Tour de France 2024: Raymond Poulidor Immortalized with Statue in the Pyrenees
We recall the profound emotion experienced by Mathieu Van der Poel this summer, as the 9th stage of the previous Tour de France departed from Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat, the Limousin stronghold of his grandfather Raymond Poulidor. The Dutch world champion will once again feel a pang in his heart when he crosses the Pyrenees next summer, as the route for the 2024 edition will be unveiled this Wednesday.
A life-size bronze statue of “Poupou” will be erected in Saint-Lary (Hautes-Pyrénées), which will serve as the finish line for the 14th stage on July 13, between Pau and Pla d’Adet, as reported by France Bleu Occitanie. The sculpture, created by Breton artist Bernard Potel, renowned for his busts of notable figures including Charles de Gaulle and Jean-Paul Belmondo, will be installed at the junction of Pla d’Adet and Col du Portet in mid-April 2024.
His Seventh and Final Stage Victory on the Tour
The rival-turned-friend of Jacques Anquetil will be depicted in full exertion, just as he was 50 years ago when he claimed victory in the 16th stage of the 1974 Tour between Seu d’Urgell (Andorra) and Pla d’Adet. At the age of 38, Poulidor secured his seventh and final triumph on the Grande Boucle, finishing two minutes ahead of Eddy Merckx, who ultimately surpassed him in Paris.
To bring this project to life, which commenced in September and will require over eight months of work, the town of Saint-Lary has joined forces with the association “Les amis de Raymond Poulidor.” A call for donations has also been launched on the specialized Ulule platform, as part of the endowment fund established by this village of approximately 850 inhabitants to finance the statue.
The statue of one of the legends of French cycling, who passed away on November 13, 2019, at the age of 83, will join the Pyrenean pantheon alongside the Giant of Tourmalet, a tribute to Octave Lapize, the first rider to conquer the legendary pass in the Tour de France in 1910. Additionally, it will stand alongside the sculpture of the “handyman” Eugène Christophe in Sainte-Marie-de-Campan, and the memorial stele commemorating the tragic death of Italian cyclist Fabio Casartelli in 1995, during the descent of the Col de Portet-d’Aspet.