Pierre Beuffeuil ( L'Éguille, France, 30 October 1934) is a former French 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 ...

. He won a stage 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 ...

after the rest of the field had stopped to greet

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...

, the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Tour de France

Pierre Beuffeuil was riding the Tour de France in 1960 for the regional Centre-Midi team when news came that Charles de Gaulle, the president, would be by the route at Colombey-les-deux-Églises, where he lived. The organisers,

Jacques Goddet Jacques Goddet (; 21 June 1905 – 15 December 2000) was a French sports journalist and director of the Tour de France road cycling race from 1936 to 1986. Goddet was born and died in Paris. His father, Victor Goddet, was co-founder and finance ...

and

Félix Lévitan Félix Lévitan (12 October 1911 in Paris – 18 February 2007 in Cannes), was a sports journalist and the third organiser of the Tour de France a role he shared for much of the time with Jacques Goddet. Lévitan is credited with looking after ...

asked the national champion,

Henry Anglade Henry Anglade (6 July 1933 – 10 November 2022) was a French cycle sport, cyclist. In 1959 Tour de France, 1959 he was closest to winning the Tour de France, when he won a stage and finished second, 4:01 behind Federico Bahamontes. In 1960 he wo ...

, if the riders would be willing to stop. Anglade agreed and the news was spread through the race. Beuffeuil, however, had stopped to repair a tyre and knew nothing of the plan. He was three minutes behind the race. He reached Colombey convinced he would still be behind the race when it finished in

Troyes Troyes () is a Communes of France, commune and the capital of the Departments of France, department of Aube in the Grand Est region of north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about south-east of Paris. Troyes is situated within ...

, then found the race halted in front of him. He pressed on alone, now leading rather than following, and won the stage alone on the boulevard Jules-Guesde by 49 seconds. "I voted for de Gaulle", he said. Beuffeuil won the stage from Montluçon to Orléans in 1966 after a break of 204 km. He came third in the Four Days of Dunkirk in 1961 and again in 1966.

Major results

;1956 :Circuit d'Aquitaine :Ontron :Vergt ;1959 :Auzances :Périgueux ;1960 :Bourcefranc :Peyrelevade :

: ::Winner stage 20 ;1961 :Quilan ;1962 :Circuit des genêts verts :Guéret :Maël-Pestivien ;1965 :Chaniers :Saint-Just ;1966 :Saint-Tropez :

: ::Winner stage 21 ;1967 :Querrien :Valence-sur-Baise

References

External links

*
Official Tour de France results for Pierre Beuffeuil
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beuffeuil, Pierre French male cyclists 1934 births Living people French Tour de France stage winners Cyclists from Charente-Maritime 20th-century French sportsmen