View Full Version : Laurent Fignon passes
sw3759
08-31-2010, 07:20 AM
Sad news this morning.RIP Mr Fignon.
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/laurent-fignon-passes-away-1
bostondrunk
08-31-2010, 07:22 AM
Very sad.
Watching he and LeMond battle in '89 was what really got me into cycling.
RIP
Sad indeed. His battle against Lemond was one of the great stories of the Tour de France and brought cycling to the attention of many around the world.
merckx
08-31-2010, 08:12 AM
This news drains my heart.
BumbleBeeDave
08-31-2010, 08:35 AM
. . . He's not just the guy who lost the Tour by 8 seconds.
He's the guy who WON it twice.
BBD
goonster
08-31-2010, 08:43 AM
He's the guy who WON it twice.
+1
Godspeed Mssr. Fignon.
One of the heroes of my (almost) youth.
Very sad.
Sobering when we start to see it happen to those who are our age. I guess we are now in "that" age group ........
jischr
08-31-2010, 08:51 AM
That is sad. He was one of my favorites of all time.
It was the 89 tour that got me labeled a bike fanatic by my family because I refused to leave the house for dinner until Fignon finished his time trial. I figured Laurent to win it by a minute but whooped and jumped when Greg took the lead. I was ecstatic the rest of the night and the everyone kept saying its just a bike race dude. Even now only my daughter understands and she hadn't been born yet.
Elefantino
08-31-2010, 09:02 AM
His collapse of agony after the '89 finale the real agony of defeat. A sad and yet uplifting all-time sports moment.
http://d.yimg.com/i//ng/sp/eurosport/20090612/25/c70d96a275b6463e179aae2d73c37587.jpg
Although as a true jingoist I wanted him to lose, he gained my respect and admiration that day and has kept it since.
He will indeed be missed.
johnnymossville
08-31-2010, 09:27 AM
I remember feeling so sad for Laurent after that TT and so happy for LeMond at the same time. That was quite a moment.
A few years later I saw them in person racing the Tour DuPont in Pennsylvania. They were riding near each other every time I saw them at the top of the climb at Mt. Pocono, it was a big circuit race that day. Their unique riding styles imprinted in my memory forever.
Rest in Peace Mr Fignon you are a great champion.
dixiesdad
08-31-2010, 09:30 AM
Having seen the famous "8 second victory" on TV (CBS sports) and having at one time a gitane team replica (awesome blue with yellow and black decals)with a renault jersey, I am saddened by the news. I also wear glasses and think I may have had a pair of small funky glasses at the time like Mr. Fignon. No Oakleys for a Parisian....I also remember him standing on the podium in Paris after winning the tour, (probably cbs sports coverage) and holding the big ceramic trophy, and being rumored to have been partying later with Jane Seymour who was a babe at the time. (actually still is!) I do have a drawing of "The Professor" done by Dave Brinton aka Brintoni in my study and will take another look tonight and reflect on one of the legends of cycling when I was still racing,with sadness.
http://www.brintoni.com/HeroesdeVeloI2.aspx
MerckxMad
08-31-2010, 09:34 AM
Wow. Bummer. And I just finished reading his book. I remember the CBS Sports clips of the '89 TT like it was yesterday.
tv_vt
08-31-2010, 09:54 AM
So sad. I too just finished reading We Were Young and Carefree and gained a new respect for Fignon. He was a true champion. I'll miss him. His fight against his cancer was also heroic.
Climb01742
08-31-2010, 10:13 AM
he proved that "dumb" and "jock" aren't always linked. he had style. he had class. he had too little time. au revoir.
while he was a great cyclist, he was also an admitted doper which, given the circumstances surrounding today's peloton, makes him somewhat a hero for coming clean.
I remember coming home from a ride to watch the Lemond time trial; I turned it on to watch thinking he had it wrapped up.
thwart
08-31-2010, 10:24 AM
Very sad.
He must have used a tremendous force of will to do commentary this year at the TdF.
Good pic to remember him by... during his final and most heroic struggle.
http://www.france-info.com/local/cache-vignettes/L620xH402/champs620jpged1b-37f82.jpg
GuyGadois
08-31-2010, 10:24 AM
Sad news
R.I.P. Professor
Pete Serotta
08-31-2010, 10:27 AM
Laurent Fignon has passed away after losing his fight against cancer, French television has announced.
The Frenchman twice won the Tour de France during his career. He was 50.
Fignon disclosed in June 2009 that he was undergoing treatment for cancer. It is said to have started in his intestine and then spread further through his body. He continued to commentate for French television on the Tour de France this summer despite a tumour affecting his vocal chords.
“I don’t want to die at 50,” he said, earlier this summer. “All I know is that my cancer isn’t evolving. I’m still fighting.”
Fignon won the Tour de France in 1983 and 1984, and a total of nine Tour stages. He also won the 1989 Giro d’Italia. He famously finished second in the Tour in 1989, famously losing to American Greg Lemond in 1989 by the slimmest margin ever in Tour history, a mere eight seconds.
Fignon was diagnosed with cancer in May 2009, and he revealed his illness it shortly thereafter. He had been very open with the press and public about his illness. In his book, "Nous étions jeunes et insouciants" (We were young and carefree), he confessed to having doped during his career. Later, he discussed the possibility that his cancer was linked to his doping.
Cyclingnews expresses its sympathy to Fignon’s family and will have more on this story later.
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Thank you Laurent (and bernard) for being the great animators in cycling and life that you are.......and thank you for this last image, which for me represents a coming 'full circle' in your competitive lives.
Roll on Laurent
Bob Loblaw
08-31-2010, 03:45 PM
Thank you Laurent (and bernard) for being the great animators in cycling and life that you are.......and thank you for this last image, which for me represents a coming 'full circle' in your competitive lives.
Roll on Laurent
Awesome image. Fignon was an amazing champion to the end. All the practice he got at suffering on the bike probably served him well as he squeezed as much as he could out of his last months.
Godspeed, Professor.
BL
chuckroast
08-31-2010, 07:22 PM
What a sad thing to see on screen this evening. Rest in Peace
It is very sad when heroes pass. Laurent Fignon seemed to live on with dignity for himself and continued excitement for the sport. I'm not so sure the same can be said of the person who beat him by 8 seconds. In some ways one doesn't compare to the other as to who was the greater sportsman.
Keith A
08-31-2010, 09:24 PM
Very sad news...and he was only 50 years young :crap:
The longer I live, the more people I see that are affected by this disease. I know there are many that don't like Armstrong, but I DO like the fact that he his fighting against this disease and I hope that his efforts are making a difference.
Godspeed, Laurent.
rounder
08-31-2010, 09:39 PM
I got hooked on riding bikes in 1989 while watching the tour with Laurent racing against Greg. It was compelling and believe i taped every stage on VHS. That was right after the Tour de Trump came to Baltimore harbor. Went from a Sears neighborhood bike to a Schwinn Traveler to a Bianchi Brava (Bycling mag cover bike) in about a two month period. To me, the 8 second difference was just a number. I liked the part about Greg and Laurent competing head to head and swapping leads. It was a great race. Saw them both race in a final day time trial in D.C. at the tour de pont (tour de trump?). They both looked great, and Greg won the overall. Laurent looked classy at this year's tour. Will i miss him, you bet.
Wilkinson4
08-31-2010, 11:53 PM
Very sad news indeed. RIP Professor. He had style no doubt.
mIKE
William
09-01-2010, 05:19 AM
Very sad news. Rest in peace Champ.
William
parallelfish
09-01-2010, 08:29 PM
Olé Larry!
Volant
09-01-2010, 09:50 PM
I said out-loud, "Oh, no" when I read the thread title. My wife just asked me, "What happened?" I told her Laurent Fignon passed away. She is sad too now. My wife and I got engaged in '89 and she remembers that tour vividly. Bummer.
RIP Mr. Fignon
whforrest
09-03-2010, 05:28 PM
seeing some of these photos and reading these commentaries makes my heart swell with emotion.
Fignon represented many things to me, but he was an interesting character. I had the honor to see him race during the opening prologue of the 1992 tour de france in san sebastian, spain.
when i saw him warming up before the start it was a great moment for me as a cycling fan.
I will never forget this guy. imagine lemond or hinault without fignon. it's the 80's racing scene for me that has made me a passionate life long fan of this sport.
damn, cyling won't be the same.
johnnymossville
09-03-2010, 06:15 PM
seeing some of these photos and reading these commentaries makes my heart swell with emotion.
Fignon represented many things to me, but he was an interesting character. I had the honor to see him race during the opening prologue of the 1992 tour de france in san sebastian, spain.
when i saw him warming up before the start it was a great moment for me as a cycling fan.
I will never forget this guy. imagine lemond or hinault without fignon. it's the 80's racing scene for me that has made me a passionate life long fan of this sport.
damn, cyling won't be the same.
Agree, the dynamics between the major players in the 80's was really special for a kid growing up in that era. Me included.
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