otter Classic : 9th

;2004 : 1st USA Cycling National Racing Calendar : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall Sea Otter Classic ::1st Stage 2 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall Redlands Bicycle Classic ::1st Stages 1a ( ITT), 1b & 2 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall

International Tour de Toona The International Tour de Toona was a stage bicycle race held in Central Pennsylvania in July from 1987 until 2011. The event became the largest pro-am cycling event in North America and had stages spanning Blair County, Pennsylvania, Blair, Camb ...

: 3rd Overall

: 8th Road race,

UCI Road World Championships The UCI Road World Championships are the annual world championships for bicycle road racing organized by the (UCI). The UCI Road World Championships consist of events for road race and individual time trial, and , a UCI Road World Championships ...

;2005 : 3rd Road race, National Road Championships : 5th Overall

Tour de Suisse The Tour de Suisse () is an annual road cycling stage race. Raced over eight days, the event covers two weekends in June, and along with the Critérium du Dauphiné, it is considered a proving ground for the Tour de France, which is on the calend ...

::1st Stage 6 : 6th

;2006 : 7th Overall

::1st Stage 2 : 8th

: 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 ...

;2007 : 3rd

Giro dell'Emilia The Giro dell'Emilia is a late season road bicycle race held annually in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. First run in 1909, the race is considered a classic cycle race, and is traditionally grouped with the Giro del Piemonte and Giro di Lombard ...

: 5th Overall

: 5th

Coppa Sabatini The Coppa Sabatini is a late season road bicycle race held annually in Province of Pisa, Italy. From 2005 to 2019, the race was organised as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour. In 2020, it was added to the UCI ProSeries The UCI ProSeries is t ...

: 10th

Giro di Lombardia The Giro di Lombardia (), officially ''Il Lombardia'', is a cycling race in Lombardy, Italy. It is traditionally the last of the five 'Cycling monument, Monuments' of the season, considered to be one of the most prestigious one-day events in cycli ...

;2008 : 7th Overall

: 7th

;2009 : 2nd Overall

Tour de l'Ain Tour de l'Ain, also known as the Prix de l'Amitié, is an annual professional cycling stage race held in eastern France. G.P. de l'Amitié The first edition of the race was in 1970, as the G.P. de l'Amitié (Friendship G.P.). It was held over f ...

::1st

Points classification ;2010 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall

::1st Stage 6 ( ITT) : 2nd Overall Giro di Sardegna : 4th Road race, National Road Championships : 4th Overall

: 7th Overall

: 7th

: 8th Overall

: 9th Overall

Critérium du Dauphiné The Critérium du Dauphiné, before 2010 known as the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, is an annual cycle sport, cycling road bicycle racing, road race in the Dauphiné region in the southeast of France. The race is run over eight days during ...

: 10th

;2011 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall

::1st Stage 4 : 2nd Overall

: 3rd Overall

;2012 : 2nd Overall

: 7th Overall Tour of Utah : 8th Overall

: 9th Overall

;2013 : 1st Jersey red

Overall Overalls or bib-and-brace overalls, also called dungarees in British English, are a type of garment usually used as protective clothing when working. The garments are commonly referred to as a "pair of overalls" by analogy with "pair of trousers ...

::1st

Combination classification ::1st Stages 3 & 10 : 2nd Overall Tour of Utah ::1st Stage 5 : 6th Overall

;2014 : 2nd Overall Tour of Utah : 8th Overall

Volta ao Algarve Volta may refer to: Persons * Alessandro Volta (1745–1827), Italian physicist and inventor of the electric battery, count and eponym of the volt * Giovanni Volta (1928–2012), Italian Roman Catholic bishop * Giovanni Serafino Volta (1764–1 ...

;2015 : 4th Overall Tour d'Azerbaïdjan : 5th Road race, National Road Championships : 5th Overall Tour of Utah : 7th Overall Redlands Bicycle Classic : 9th Overall

Tour of the Gila The Tour of the Gila is a cycling stage race for both men and women located in New Mexico, United States. It is sponsored by the component maker SRAM. The "Gila" began in 1987. Beginning in 2012, the men's Gila has been added to the UCI Americ ...

;2016 : 9th Overall

General classification results timeline

References

External links

*
USA Cycling biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Horner, Chris 1971 births American male cyclists American Vuelta a España stage winners Cyclists at the 2012 Summer Olympics Living people Olympic cyclists for the United States Sportspeople from Bend, Oregon Tour de Suisse stage winners Vuelta a España winners Cyclists from Oregon 21st-century American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen