Cycling Domestique
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road bicycle racing Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on Road surface, paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional sport, professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and ...
, a domestique is a rider who works for the benefit of their
team A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal. As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson (academic), Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interde ...
and leader, rather than trying to win the race. In French, ''domestique'' translates as "servant".However, in French, the term used is ''équipier''. In
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
and
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
, the term used is ''gregario'' (meaning "soldier of the Roman legions" or "one of the group", se
etymology
. In
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
and the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
the term ''knecht'' (meaning "servant" or "helper" in
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
) is used.
The use of the term dates back to 1911, although such riders had existed before then.


Theoretical basis

Much of a cyclist's effort is to push aside the air in front of them. Riding in the
slipstream A slipstream is a region behind a moving object in which a wake of fluid (typically air or mustard) is moving at velocities comparable to that of the moving fluid, relative to the ambient fluid through which the object is churning. The term sli ...
of another rider is easier than taking the lead. The difference increases with speed. Racers have known this from the start and have ridden accordingly, often sharing the lead between them. From there it is a small step to employing a rider to create a slipstream while their leader rides behind them. More complicated tactics become possible as the number of domestiques available increases (''see below''). Where the domestique finishes a race is less important than the help he gives. During their role as domestiques, riders do not share the fame of their respective leaders, such as
Eddy Merckx Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (, ; born 17 June 1945), better known as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian former professional road and track bicycle racer who is among the most successful riders in the history of competitive cycling. His victorie ...
,
Bernard Hinault Bernard Hinault (; born 14 November 1954) is a French former professional road cyclist. With 147 professional victories, including five times the Tour de France, he is often named among the greatest cyclists of all time. In his career, Hinault ...
, or
Miguel Induráin Miguel Induráin Larraya (; born 16 July 1964) is a retired Spanish road racing cyclist. Induráin won five Tours de France from 1991 Tour de France, 1991 to 1995 Tour de France, 1995, the fourth, and last, to win five times, and the only five- ...
. Many domestiques have ultimately gone on to achieve fame of their own, however.
Lucien Aimar Lucien Aimar (; born 28 April 1941) is a French cyclist, who won the Tour de France in 1966 and the national road championship in 1968. He is now a race organizer. He was born in Hyères, France. Amateur career Lucien Aimar came second in the T ...
, who supported
Jacques Anquetil Jacques Anquetil (; 8 January 1934 – 18 November 1987) was a French road racing cyclist and the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times, in 1957 and from 1961 to 1964. He stated before the 1961 Tour that he would gain the y ...
, won the 1966 Tour de France.
Greg LeMond Gregory James LeMond (born June 26, 1961) is an American former professional road racing cyclist, entrepreneur, and anti-doping advocate. A two-time winner of the Road Race World Championship (1983 and 1989) and a three-time winner of the Tou ...
won the 1986 Tour de France after being
Bernard Hinault Bernard Hinault (; born 14 November 1954) is a French former professional road cyclist. With 147 professional victories, including five times the Tour de France, he is often named among the greatest cyclists of all time. In his career, Hinault ...
's domestique in the
1985 Tour de France The 1985 Tour de France was the 72nd edition of the Tour de France, one of Cycle sport, cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It took place between 28 June and 21 July 1985. The course ran over and consisted of a individual time trial, p ...
, as did
Jan Ullrich Jan Ullrich (; born 2 December 1973) is a German former professional road bicycle racer. Ullrich won gold and silver medals in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, Sydney. He won the 1999 Vuelta a España and the HEW Cyclassics in fro ...
in
1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
after riding for
Bjarne Riis Bjarne Lykkegård Riis (; born 3 April 1964), nicknamed ''The Eagle from Herning'' ( da, Ørnen fra Herning), is a Danish former professional road bicycle racer who placed first in the 1996 Tour de France. For many years he was the owner and lat ...
in
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
, and
Chris Froome Christopher Clive Froome ɹɪs fɹuːm (born 20 May 1985) is a Kenyan/British Road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He has won seven Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours: four editions of the Tour de ...
in
2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
after riding for
Bradley Wiggins Sir Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE (born 28 April 1980) is a British former professional road and track racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2001 and 2016. He began his cycling career on the track, but later made the transition to r ...
in
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
. The writer Roger St Pierre said:


First domestiques

The first riders known to have been employed to help a leader were
Jean Dargassies Jean Dargaties, known as Jean Dargassies (born Grisolles, Tarn-et-Garonne, France, 15 July 1872, died Grisolles, 7 August 1965) was a French racing cyclist who rode the first Tour de France because the man who sold him a bike told him he ought ...
and Henri Gauban. They rode in the 1907 Tour de France for
Henri Pépin Henri Pépin (born France, 18 November 1864, died Bordeaux, 1914) was an affluent French racing cyclist who once hired two riders to escort him leisurely through the Tour de France, in which they ate at good restaurants and spent the night in ex ...
, who promised them the equivalent of first prize if they would pace him from restaurant to restaurant. The three never hurried. They took 12 hours and 20 minutes longer than
Émile Georget Émile Georget (21 September 1881 – 16 October 1960) was a French road racing cyclist. Born in Bossay-sur-Claise, he was the younger brother of cyclist Léon Georget. He died at Châtellerault. Career achievements Tour de France Georget ...
on the stage from
Roubaix Roubaix ( or ; nl, Robaais; vls, Roboais) is a city in northern France, located in the Lille metropolitan area on the Belgian border. It is a historically mono-industrial commune in the Nord department, which grew rapidly in the 19th century ...
to
Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand E ...
– they were far from last – and the judges were powerless because the race was decided not on time but points. It mattered less what speed riders competed than the order in which they crossed the line. In an era when riders could be separated by hours, there was no point in hurrying after a rival who could not be caught and passed. The judges had to wait for everyone. The rules of the Tour in its first decades forbade team riding, but Pépin did little to affect the result. He dropped out on stage five.


Terminology origin

The word was first used in cycling as an insult for
Maurice Brocco Maurice Brocco (28 January 1883, in Fismes – 26 June 1965, in Mûrs-Erigné) was a French professional road bicycle racer between 1906 and 1927. He was born into a family of Swiss-Italian immigrants. In 1911 he won a stage in the Tour de ...
, known as Coco,Chany, Pierre, (1988), ''La Fabuleuse Histoire du Tour de France'', La Martinière, France, p131 in 1911. Brocco started six Tours de France between 1908 and 1914, finished none of them, although a stage he won in 1911 caused the coining of ''domestique''. Brocco's chances in 1911 ended when he lost time on the day to
Chamonix Chamonix-Mont-Blanc ( frp, Chamôni), more commonly known as Chamonix, is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of southeastern France. It was the site of the first Winter Olympics in 1924. In 2019, it had ...
. Unable to win, the next day he offered his services to other riders, for which he had a reputation.
François Faber François Faber (; 26 January 1887 – 9 May 1915) was a Luxembourgian racing cyclist. He was born in France. He was the first foreigner to win the Tour de France in 1909, and his record of winning 5 consecutive stages still stands. He died in ...
was in danger of being eliminated for taking too long and the two came to a deal. Brocco waited for Faber and paced him to the finish.
Henri Desgrange Henri Desgrange (31 January 1865 – 16 August 1940) was a French bicycle racer and sports journalist. He set twelve world track cycling records, including the hour record of on 11 May 1893. He was the first organiser of the Tour de France. Yo ...
, the organiser and chief judge, wanted to disqualify him for breaking the rules. But he had no proof and feared Brocco would appeal to the national cycling body, the Union Vélocipédique Française. He limited himself to scorn in his newspaper, '' L'Auto'', writing: "He is unworthy. He is no more than a ''domestique''." Next morning Brocco greeted Desgrange with: "Today, ''monsieur'', we are going to settle our accounts." He won the day by 34 minutes. Desgrange followed him and the
yellow jersey The general classification is the most important classification, the one by which the winner of the Tour de France is determined. Since 1919, the leader of the general classification wears the yellow jersey (french: maillot jaune ). History Th ...
,
Gustave Garrigou Cyprien Gustave Garrigou (; 24 September 1884 – 23 January 1963) was one of the best professional racing cyclists of his era. He rode the Tour de France eight times and won once. Of 117 stages, he won eight, came in the top ten 96 times and ...
, as they climbed the
Tourmalet Col du Tourmalet (; elevation ) is one of the highest paved mountain passes in the French Pyrenees, in the department of Hautes-Pyrénées. Sainte-Marie-de-Campan is at the foot on the eastern side and the ski station La Mongie two-thirds of th ...
. "So, am I forbidden to ride with him?" Brocco shouted. On the following mountain, the Aubisque, he dropped Garrigou, passed
Paul Duboc Paul Duboc (2 April 1884 – 19 August 1941) was a French professional road bicycle racer from 1907 through 1927. Despite winning 5 career stages in the Tour de France, he may be most remembered for being disqualified at the 1919 Tour de Fran ...
, who had been poisoned and was in agony beside the road, and took the lead with
Émile Georget Émile Georget (21 September 1881 – 16 October 1960) was a French road racing cyclist. Born in Bossay-sur-Claise, he was the younger brother of cyclist Léon Georget. He died at Châtellerault. Career achievements Tour de France Georget ...
. Desgrange was still watching. "''Alors, quoi''", Brocco shouted, "do I have the right to stay with him?" And then he rode off alone and won. He had made two points to Desgrange. The first was that he was a talented rider and not a servant. The second was that he had so much talent that his poor riding with Faber could only have been through a commercial arrangement. Desgrange replied that any rider with such flair had clearly been selling the race. "He deserves his punishment", Desgrange wrote, "immediate disqualification." Domestiques had long been accepted in other races. Desgrange believed the Tour should be a race of individuals and fought repeatedly with the sponsors, bicycle factories, who saw it otherwise. Desgrange got rid of the factories' influence only by reorganising the Tour for national teams in 1930, with the effect that he thereby acknowledged teamwork and therefore domestiques.


Devoted domestiques

The dominant climber of the 1950s, Charly Gaul, was followed for as long as he could last by
Luxemburger Luxembourgers ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerger ) are a Germanic ethnic group and nation native to their nation state of Luxembourg, where they make up around half of the population. They share the culture of Luxembourg and speak Luxembourgish. Luxembour ...
Marcel Ernzer. The two men were of similar size and rode bikes of exactly the same dimensions, even though that made Ernzer a little low in the saddle. He was always there to give his bike to Gaul when it was needed.
Andrea Carrea Andrea Carrea (14 August 1924 – 13 January 2013) was an Italian professional road bicycle racer. He was the first to ride the Alpe d'Huez in the yellow jersey of leadership in the Tour de FranceL'Équipe, 13 July 2003 and probably the only ...
was a domestique for
Fausto Coppi Angelo Fausto Coppi (; 15 September 1919 – 2 January 1960) was an Italian cyclist, the dominant international cyclist of the years after the World War II, Second World War. His successes earned him the title ''Il Campionissimo'' ("Champio ...
. "He was a ''gregario'' par excellence", said the journalist Jean-Luc Gatellier, "the incarnation of personal disinterest ... showing to perfection the notion of personal sacrifice. He refused the slightest bit of personal glory." Carrea was riding the Tour de France of 1952 and joined an attack to
Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...
to protect his leader's interests.
Carrea said: "Without knowing it, I had slid into the important break of the day and at Lausanne, to my great surprise, I heard I had inherited a jersey destined for champions. For me, it was a terrible situation."
Carrea had no idea he had become race leader. When officials told him, he burst into tears. He had ousted Coppi and he dreaded the consequences. He wept as he received his jersey, looking constantly down the road for the main field that included his leader.
Jean-Paul Ollivier said: Carrea thought the sky had fallen in. How would Fausto take it? When the champion arrived a few minutes later, Carrea went towards him in tears to offer his excuses. "You must understand that I did not want this jersey, Fausto. I have no right to it. A poor man like me, the yellow jersey?"
Coppi said: "I wondered how Carrea, so shy and so emotional, was going to take it. When I went to congratulate him on the track at Lausanne, he didn't know what face he ought to adopt".''L'Équipe'', 13 July 2003
José Luis Arrieta was a domestique for
Miguel Indurain --> Miguel is a given name and surname, the Portuguese and Spanish form of the Hebrew name Michael. It may refer to: Places * Pedro Miguel, a parish in the municipality of Horta and the island of Faial in the Azores Islands * São Miguel (disam ...
. ''
L'Équipe ''L'Équipe'' (, French for "the team") is a French nationwide daily newspaper devoted to sport, owned by Éditions Philippe Amaury. The paper is noted for coverage of association football, rugby football, rugby, motorsport, and cycle sport, ...
'' said: "He no longer counts the hours, the years, spent with his nose in the wind trying to protect his leader for as long as possible".''L'Équipe'', 7 July 2007 Arrieta said:


Types of support


Basic support

Domestiques bring water and food from team cars and shield teammates from opponents. They help teammates with mechanical disasters – should the leader puncture a tire, the domestique will cycle in front to create a
slipstream A slipstream is a region behind a moving object in which a wake of fluid (typically air or mustard) is moving at velocities comparable to that of the moving fluid, relative to the ambient fluid through which the object is churning. The term sli ...
allowing him to reclaim their position. A domestique may also sacrifice his bicycle or wheel.


Tactical support

Domestiques race in the interest of the team, or against opposing teams. By putting themselves in a breakaway they force other teams to chase. In turn, they chase a breakaway that threatens their team. Domestiques lead out sprinters by letting them '
draft Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vesse ...
' behind to conserve energy until the last few hundred meters. The lead-out train sometimes starts 10–15 km to the finish with up to eight domestiques setting a pace to discourage others from breaking away. One by one, worn-out teammates drop off. The last to lead a sprinter is often a good sprinter himself. The sprinter will launch into a dash to the line with one or two hundred meters to go. In mountainous races, domestiques help their leaders by setting a pace or thwarting attacks from others.


Super-domestique

There is a hierarchy among domestiques; the more accomplished, often called lieutenants or super-domestiques, are called upon during critical times. The lieutenant stays with the leader as long as possible during demanding periods. For example,
Lance Armstrong Lance Edward Armstrong (''né'' Gunderson; born September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist. Regarded as a sports icon for winning the Tour de France seven consecutive times from 1999 Tour de ...
used teammates
Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Hernández (born 1 February 1974) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record four times. Between 1997 and 2005 he finished in the top 5 of the Vuelta every year except 1998 when he f ...
and
José Azevedo José Bento Azevedo Carvalho (born 19 September 1973) is a Portuguese retired road racing cyclist, and most recently, general manager of UCI WorldTeam . During his racing career, Azevedo rode for between 2001 and 2003 and for between 2004 an ...
as climbing domestiques to set pace during mountain stages of the
Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...
before making a decisive attack. Experienced super-domestiques often also have the role of captain, passing on tactical instructions to other riders and making tactical decisions when there is little or no contact with the coaching staff. Examples of traditional super-domestiques are
Andreas Klöden Andreas Klöden (born 22 June 1975) is a German former professional road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional between 1998 and 2013. His major achievements include a bronze medal at the 2000 Olympic Games and finishing second in the gen ...
with
Astana Pro Team Astana Qazaqstan Team () is a professional road bicycle racing team sponsored by the Samruk-Kazyna, a coalition of state-owned companies from Kazakhstan and named after its capital city Astana. Astana attained UCI ProTeam status in its inaugura ...
and
George Hincapie George Anthony Hincapie (born June 29, 1973) is an American former racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 1994 and 2012. Hincapie was a key domestique of Lance Armstrong. Hincapie was also a domestique for Alberto Contador in 2007 a ...
who was a key lieutenant of U.S. Postal Team. Hincapie was also a domestique for
Alberto Contador Alberto Contador Velasco (; born 6 December 1982) is a Spanish former professional cyclist. He is one of the most successful riders of his era, winning the Tour de France twice ( 2007, 2009), the Giro d'Italia twice (2008, 2015), and the Vue ...
in
2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...
and for
Cadel Evans Cadel Lee Evans (; born 14 February 1977) is an Australian former professional racing cyclist, who competed professionally in both mountain biking and road bicycle racing. A four-time Olympian, Evans is one of three non-Europeans – along wi ...
in
2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
, when both went on to win the Tour. Recent developments in the compositions of the rosters of leading teams have led to an increasing number of high-status riders fulfilling super-domestique duties, especially during the
Grand Tours In road bicycle racing, a Grand Tour is one of the three major European professional cycling stage races: Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and Vuelta a España. Collectively they are termed the ''Grand Tours'', and all three races are similar in ...
. This approach was largely originated by
Team Sky Ineos Grenadiers () (stylised as INEOS Grenadiers) (formerly Team Sky from 2010 to 2019, and Team Ineos from 2019 to 2020) is a British professional cycling team that competes at the UCI WorldTeam level. The team is based at the National Cycl ...
, beginning with their success at the
2012 Tour de France The 2012 Tour de France was the 99th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in the Belgian city of Liège on 30 June and finished on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 22 July. The Tour consisted of 21 stages, inc ...
, where
Chris Froome Christopher Clive Froome ɹɪs fɹuːm (born 20 May 1985) is a Kenyan/British Road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He has won seven Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours: four editions of the Tour de ...
finished second on the overall podium behind his teammate and compatriot
Bradley Wiggins Sir Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE (born 28 April 1980) is a British former professional road and track racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2001 and 2016. He began his cycling career on the track, but later made the transition to r ...
. This finish came after some tension between the two lead riders, in particular during Stage 17 of the race, where Froome was forced to wait for Wiggins – his defined team leader – three times on the climb to the summit finish at Peyragudes, allowing
Alejandro Valverde Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist, who last rode for UCI WorldTeam . Valverde's biggest wins have been the Vuelta a España in 2009, Critérium du Dauphiné in 2008 and 2009 ...
to win the stage, while both Wiggins and Froome cemented their overall general classifications standings. Following this, a number of teams have adopted fluid, or shared team leadership at the Tour de France and the other Grand Tours. The
2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
,
2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
, and
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
editions of the Tour de France all saw Sky – in 2019, changing sponsorship to become known as – successfully capture the yellow jersey, while a second rider from the team finished elsewhere within the top four: 2017 saw Froome win, with
Mikel Landa Mikel Landa Meana (born 13 December 1989) is a Spanish professional road cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . His career breakthrough came at the 2015 Giro d'Italia where he won two stages and finished third overall. Career Early career Lan ...
coming fourth; in 2018,
Geraint Thomas Geraint Howell Thomas, (; born 25 May 1986) is a Welsh professional racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam , Wales and Great Britain. He is one of the few riders in the modern era to achieve significant elite success as both a tra ...
won his first
Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...
, while Froome finished third; and in 2019,
Egan Bernal Egan Arley Bernal Gómez (born 13 January 1997) is a Colombian cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . In 2019 he won the Tour de France, becoming the first Latin American rider to do so, and the youngest winner since 1909. At the 2021 Giro d'Ita ...
, who had himself served as a super-domestique to Froome and Thomas the previous year, subsequently finished first himself, with Thomas finishing second. This top-heavy strategy has also been a feature of other teams in contention, with mixed results. The for the 2018 and 2019 Tour's saw the deployment of the so-called 'Trident' of
Mikel Landa Mikel Landa Meana (born 13 December 1989) is a Spanish professional road cyclist who rides for UCI WorldTeam . His career breakthrough came at the 2015 Giro d'Italia where he won two stages and finished third overall. Career Early career Lan ...
, who had moved from Sky for the 2018 season, alongside long-term Movistar leaders and general classification contenders
Nairo Quintana Nairo Alexánder Quintana Rojas, Order of Boyacá, ODB, (born 4 February 1990) is a Colombian racing cyclist, who rides for UCI ProSeries, UCI ProTeam . Nicknamed "Nairoman" and "El Cóndor de los Andes", Quintana is a specialist climber, known ...
and
Alejandro Valverde Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist, who last rode for UCI WorldTeam . Valverde's biggest wins have been the Vuelta a España in 2009, Critérium du Dauphiné in 2008 and 2009 ...
. This tactic was largely unsuccessful for Movistar, who experienced difficulties in coordinating their three leaders, none of whom appeared willing to sacrifice their own ambitions to serve as super-domestiques for one of the other two. Comparatively, a more successful and more hierarchical example of the super-domestique system featured at the
2020 Tour de France The 2020 Tour de France was the 107th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. Originally scheduled to start on 27 June 2020, it was postponed until 29 August 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in F ...
through having entered the Tour with shared leadership between
Tom Dumoulin Tom Dumoulin (; born 11 November 1990) is a retired Dutch professional road bicycle racer who last rode for UCI WorldTeam . He has won nine stages across the three Grand Tours, five medals in three different World Championships and two Olympic s ...
and Primoz Roglic – both of whom were previous Grand Tour winners, alongside high finishes at the Tour de France itself – Dumoulin recognised that he would be unable to maintain his own general classification campaign, and voluntarily assumed a super-domestique role to Roglic. This allowed Jumbo-Visma to operate with similar tactics to those used by Sky/INEOS in previous years, by setting a higher pace throughout difficult climbs, buoyed by the fact that Dumoulin and other Jumbo-Visma support riders such as
Sepp Kuss Sepp Kuss (born September 13, 1994) is an American professional cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Career Kuss started out in mountain bike racing as a junior and as a student at the University of Colorado won two races at the Colle ...
would remain present in breakaways and leaders' groups to protect Roglic, while the weaker support riders surrounding other contenders would be whittled away. However, their defensive tactics had the unforeseen consequence of Jumbo-Visma helping eventual winner and rival
Tadej Pogačar Tadej Pogačar (; born 21 September 1998) is a Slovenian cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He won the 2020 and 2021 editions of the Tour de France, winning three different jerseys during each Tour, a feat unseen in nearly four deca ...
of
UAE Team Emirates UAE Team Emirates () is an Emirati road bicycle racing team. The team competes at UCI WorldTeam level and has done so since the UCI World Tour was formed as the top category of road cycling in 2005. However the team was temporarily suspended fro ...
. Nonetheless, the traditional domestique role remains an important one, and a 2020 poll of riders in the professional peloton by
cyclingnews.com Cyclingnews.com is a website providing cycling news and race result owned by Future. History In 1995 Australian Bill Mitchell, a keen cyclist and professor of economics at the University of Newcastle, created the website titled "Bill’s Cycli ...
named
Tim Declercq Tim Declercq (born 21 March 1989 in Leuven) is a Belgian cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . His brother Benjamin is also a professional cyclist. Declerq is known to be a powerful rider who generally acts as a domestique. He earned ...
as the best domestique in the world, followed by
Luke Rowe Luke Rowe (born 10 March 1990) is a Welsh racing cyclist, who rides for UCI WorldTeam . Biography Born in Cardiff, Rowe began racing at a young age, initially riding with his parents on a tandem. He began to enjoy cycling and became a member o ...
,
Michael Mørkøv Michael Mørkøv Christensen (; born 30 April 1985) is a Danish professional racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He is the brother of racing cyclists Jacob and Jesper Mørkøv. Career Born in Kokkedal, Mørkøv started as a t ...
,
Andrey Amador Andrey Amador Bikkazakova (born 29 August 1986) is a Costa Rican professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Career Amador is the son of Rodolfo Amador, a Costa Rican and Raisa Bikkazakova, a Russian immigrant who ...
,
Imanol Erviti Imanol Erviti Ollo (born 15 November 1983) is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Career Born in Pamplona, Navarre, Erviti was selected to ride the 2012 Tour de France, but crashed on a large pile-u ...
,
Michael Schär Michael Schär (born 29 September 1986) is a Swiss professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Born in Geuensee, Schär has competed in thirteen Grand Tours during his career, and was the winner of the Swiss Nation ...
and Iljo Keisse.


Individual glory

Domestiques sometimes get a chance to win stages in stage racing. Typically this would be late in a stage race. Domestiques whose standings do not threaten the leaders will often not be chased if they break away. Domestiques can progress to more senior roles if they show ability. For example, at the 2012 Tour de France
Tejay van Garderen Tejay van Garderen (born August 12, 1988) is an American former professional road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2008 and 2021 for the , , and . Following his retirement as a cyclist, van Garderen became a directeur sportif for ...
of
BMC Racing Team CCC Pro Team () was a UCI WorldTeam co-owned and managed by American cyclist Jim Ochowicz, who founded the 7-Eleven Cycling Team. After its last title sponsor, CCC, a Polish shoe retailer, pulled out due to financial difficulties resulting from t ...
began the tour as a domestique for 2011 winner
Cadel Evans Cadel Lee Evans (; born 14 February 1977) is an Australian former professional racing cyclist, who competed professionally in both mountain biking and road bicycle racing. A four-time Olympian, Evans is one of three non-Europeans – along wi ...
but later became team leader due to Evans struggling and eventually won the young rider classification.
Chris Froome Christopher Clive Froome ɹɪs fɹuːm (born 20 May 1985) is a Kenyan/British Road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He has won seven Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours: four editions of the Tour de ...
of
Team Sky Ineos Grenadiers () (stylised as INEOS Grenadiers) (formerly Team Sky from 2010 to 2019, and Team Ineos from 2019 to 2020) is a British professional cycling team that competes at the UCI WorldTeam level. The team is based at the National Cycl ...
also won a stage while riding in support of winner
Bradley Wiggins Sir Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE (born 28 April 1980) is a British former professional road and track racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2001 and 2016. He began his cycling career on the track, but later made the transition to r ...
, and became team leader the following year, where he eventually won the general classification. Assigned team roles vary substantially from race to race based on a variety of factors, including the course, the team members riding the race, their current physical condition, or even commercial factors. For instance,
Stuart O'Grady Stuart O'Grady (born 6 August 1973) is a retired Australian professional road bicycle racer, who rode as a professional between 1995 and 2013. A former track cyclist, O'Grady and Graeme Brown won a gold medal in the Men's Madison at the 2004 ...
, a veteran professional rider riding for Leopard-Trek, served as a domestique supporting
Carlos Sastre Carlos Sastre Candil (; born 22 April 1975) is a former Spanish professional road bicycle racer and winner of the 2008 Tour de France. He consistently achieved outstanding results in the Vuelta a España and in the Tour de France. Sastre establi ...
in the 2008 Tour de France. By contrast, in the 2008
Herald Sun Tour The Herald Sun Tour is an Australian professional bicycle race held in Melbourne and provincial Victoria, sanctioned by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). The first tour was held in October 1952 as a six-day event. It is now held annually ...
, a much less-prominent race in which Sastre (and other high-profile members of the team) did not ride, the Australian O'Grady acted as team leader and was assisted by his teammates to win two stages and the general classification.


Evolution of the domestique

The UCI points system changed the relationship between domestiques and leaders. Previously, domestiques were not concerned with their finishing order. However, riders now get points for their finish position. This presses domestiques to also consider their own performance in addition to their leader's. The 1990s saw the introduction of radio communication, allowing managers to assign tasks to domestiques wherever they are on the road. The influence of radios on race tactics is a topic of discussion amongst the cycling community, with some arguing that the introduction of radios in the 1990s has devalued the tactical knowledge of individual riders and has led to less exciting racing. In September 2009, the
Union Cycliste Internationale The ''Union Cycliste Internationale'' (UCI; ; en, International Cycling Union) is the world governing body for sports cycling and oversees international competitive cycling events. The UCI is based in Aigle, Switzerland. The UCI issues racing ...
(UCI), the governing body of pro cycling, voted to phase in a ban on the use of team radios in men's elite road racing. Finally radio found its undisputed place in peloton for good and, as some races with imposed radio ban proved, the ban changed nothing in racing tactics.


In track cycling

In track cycling's
team pursuit The team pursuit is a track cycling event similar to the individual pursuit, except that two teams, each of up to four riders, compete, starting on opposite sides of the velodrome. Race format Both men's and women's events are competed over ...
event, a team of four riders must complete 4 km, with the third rider being used to stop the clock. Therefore, one rider often sprints towards the finish line to tow the teammates.


See also

*
Outline of cycling :''This article is an outline about the activity of cycling. For an outline about bicycles themselves, see outline of bicycles.'' :The following ''outline'' is provided as an overview of, as well as a topical guide to cycling: Cycling, al ...


Notes


References


External links


''BBC Sport'' portrait of domestique Sean Yates.
at the
Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...
.
''Roanoke Times'' column on the team roles in cycling.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cycling Domestique
Domestique In road bicycle racing, a domestique is a rider who works for the benefit of their team and leader, rather than trying to win the race. In French, ''domestique'' translates as "servant".However, in French, the term used is ''équipier''. In I ...