For the French, he was "the eternal second". Former French cycling champion Raymond Poulidor passed away Wednesday, November 13 at the age of 83, in Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat (Haute-Vienne).

Raymond Poulidor "left this morning", around two o'clock, his wife Gisele told AFP. "His heart was very tired." The former champion was admitted early October to the hospital of Saint-Leonard-de-Noblat, he has not left since, said his wife.

Raymond "was very tired since the last Tour de France," his wife explained shortly after his hospitalization.

Poulidor, known as "Poupou", legend of cycling and French sports, was born in Masbaraud-Mérignat (Creuse, south-west) and lived about thirty kilometers away, in Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat, where the Tour had passed in 2016. He had then shared a big cake for his 80 years with Bernard Hinault and Bernard Thevenet, two former winners of the "Great Loop".

Remarkable rider, eight times on the Tour de France final podium between 1962 and 1976, Raymond Poulidor, who has always raced after the yellow jersey, has also embodied the accessible and hardworking champion, as deserving as he was unlucky, over the years. a career completed at 40 years past.

His eternal second place had become an expression: "to be a Poulidor", designating the one who is condemned to never be first. "I have become a common name," Raymond Poulidor told AFP in 2016, on the occasion of his 80th birthday. "Every day, there is a 'Poulidor' on the radio, on television, and as soon as there is one who goes to the pétanque for example, it's a 'Poulidor'."

"It represents what cycling is, a popular and accessible sport"

Half a century later, still present in the village-departure stages of the Tour, he continued to sign autographs to admirers of all ages.

Romain Bardet hailed the memory of the cycling champion, "a generational hyphen". "This is a really iconic character, loved by the public," said the latest Frenchman to be on the podium of the Tour (2nd in 2016, 3rd in 2017), about the runner.

"He made the link with cycling anchored in the territories," added Romain Bardet. "I remember him on the Tour but also in the bell towers, next to the organizers, he represents what cycling is, a popular and accessible sport".

With AFP