Romain Bardet (; born 9 November 1990) is a former French professional

racing cyclist Cycle sport is competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, and cycle speedway. Non-racing cycling spo ...

who rode for

UCI WorldTeam A UCI WorldTeam (2015–present), previously UCI ProTeam (2005–2014), is the term used by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) to name a cycling team of the highest category in professional road bicycle racing, road cycling, the UCI World Tou ...

. Bardet is known for his climbing and descending abilities, which make him one of the top general classification contenders in

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 ...

. So far in his career, his best results have primarily come on home soil. He has won a total of four stages in 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 ...

in four separate years, running from 2015 to 2017 and then in 2024; he placed in the top ten overall for five consecutive years (from

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

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 finished on the podium twice: second overall in 2016 and third overall in 2017. He has also worn the Young rider classification jersey, and won the Mountains classification jersey in 2019 as well as the overall

Combativity Award The combativity award is a prize given 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 2015. Outside of France, he won a stage at the

2021 Vuelta a España The 2021 Vuelta a España was a three-week cycling race which took place in Spain between 14 August and 5 September 2021. It was the 76th edition of the Vuelta a España and the third and final Grand Tour (cycling), grand tour of the 2021 in men' ...

, and won the general classification at the

2022 Tour of the Alps The 2022 Tour of the Alps was the 45th edition of the Tour of the Alps road cycling stage race and the sixth edition since its renaming from the Giro del Trentino. It was held from 18 to 22 April 2022 in the Austrian state of Tyrol and in the Ita ...

Professional career

AG2R La Mondiale (2012–2020)

2012–2013

Bardet turned professional in 2012. He distinguished himself in that year's

Tour of Turkey The Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey () is a professional road bicycle racing stage race held annually in Turkey since 1963. In 2005 the race became part of the UCI Europe Tour, UCI race classifications, rated as a 2.2 event, before bei ...

especially in the 3rd stage, which was a mountain affair, where he attacked relentlessly to finally take fifth place. He also finished fifth overall in the race. The following season, Bardet rode his first

and took his first professional victory at the

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 ...

2014

His next victory came the following year when he won

La Drôme Classic La Drôme Classic () is an elite men's road bicycle racing event held annually in the Drôme region of France, held by the Ruoms Cyclisme Organisation. It is run as part of a weekend of racing in the south Ardèche, known as the ''Boucles du Sud A ...

, his first single-day race win. Bardet finished 4th overall 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 also rode his first

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 ...

where he finished 5th overall. Going into the

, Bardet was team leader together with

Jean-Christophe Péraud Jean-Christophe Péraud (born 22 May 1977) is a retired French cyclist who rode for and during his professional career. He was a member of the French team at the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics. Career Péraud was European cross-country champ ...

. Bardet climbed to 3rd place overall at the end of the second week, and even had a short stint in the

white jersey Numerous cycling stage races award a white jersey to signify the current leader and overall winner of a certain competition, or to signify the best young rider in the race. The most prominent of these is the Tour de France, where the jersey is know ...

. Despite losing his podium place in the final week, Bardet still attacked on downhill sections to potentially gain seconds on his rivals. In the end, Bardet finished 6th overall and Péraud finished 2nd overall.

Thibaut Pinot Thibaut Pinot (born 29 May 1990) is a French former professional road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional from 2010 to 2023, spending his entire career with . Once considered one of the most promising talents in French cycling, he finis ...

() took the win in the white jersey standings, in front of Bardet in 2nd place.

2015

After a spring campaign which included a 6th place at

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 9th overall 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 ...

, Bardet was regarded as one of the outsiders for a podium spot in the

. In his final stage race before the Tour, the

, Bardet went on the attack on the downhill section before the last climb on stage 5. He gained a minute on the technical descent, then climbed up to the ski resort of

Pra-Loup Pra-Loup is a ski resort in France, at Uvernet-Fours in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, from the town of Barcelonnette. Geography Ski area The ski station has two separate base areas, 2 km apart: * Pra-Loup 1600 - primary base area at above ...

to win the stage solo, 36 seconds ahead of second-placed

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 ...

. He went on to finish 6th overall at the race. At the Tour de France, Bardet lost time in the crosswinds in the Netherlands and the

team time trial A team time trial (TTT) is a road bicycle race in which teams of cyclists race against the clock (see individual time trial for a more detailed description of ITT events). The winning team in a TTT is determined by the comparing the times of ...

in the first week. When the mountains finally arrived, Bardet lost even more time and with almost half of the race done, out of general classification contention. On the last day in the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

, he went into the breakaway and finished third in the stage to

Plateau de Beille In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Oft ...

. Bardet and

were part of a breakaway and led over the top of the final

Côte de la Croix Neuve Côte Restaurants Group Limited, trading as Côte (formerly Côte Brasserie), stylised as CÔTE is a French-style British restaurant chain founded by Richard Caring, Andy Bassadone, Chris Benians and Nick Fiddler in Wimbledon, London Wimbl ...

climb of Stage 14. However, the pair were caught and overtaken by

Steve Cummings Stephen Philip Cummings (born 19 March 1981) is an English former racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2005 and 2019 for the , , , , and squads, and rode for Great Britain at the Summer Olympic Games, the UCI Road World Championshi ...

() on the short descent to the finish at Mende Aerodrome, and Bardet finished third in the stage. On 23 July 2015, after a solo breakaway, Bardet won Stage 18, a mountain stage for his first Tour de France

stage Stage, stages, or staging may refer to: Arts and media Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly Brit ...

victory. The next day, he claimed the polka dot jersey for the first time, after finishing fifth in Stage 19, another mountain stage. However, he lost the polka dot jersey to

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' ...

on Stage 20. Bardet finished in ninth place in the final general classification and won the

combativity award The combativity award is a prize given 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, ...

of the Tour.

2016

In February 2016, Bardet repeatedly attacked

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 ...

() during Stage 4 of the

Tour of Oman The Tour of Oman is an annual professional road bicycle racing stage race held in Oman since 2010, as part of the UCI Asia Tour through 2019 and on the UCI ProSeries since 2022. It was scheduled to become part of the new UCI ProSeries in 2020, b ...

and ultimately finished the stage in second position, 9 seconds behind him. Bardet finished the Tour of Oman second overall, 15 seconds behind Nibali. In June, Bardet attacked during Stage 6 of

and ultimately finished second in the stage after being outsprinted by

to the finish line in

Méribel Méribel () is a ski resort in the Tarentaise Valley in the French Alps. Méribel refers to three neighbouring villages in the Les Allues commune of the Savoie department of France, near the town of Moûtiers (), called Méribel Centre, Méribe ...

. After Stage 6, Bardet rose to third overall in the general classification, 21 seconds behind the leader

. Bardet finished second overall in the Critérium du Dauphiné final general classification, 12 seconds behind Froome. On Stage 19 of the

, Bardet and his team mate

Mikaël Cherel Mikaël Cherel (born 17 March 1986) is a French former professional road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional from 2007 to 2023. Major results Source: ;2003 : 1st Road race, National Junior Road Championships : 8th Road race, UCI Ju ...

attacked together on a wet descent before the penultimate climb. Bardet escaped the yellow jersey group on the lower slopes of

Mont Blanc Mont Blanc (, ) is a mountain in the Alps, rising above sea level, located right at the Franco-Italian border. It is the highest mountain in Europe outside the Caucasus Mountains, the second-most prominent mountain in Europe (after Mount E ...

with to go. Bardet caught the breakaway survivor

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. ...

with to go, dropped him on the steepest pitches of the final climb with remaining and won the stage by 23 seconds over second-placed

Joaquim Rodríguez Joaquim Rodríguez Oliver (born 12 May 1979) is a Spanish cyclist, who competed in road bicycle racing between 2001 and 2016 for the , , and teams. Following his retirement from road racing, Rodríguez has competed in mountain bike racing and ...

; ultimately, he was the only Frenchman to win a stage in the 2016 Tour de France. After winning Stage 19, Bardet rose from fifth to second overall in the general classification. He finished the Tour in second position in the final general classification, 4:05 behind

, becoming the sixth Frenchman to finish in the top three in the final general classification over the previous 30 editions; the other five were Pinot and

(both 2014),

Richard Virenque Richard VirenqueRichard Virenque's name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", ...

(1996, 1997),

Laurent Fignon Laurent Patrick Fignon (; 12 August 1960 – 31 August 2010) was a French professional road bicycle racer who won the Tour de France in 1983 and 1984, as well as the Giro d'Italia in 1989. He held the title of FICP World No. 1 in 1989. Fignon came ...

(1989) and

Jean-François Bernard Jean-François Bernard (born 2 May 1962) is a French former professional road bicycle racer. Career He turned professional in 1984 for La Vie Claire, led by Bernard Hinault. He was seen as Hinault’s successor as a winner of stage races from ...

(1987). Bardet was selected to represent

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

at the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

in the individual road race, finishing 24th.

2017

After crashing on stage 1 of

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 ...

, Bardet was thrown out of the race after he had been towed by his team car. Bardet won stage 12 of the

, with an acceleration near the finishing line in

Peyragudes Peyragudes is a large ski resort in the French Pyrenees, situated in the departments of Hautes-Pyrénées and Haute-Garonne, in the Region of Occitanie. The resort was created in 1988, when the Peyresourde and Agudes resorts were joined. Skiin ...

in the French

, going clear with less than to go to take his third stage win in as many years. Bardet struggled throughout the penultimate stage, a

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 ...

, that started and finished in

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

; he finished in 52nd position, 2 minutes 3 seconds behind its winner

Maciej Bodnar Maciej Bodnar (born 7 March 1985, in Oława) is a Polish former professional road racing cyclist, who competed as a professional from 2007 to 2023. He is the brother of fellow racing cyclist Łukasz Bodnar. Bodnar was a team-mate of Peter Sagan ...

. Bardet dropped from second to third in the general classification going into the

final stage Final stage or The Final Stage may refer to: * '' The Final Stage'', 1995 film directed by Frank Howson * Fifth stage of a bill's passage through a legislative chamber * In a multi-stage tournament: ** knockout stage ** playoffs The playoffs, p ...

, with a one-second lead over fourth-placed

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 ...

. Bardet managed to hold on to his advantage, completing the podium behind

and

Rigoberto Urán Rigoberto Urán Urán, Colombian military decorations, ODB (born 26 January 1987) is a Colombian former road racing cyclist who competed as a professional from 2006 to 2024. During his professional career, Urán has taken fifteen victories, inc ...

2018

Bardet missed the

Vuelta a Andalucía The Vuelta a Andalucía (Tour of Andalusia) or Ruta del Sol (Route of the Sun) is a regional Spanish road bicycle race first held in 1925. Since 2005, it has been a 2.1 category race on the UCI Europe Tour. The race became a part of the new UCI ...

after injuring his right arm in a domestic accident. He returned to action with a victory in the

Classic Sud-Ardèche A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or highest quality, class, or rank – something that exemplifies its class. The word can be an adjective (a ''c ...

in February. In March, Bardet rode the

Strade Bianche The Strade Bianche (; ) is a road bicycle race in Tuscany, Central Italy, starting and finishing in Siena. First held in 2007, it is raced annually on the first or second Saturday of March. The name stems from the historic white gravel roads in ...

one day classic, held partly on gravel roads in torrential rain. He broke away with the world cyclocross champion

Wout van Aert Wout van Aert (born 15 September 1994) is a Belgian professional road bicycle racing, road and cyclo-cross Cycle sport, racer who rides for UCI WorldTeam . Van Aert won three consecutive men's races at the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in ...

and the pair led the race for much of the final before

Tiesj Benoot Tiesj Benoot (born 11 March 1994) is a Belgian cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Career Lotto–Soudal (2015–19) Benoot turned professional with the Belgian UCI World Tour team in 2015, after riding for the outfit in 2013 and ...

() attacked from a chasing group to catch and then drop them in the final sector of dirt roads. Benoot soloed to victory by 39 seconds ahead of Bardet, who dropped van Aert in the final kilometre. At

, Bardet finished 3rd – his first podium at a

Cycling monument The Monuments are five classic cycle races generally considered to be the oldest, hardest, longest and most prestigious one-day events in men's road cycling, with distances between 240 and 300 km. They each have a long history and specific indiv ...

– after losing the 2nd place sprint to

Michael Woods Michael Woods may refer to: *Michael Woods (Australian politician) (1857–1934), member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly *Michael Woods (comics), American writer/editor of comic books *Michael Woods (cyclist) (born 1986), Canadian cyclist *M ...

. When riding the

, Bardet never challenged for the overall win and only entered the top 3 inside the last two days. When he arrived at the start of the

, Bardet had a troubled first week with mechanicals and punctures. He lost time on multiple occasions during the first week and was almost two minutes behind when they started the 10th stage. On stage 12 to

Alpe d'Huez L'Alpe d'Huez () is a ski resort in Southeastern France at . It is a mountain pasture in the central French Western Alps, in the Communes of France, commune of Huez, which is part of the Isère Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-R ...

, Bardet attacked and rode away from the other contenders. He was later joined by

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 ...

and

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 ...

, but decided to test the contenders with numerous accelerations. He ended the stage in 3rd place and rose to 6th place in the general classification. With Bardet only being 8th in the general classification before stage 19, he and several other contenders attacked on the

Col du 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 ...

with almost to the finish line. Despite being caught on the last climb, Bardet finished third in the sprint to the finish line. He moved up to a final placing of sixth overall after the penultimate stage, an

– his fifth consecutive top-ten finish at the race. 20180930 UCI Road World Championships Innsbruck Men Elite Road Race Award Ceremony 850 2143

In September, Bardet finished 2nd in the road race at the

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 ...

, after having attacked with

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 ...

(Spain) and Canada's Woods. The group was later joined by

(Netherlands) inside the last kilometres. Valverde started the sprint with almost to the finish line but Bardet never looked like a serious challenge and had to settle with 2nd place.

2019

Bardet started his 2019 season with a block of racing in France, finishing second overall at the

Tour du Haut Var The Tour des Alpes-Maritimes, formerly known as the Tour du Haut Var, () is an early-season two-day road bicycle race in the Var department region in the south of France. Until 2008 it was run as a one-day race, part of the UCI Europe Tour. In 20 ...

, losing out to

on the final stage, which ended with a summit finish at

Mont Faron Mont Faron is a mountain overlooking the city and roadstead of Toulon, France. It is 584m high. At its peak is a memorial dedicated to the 1944 Allied landings in Provence (Operation Dragoon Operation Dragoon (initially Operation Anvil), kn ...

. He then finished fourth in the

, seventh at

and fifth overall at

. In preparation for the

, Bardet contested the

, finishing in tenth place overall, and was second to

Jesús Herrada Jesús Herrada López (born 26 July 1990) is a Spanish professional cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . His brother José Herrada is also a professional cyclist, and also competes for . Career He was considered one of the most pro ...

in the inaugural Mont Ventoux Dénivelé Challenge, which finished atop

Mont Ventoux Mont Ventoux (; ) is a mountain in the Provence region of southern France, located some northeast of Carpentras, Vaucluse. On the north side, the mountain borders the department of Drôme. At , it is the highest mountain in the region and h ...

. At the Tour de France, Bardet lost more than 20 minutes on stage 14 – which finished at the

– which removed him from overall contention. He then shifted his focus to attempting to winning stages from the breakaway, but his best result was a second-place finish on stage eighteen, won by

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 ...

. However, Bardet did take the lead of the

mountains classification The King of the Mountains (KoM) is an award given to the best climbing specialist in a men's cycling road race; in women's cycle racing, Queen of the Mountains (QoM) is used. While the title may be given to the rider who achieves the highest p ...

, holding the polka-dot jersey for the remainder of the race. He ended his season following the Tour de France, stating that he needed to "regenerate".

2020

Bardet contested four races in the early part of 2020, prior to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

-enforced suspension of racing, with his best result being second overall at the Tour des Alpes-Maritimes et du Var. Following the resumption of racing, Bardet contested only races in France for the remainder of the season, with the exception of Brabantse Pijl and the

Tour of Flanders The Tour of Flanders () may refer to the following cycle races: * Tour of Flanders (men's race) The Tour of Flanders (), also known as ''De Ronde'' (''"The Tour"''), is an annual road bicycle racing, road cycling race held in Belgium every spri ...

held in Belgium in October. He ran as high as fourth overall in the

, but withdrew ahead of the fourteenth stage following a crash, which left him with a concussion and a "small haemorrhage".

Team DSM (2021–present)

In August 2020, Bardet signed an initial two-year contract with , later renamed , from the 2021 season, and team dsm-firmenich, from the 2023 season.

2021

Bardet made his first start at 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 ...

, sharing team leadership with

Jai Hindley Jai Hindley (born 5 May 1996) is an Australian professional cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . Hindley is primarily a climber, notable for winning the Giro d'Italia in 2022. He was the first Australian to win the general classification, and o ...

, the

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 ...

runner-up. Bardet made his way up the general classification, moving into the top ten overall after stage 14, finishing at the

Monte Zoncolan Monte Zoncolan () is a mountain in the Carnic Alps, located in the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy, with an elevation of . It is one of the most demanding climbs in professional road bicycle racing, having been used in the Giro d'Italia ...

. He finished second to

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 ...

on stage 16, and moved up to fifth place overall on the penultimate stage, following a fourth-place stage finish. However, he fell to seventh in the general classification during the final-day

, dropping behind Daniel Martínez and João Almeida. Bardet also rode into the leader's jersey at the

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 ...

, a preparation race for 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 ...

. In spite of his crash on the descent of the Picón Blanco climb, he won the third stage solo to

Espinosa de los Monteros Espinosa de los Monteros is a municipality located in the province of Burgos, Castile and León, Spain, with a population of c. 2,100 inhabitants. The village is spread over a large rural area at the southern outskirts of a mountainous area of t ...

, his first in over three years. He held a 45-second lead over

heading into the final stage, but he lost the race lead to Landa after cracking in the final of the stage; he ultimately finished sixth overall, and won the mountains classification. On stage 5 of the Vuelta a España, Bardet crashed and lost over twelve minutes; he lost a further thirteen minutes the following day, removing him from overall contention. On stage 14, he was involved in the breakaway; he chased down several counter-attacks, and went clear with to go. He then rode solo to the summit finish at Pico Villuercas to claim the stage win, 44 seconds ahead of

. Bardet held the mountains classification for four days, before the lead passed to his teammate

Michael Storer Michael J. Storer (born 28 February 1997) is an Australian cyclist, who currently rides for UCI ProTeam . Early life Michael was born in Sydney, Australia, in February, 1997. His family later relocated to Perth, Western Australia. From the ag ...

. Bardet and Storer also made it into the breakaway on the penultimate stage; Storer mathematically sealed the mountains jersey ahead of the final time trial, while Bardet finished second in the standings.

2022

Prior to the

, Bardet took the overall victory at the

Tour of the Alps The Tour of the Alps is an annual professional road bicycle racing, cycling stage race in Italy and Austria. First held in 1962, it was named Giro del Trentino () until 2016, and run over four stages in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol region o ...

, his first general classification win since the 2013

. With

having moved to , Bardet had outright team leadership at for the Giro d'Italia, and during the race, he signed a two-year contract extension with the team. In the ninth stage, Bardet finished second to Hindley on a summit finish at Blockhaus, moving up to third place overall. He lost a place to

Richard Carapaz Richard Antonio Carapaz Montenegro (born 29 May 1993) is an Ecuadorian professional road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Carapaz won the 2019 Giro d'Italia, becoming the first Ecuadorian rider to win the race. In July 2021 ...

a couple of stages later, and was out of the race altogether by the end of stage thirteen, abandoning the race due to sickness. His next start was at the

, where he finished in the top-three on the eleventh stage, which finished at the

Col du Granon Col du Granon (el. ) is a high mountain pass in the Alps in the department of Hautes-Alpes in France. A narrow tarmac road winds steeply up the southern approach. Gravel roads continue beyond the pass, in a military training zone. It hosted the ...

; he moved up to second overall behind

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 ...

following the stage. He lost almost 20 seconds to Vingegaard,

and

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 ...

the following day, as he dropped from second to fourth on

Bastille Day Bastille Day is the common name given in English-speaking countries to the national day of France, which is celebrated on 14 July each year. It is referred to, both legally and commonly, as () in French, though ''la fête nationale'' is also u ...

. He lost more than three minutes on stage sixteen, dropping to ninth overall; he yo-yoed around the lower half of the top-ten placings for the remainder of the race, finishing seventh overall on the road, before being promoted to sixth with

's disqualification.

2023

Bardet started his season with top-ten overall finishes at the Tour des Alpes-Maritimes et du Var and

stage races – finishing eighth and seventh respectively – and also finished in ninth place at

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 ...

. At the

, Bardet finished third on a hilly second stage, and ultimately finished in seventh overall. He contested the

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 ...

for the first time, where he recorded three top-ten stage finishes, and finished fifth overall.

2024

Bardet opened the 2024 season with a third place in the

Classic Var The Classic Var is a one-day road cycling race held annually in the department of Var, France. It is on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the Union ...

in February. In late April, he finished second to

. He next competed in the

, finishing second on stage 10 and 9th overall. In late June, Bardet won his fourth career

stage on the first day of the race, holding off the chasing peloton by five seconds with teammate Frank van den Broek. This also marked the only time in his career that he would hold the Tour de France

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 ...

2025

Following the conclusion of the

2025 Critérium du Dauphiné The 2025 Critérium du Dauphiné was a road cycling stage race that took place between 8 and 15 June in the Dauphiné region of southeastern France. It was the 77th edition of Critérium du Dauphiné and the 23rd race of the 2025 UCI World Tour. ...

, Bardet retired from professional cycling.

Personal life

Bardet lives in

Clermont-Ferrand Clermont-Ferrand (, , ; or simply ; ) is a city and Communes of France, commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions of France, region, with a population of 147,284 (2020). Its metropolitan area () had 504,157 inhabitants at the 2018 ...

. Alongside his professional cycling career, he began business studies in 2011, in the ''

grande école A (; ) is a specialized top-level educational institution in France and some other countries such as Morocco and Tunisia. are part of an alternative educational system that operates alongside the mainstream List of public universities in Franc ...

'' program adapted to high-level athletes in

Grenoble School of Management Grenoble Ecole de Management (GEM) is a French graduate business school or Grande Ecole, founded in 1984 in Grenoble, in the Auvergne-Rhone Alpes region by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) of Grenoble. The school was ranked the tw ...

Career achievements

Major results

Source: ;2009 : 5th Overall

Tour des Pays de Savoie The Tour de Savoie Mont-Blanc was a multi-day cycling race held annually in the departments of Savoie and Haute-Savoie in France between 1999 and 2021. It was held as part of the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road ...

;2010 : 6th Overall

Tour de l'Avenir Tour de l'Avenir () is a French road bicycle racing stage race, which started in 1961 as a race similar to the Tour de France and over much of the same course but for amateurs and for semi-professionals known as independents. Felice Gimondi, Joo ...

: 8th Overall

Giro delle Regioni The Giro delle Regioni was a multi-day cycling race held annually in Italy. It is part of UCI Europe Tour in category 2.ncup, meaning it was part of the UCI Under 23 Nations' Cup The UCI Under 23 Nations' Cup is an annual, season-long competitio ...

: 9th Overall

Ronde de l'Isard The Ronde de l'Isard is a road bicycle race held annually in France. It is organized as a 2.2U event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the Union C ...

::1st Stage 4 : 10th

Piccolo Giro di Lombardia The Piccolo Giro di Lombardia is a one-day cycling race held annually in Lombardy, Italy. It is part of UCI Europe Tour in category 1.2U, meaning it is reserved for under 23 riders. The race acts as the U23 counterpart to the Giro di Lombardia T ...

;2011 : 1st Stage 5

: 2nd Overall

::1st Stages 2 & 3 : 2nd

Liège–Bastogne–Liège Espoirs 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 '' Monuments'' of the European professiona ...

: 4th

UCI Under 23 Nations' Cup The UCI Under 23 Nations' Cup is an annual, season-long competition for under-23 male road cyclists. It was created by the Union Cycliste Internationale in 2007 to aid in the development of young riders. It is the most important competition for u ...

: 4th Overall

: 6th Overall

Giro della Regione Friuli Venezia Giulia The Giro del Friuli-Venezia Giulia is a professional cycling race held annually in Italy. It is part of UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the Union Cycli ...

: 9th

Gran Premio Palio del Recioto The Gran Premio Palio del Recioto is a professional one day cycling race held annually in Italy. It is part of UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the Unio ...

;2012 : 5th Overall

;2013 (1 pro win) : 1st Overall

::1st Points classification : 3rd

Les Boucles du Sud Ardèche LES or Les may refer to: People * Les (given name) * Les (surname) * L.E.S. (producer), hip hop producer Space flight * Launch Entry Suit, worn by Space Shuttle crews * Launch escape system, for spacecraft emergencies * Lincoln Experimental S ...

: 4th Overall

Route du Sud The Route d'Occitanie is a road bicycle race with 4 stages held annually in Southern France. It was first held in 1977 and since 2005 it has been organised as a 2.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour. It is usually held a week before the Tour de France ...

: 5th Overall

Tour of Beijing The Tour of Beijing was an annual professional stage bicycle road race held in Beijing, China. History Its first edition took place in October 2011, as the penultimate event in the 2011 UCI World Tour. The tour was a partnership between the U ...

::1st Young rider classification : 7th Overall

Étoile de Bessèges The Étoile de Bessèges () is an early-season five-day road bicycle racing stage race held annually around Bessèges, in the Gard department of the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France. First organized in 1971 as a one-day race, it became a ...

Combativity award The combativity award is a prize given 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, ...

Stage 9

;2014 (1) : 1st

: 1st Young rider classification,

: 2nd Overall

: 4th Overall

: 4th

: 5th Overall

: 5th

Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal The Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal is a one-day professional Road bicycle racing, bicycle road race held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Its first edition was held on September 12, 2010, as the final event in the 2010 UCI ProTour. The Grand Prix C ...

: 6th Overall

::Held after Stages 10–15 ::

Stage 17 : 10th

Grand Prix d'Ouverture La Marseillaise Grand Prix Cycliste La Marseillaise, formerly known as the Grand Prix d'Ouverture La Marseillaise, is a single-day road bicycle race held annually in February around the city of Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in south ...

: 10th

Paris–Camembert Paris–Camembert (also Paris–Camembert Trophée Lepetit or Paris–Camembert Lepetit) is a semi classic held annually in April. Since 2005, the race is organized as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour. The route of the race has varied over t ...

: 10th

;2015 (2) : 3rd International Road Cycling Challenge : 5th Overall

: 6th Overall

::1st Stage 5 : 6th

: 7th

: 9th Overall

Giro del Trentino The Tour of the Alps is an annual professional cycling stage race in Italy and Austria. First held in 1962, it was named Giro del Trentino () until 2016, and run over four stages in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol region of Italy. In 2015, th ...

: 9th Overall

::1st Stage 18 ::

Stage 18 & Overall ::Held after Stage 19 ;2016 (1) : 2nd Overall

::1st Stage 19 : 2nd Overall

: 2nd Overall

: 2nd

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 ...

: 4th

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 ...

: 5th

: 6th Overall

: 8th

UCI World Tour The UCI WorldTour is the premier men's elite road cycling tour, sitting above the UCI ProSeries and various regional UCI Continental Circuits. It refers to both the tour of 38 events and, until 2019, an annual ranking system based upon perfor ...

: 8th

: 9th Overall

: 9th

Milano–Torino Milano–Torino is a semi classic European single day cycling race, between the northern Italian cities of Milan and Turin over a distance of 199 kilometres. The event was first run in 1876 making it the oldest classic race in the world. The ...

;2017 (1) : 3rd Overall

::1st Stage 12 : 6th Overall

: 6th

: 10th Overall

: Combativity award Stage 11

;2018 (1) : 1st Classic de l'Ardèche : 2nd Silver medal uci

Road race,

: 2nd

Tour du Finistère Tour du Finistère is a single-day road bicycle race held annually in April around the city of Quimper, France. Since 2005, the race is organized as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour, also being part of the Coupe de France de cyclisme sur route ...

: 2nd

Giro della Toscana The Giro di Toscana is a road bicycle race held annually in Tuscany, Italy. From 2005 to 2014, the race has been organised as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour. The race was not held in 2015. On 4 April 2016 it was announced that the race will ...

: 3rd Overall

: 3rd

: 6th Overall

: 6th

: 8th Overall

Deutschland Tour The Deutschland Tour (English: ''Tour of Germany'' and sometimes ''Deutschland-Rundfahrt'' in German) is the most important Race stage, multi-stage road bicycle racing, road bicycle race in Germany. Initially the race was held in May/June, but fro ...

: 8th

Grand Prix La Marseillaise Grand Prix Cycliste La Marseillaise, formerly known as the Grand Prix d'Ouverture La Marseillaise, is a single-day road bicycle race held annually in February around the city of Marseille, France. Since 2005, the race is organized as a UCI race ...

: 9th

;2019 : 1st

Mountains classification The King of the Mountains (KoM) is an award given to the best climbing specialist in a men's cycling road race; in women's cycle racing, Queen of the Mountains (QoM) is used. While the title may be given to the rider who achieves the highest p ...

: 2nd Overall

: 2nd

Mont Ventoux Dénivelé Challenge The Mont Ventoux Dénivelé Challenge is a professional road bicycle racing, cycle road race first held in 2019, which takes place between Vaison-la-Romaine and Mont Ventoux. The event was classified by the UCI as category 1.1 event on the UCI Eu ...

: 4th

: 5th Overall

: 7th

: 9th

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 ...

: 10th Overall

;2020 : 2nd Overall Tour des Alpes-Maritimes et du Var : 6th Overall

: 7th

Paris–Tours Paris–Tours is a French one-day classic road cycling race held every October from the outskirts of Paris to the cathedral city of Tours. It is a predominantly flat course through the Chevreuse and Loire valleys; the highest point is 200 m ...

: 8th Overall

Route d'Occitanie The Route d'Occitanie is a road bicycle race with 4 stages held annually in Southern France. It was first held in 1977 and since 2005 it has been organised as a 2.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour. It is usually held a week before the Tour de France. ...

;2021 (2) :

::1st Stage 14 ::Held after Stage 14–17 : 5th Overall Giro di Sicilia : 6th Overall

::1st Mountains classification ::1st Stage 3 : 7th Overall

: 8th Overall

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 ...

: 8th

: 9th Overall

;2022 (1) : 1st Overall

: 6th Overall

: 8th

: 9th Overall

UAE Tour The UAE Tour () are road cycling stage races in the United Arab Emirates. A men's event was first held in 2019 as part of the UCI World Tour. It was created as a result of the merging of the Abu Dhabi Tour and the Dubai Tour. A women's event was ...

: 9th

;2023 : 1st Stage 1 ( TTT)

: 5th Overall

: 7th Overall

: 8th Overall Tour des Alpes-Maritimes et du Var : 9th

;2024 (1) :

::1st Stage 1 ::Held after Stage 1 : 2nd

: 3rd

: 5th Overall

: 9th Overall

Stage 8 : 10th Road race,

;2025 : 10th Overall

General classification results timeline

Classics results timeline

Major championships timeline

Awards

Vélo d'Or français The Vélo d'Or français (French for "French Golden Bicycle") is a road bicycle racing, cycle racing award, created in 1992 by the French cycling magazine ''Vélo Magazine''. Until 2023, the award was given to the French rider, male or female, consi ...

: 2016, 2017

References

External links

* * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bardet, Romain 1990 births Living people People from Brioude Cyclists from Haute-Loire French male cyclists Olympic cyclists for France Cyclists at the 2016 Summer Olympics French Tour de France stage winners French Vuelta a España stage winners 21st-century French sportsmen