Honoré Barthélémy (25 September 1891 – 12 May 1964) was a French

road bicycle racer Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most common ...

who took part and finished fifth overall and won four stages in the

1919 Tour de France The 1919 Tour de France was the 13th edition of the Tour de France, taking place from 29 June to 27 July over a total distance of . It was the first Tour de France after World War I, and was won by Firmin Lambot. Following the tenth stage, the y ...

. He was born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, France. In 1920, says the ''Yellow Jersey Guide to the Tour de France'', he crashed on the stage to

Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...

and only slowly got back on his bike, dazed and bloody. He could not bend his back and had to turn his handlebars upside down to be able to continue. As his dizziness lessened, he realised that what he thought was concussion was blindness. A flint had gone into an eye. Despite that, he finished not only that day but the Tour, coming eighth despite half-blindness, a broken shoulder and a dislocated wrist. He was carried in triumph at the finish. Nor did he stop racing when he was fitted with a glass eye. Dusty roads made it uncomfortable and he often took it out. The socket would then become infected and he would plug it with cotton. "It makes no difference to my sight but it's more comfortable," he said. The glass eye often fell out and in 1924 he had to get down on his knees on the finish line to see where it had gone. He grumbled that he spent more on replacement eyes than he earned in prizes. At the

1921 Tour de France The 1921 Tour de France was the 15th edition of the Tour de France, taking place 26 June to 24 July. The total distance was and the average speed of the riders was 24.720 km/h. The race was won by Belgian Leon Scieur. The Belgians dominate ...

, he finished third overall and won stage 12. He last rode the Tour de France in 1927, abandoning on stage 9. He twice won the marathon

Bol d'Or The Bol d’Or is a 24-hour endurance race for motorcycles, held annually in France. The riding of each bike is now shared by a team of three riders. History The Bol d’Or, first organized by Eugene Mauve, in 1922, was a race for motorcycles ...

track race in 1925 and 1927.

Major results

;1919 : 3rd,

Paris–Roubaix Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the 'Monuments' or classics of the ...

: 5th, Overall,

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 ...

:: 1st, Stage 6 :: 1st, Stage 9 :: 1st, Stage 10 :: 1st, Stage 11 ;1920 : 2nd,

Paris–Tours Paris–Tours is a French one-day classic road cycling race held every October from the outskirts of Paris to the cathedral city of Tours. It is a predominantly flat course through the Chevreuse and Loire valleys; the highest point is 200 m, ...

: 8th, Overall,

;1921 : 1st Paris-St Etienne : 1st, Stage 2 : 3rd, Overall,

:: 1st, Stage 12 ;1924 : 2 stage wins

Tour du Sud-Est The Tour du Sud-Est was a professional cycle race held as a stage race in France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories ...

;1925 : 1st

;1927 : 1st

External links

Barthélémy at memoire-du-cyclisme.net
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barthelemy, Honore French male cyclists 1891 births 1964 deaths French Tour de France stage winners Cyclists from Paris