When was the last time a Frenchman led the Tour of Spain? These are the Gauls dressed in red

No one expected that Lenny Martinez could wear red, although he has already shown the class he has in his legs this season, he came out in a very good position in the general classification after the stage of Arinsal (Andorra) and on Thursday, ending with Javalambre Astrophysical Observatoryknows how to play his cards and rise to the leadership of Lap.

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With the reins of the Vuelta in the hands of French Martinez, of Spanish descent, more specifically from Burgos, these are the four cyclists who have previously led the Spanish round, although since 1995 a Frenchman has not won the general Vuelta: Laurent Jalabert .

Sylvain Chavanel

Retired since 2018, Chavanel, who never stops pedaling and we saw for example on the mountain bike Titan Desert, was the leader of the Vuelta on two occasions, in 2008, when he rode with the Cofidis team , and in 2011, when he does it in the Quick Step range. He came to play four editions of the Vuelta, with the best result in 2007, where he finished 16th. Surprisingly, he never won a stage at the Vuelta, although in 2008 he led day one and four in 2011.

2

Rudy Molard

The seasoned runner (33 years old), Rudy Molard happens to be in the same rank as the current leader of the Vuelta, Lenny Martinez, in Groupama-FDJ, with a contract until December 31, 2024. He has not won a stage in his six, counting his current presence in the Spanish round, but he led four stages in the 2018 edition, where he got his best overall result, 14th.

3

Nicolas Edette

At the age of 35, the man from La Ferté-Bernard ends his contract with Arkéa-Samsic this coming December 31 and has not competed since last February. He arrived at Nairo Quintana’s former team from Cofidis, where he made his debut in 2011 and with whom he spent his entire career. And it is certainly among them that he leads a stage of the Vuelta. He played four editions of the Spanish round and in 2013 he was the best in the mountains.

4 FRENCH WON

Throughout its 78 editions, waiting for what might happen in this one, there were four French cyclists who conquered the Tour: Roger Pingeon (1969), Bernard Hinault (1978, 1983), Éric Caritoux (1984) and Laurent Jalabert ( 1995). ).

4

Kenny Ellisonde

The Longjumeau rider (32 years old) is competing in the 78th edition of the Tour, in what will be his eighth career appearance. He is active in the new Lidl-Trek range and was the last French cyclist to wear the red of the Vuelta before Lenny Martinez. In particular, he did it in 2021, in just one stage, of an edition that he did not finish, and years ago, in 2013, he won a real stage, that of Angliru.