French cycling biography

Pierre Cloarec (14 March 1909 – 7 December 1994) was a French professional road bicycle racer. During his career, he won two stages in the Tour de France.

Éric Boyer (2 December 1963) is a French former professional road bicycle racer.Boyer was born in Choisy-le-Roi. In the 1988 Tour de France, he finished in 5th place in the overall classification - the highest placed French finisher. Boyer won a stage in the 1991 Giro d'Italia.
After his racing career, Boyer worked for television (including Eurosport and L'Equipe) and newspapers. He was manager of the Cofidis team from 2005 until June 2012. In addition he briefly served as president of the AIGCP from 2008 to 2009.

Bernard Bourreau (born 2 September 1951) is a French former cyclist. He competed in the individual road race at the 1972 Summer Olympics. His sporting career began with CA Cicray-Maison Minor.

Albert Bouvet (28 February 1930 – 20 May 2017) was a French professional cyclist. He won Paris–Tours in 1956 and remained the last Frenchman to win until Jacky Durand won in 1998. His name is also associated with Paris–Roubaix, as an organiser and discoverer of new sections of pavé.The Albert Bouvet Trophy is a race between Saint Gregory and Saint-Georges-de-Reintembault in Ille et Vilaine.

Thierry Bourguignon (born 19 December 1962 in La Mure) is a French former road cyclist.

Jean Bobet (22 February 1930 – 27 July 2022) was a French road bicycle racer. He was the younger brother of Louison Bobet. Less successful, he nevertheless won the world students' championship as an amateur and then, as a professional, Paris–Nice in 1955, Genoa–Nice in 1956 and the Circuit du Morbihan in 1953. He came third in Milan–San Remo in 1953. He rode from 1949 to 1959, including all three Grand Tours.
He and his brother retired from racing after a car carrying them crashed outside Paris in the autumn of 1960. Louison went into business ventures and Jean became a journalist. He became head of sport at Radio Luxembourg, wrote for L'Équipe and then Le Monde. He made occasional contributions to Miroir du Cyclisme and still (2008) appears on television, notably in retrospective programmes. He was instrumental in forming a museum in his brother's memory in Saint-Méen-le-Grand.
He wrote several books, including Louison Bobet, une vélobiographie (Éditions Gallimard, 1958), an account of life with his brother in Demain on roule (Editions de la Table Ronde, 2004), translated as Tomorrow We Ride (Mousehold Press, 2008), and a history of Octave Lapize, one of the first stars of the Tour de France: Lapize, celui-là était un 'as' (Editions de la Table Ronde, 2003), translated as Lapize ... now there was an ace (Mousehold Press, 2010).

Walter Bénéteau (28 July 1972 – 10 December 2022) was a French professional cyclist. He raced in every Tour de France from 2000 until 2006.

Gilbert Bauvin (born 4 August 1927 in Lunéville, Meurthe-et-Moselle) is a former professional French road bicycle racer. He was a professional from 1950 to 1960. The highlights of his career include winning the Paris–Camembert in 1954 and Tour de Romandie in 1958 and winning four stages in the Tour de France as well as wearing the yellow jersey for a total of four days.
His best grand tour result was the 1956 Tour de France, where he finished second after surprise winner Roger Walkowiak.

Stéphane Augé (born 6 December 1974 in Pau) is a French former road racing cyclist. Following his career, he worked as a sporting director for UCI Professional Continental team Cofidis from 2011 until 2016. While he initially had a contract to ride competitively with them in the 2011 season, he chose instead to retire as a cyclist and fill an opening in the team's management. He was known to be part of the breakaway in every first stage of the Tour de France.

Maurice Archambaud (30 August 1908 in Paris – 3 December 1955 in Le Raincy) was a French professional cyclist from 1932 to 1944. His short stature earned him the nickname of le nabot, or "the dwarf", but his colossal thighs made him an exceptional rider.
As an amateur, he won the Paris-Soissons and the Paris-Verneuil in 1931 and turned professional the following year for Alcyon, one of the top teams in France. He won the inaugural Grand Prix des Nations in his first season.He set the world hour record at 45.767 km at the Vigorelli velodrome in Milan on 3 November 1937. He beat the Dutchman, Frans Slaats' record of 45.485 km, set on 29 September 1937. The record stood for five years before being beaten by Fausto Coppi.
Archambaud rode for France in the Tour de France between the wars. His sudden changes of form and frequent falls meant that he never won the race, but he did win ten stages and wear the yellow jersey.
He won a shorter stage race, Paris–Nice, in 1936 and 1939.