Charles Terront (9 April 1857 – 31 October 1932) was the first major French cycling star. He won sprint, middle distance and endurance events in Europe and the United States. In September 1891 he won the first

Paris–Brest–Paris Paris–Brest–Paris (PBP) is a long-distance cycling event. It was originally a 1,200 km () bicycle race from Paris to Brest and back to Paris in 1891. The last time it was run as a race was 1951. The most recent edition of PBP was held on 18� ...

cycle race, which at was more than double the length of any previous event. He rode a Humber bicycle fitted with prototype removable pneumatic tyres made by

Michelin Michelin (; ; full name: ) is a French multinational tyre manufacturing company based in Clermont-Ferrand in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes ''région'' of France. It is the second largest tyre manufacturer in the world behind Bridgestone and la ...

. He won 54 major events over his 15-year career, was 'Champion of France' twice and 'Champion of Great Britain' twice.

Early life and career

Terront was born in Saint-Ouen, Seine-Saint-Denis. He took up cycle racing in 1876 along with his brother Jules. Charles excelled at both endurance and speed events, and also won many events on a tandem with Jules. He won 54 major solo events over his 15-year career, including being Champion of France twice and Champion of Great Britain twice. In 1879 he covered in 24 hours.Cicloweb Italia
/ref> On 27 September 1893 he left Saint Petersburg in Russia to cycle across Poland and Germany, arriving at the Vélodrome Buffalo in Paris after 14 days and 7 hours. In 1894 he completed a ride from Rome, Italy, to Paris.

Paris–Brest–Paris cycle race

Pierre Giffard of '' Le Petit Journal'' created the '' Paris-Brest et retour'' cycle race in September 1891, describing it as an "épreuve", a test of the bicycle's reliability and the rider's endurance. Riders were fully self-sufficient, carrying their own food and clothing, and riding the same bicycle for the duration. The response was so phenomenal that riders were charged 5 francs to enter, and 300 riders signed up. Each bicycle was given an 'official seal' at a 2-day ceremony; the 280 sealed machines included 10 tricycles, 2 Tandem bicycles, and 1

Penny-farthing The penny-farthing, also known as a high wheel, high wheeler or ordinary, is an early type of bicycle. It was popular in the 1870s and 1880s, with its large front wheel providing high speeds (owing to its travelling a large distance for every r ...

. Participation was restricted to French men (7 women were refused entrance), and 99 of the 207 (or 280) participants finished. Charles Terront won the event, covering the in 71 hours 22 minutes, riding a Humber bicycle from the Beeston works in England. The bicycle weighed 21.5 kilograms and was equipped with

's prototype pneumatic tyres (which were patented in 1891), front brake, curved handlebars, and a chain guard. He passed his main rival Jiel-Laval from Adolphe Clément's Dunlop Clément team, after his manager, H.O. Duncan, advised him to take a detour around the town where his rival was sleeping during the third night. Both had suffered punctures in their pneumatic tyres, but still enjoyed an advantage over riders on solid tires. Terront's arrival in Paris was watched by a crowd of 10,000 people, many of whom had waited throughout the night.

Honours

On account of Terront's fame, he was the first athlete to have his memoirs published during his lifetime. In 1893, he explained his life, races, and training methods to French journalist Louis Baudry de Saunier. Also in 1893 ''En suivant Terront'' by Herbert Duncan and Pierre Lafitte used 100 drawings to track his ride to Paris from Saint Petersburg. A plaque in Brest commemorates his 1891 victory in the Paris–Brest–Paris. The Rue Charles Terront in Nantes is named in his honour.

Major results by year

;1876 :1st - Paris- Pontoise-Paris :1st - Adamville :1st - Neuilly sur Seine :1st - Créteil :1st -

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

:1st - Parc de Saint-Maur :1st - Saint-Germain :1st - Angers ;1877 :1st - Montauban :1st - Angers :1st - Saint-Ouen :1st - La Garenne-

Colombes Colombes () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. In 2019, Colombes was the 53rd largest city in France. Name The name Colombes comes from Latin ''columna'' (Old French ''colombe'') ...

:1st - Charenton-le-Pont :1st - Saint-Denis :1st - ex-aequeo de Paris- Conflans-Sainte-Honorine ;1878 :1st -

Boulogne Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. Boulogne lies on the ...

- Versailles :1st -

Argenteuil Argenteuil () is a Communes of France, commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Argenteuil is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Val-d'Oise Departments of France, ...

:1st - Adamville :1st - Maison-Blanche :1st -

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:1st - Saint-Denis :1st - Carrousel (Paris) :1st - Pré Catalan :1st -

Courbevoie Courbevoie () is a commune located in the Hauts-de-Seine Department of the Île-de-France region of France. It is in the suburbs of the city of Paris, from the center of Paris. The centre of Courbevoie is situated from the city limits of Par ...

:1st - Versailles :1st - Point du Jour :1st - La Garenne-Colombes :1st - Fougères ;1879 :1st - Angers-

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-Angers :1st - Angers :1st - Versailles :1st - Chaville :1st -

Boulogne-Billancourt Boulogne-Billancourt (; often colloquially called simply Boulogne, until 1924 Boulogne-sur-Seine, ) is a wealthy and prestigious Communes of France, commune in the Parisian area, located from its Kilometre zero, centre. It is a Subprefectures in ...

-Versailles-Boulogne Billancourt :1st - Carrousel (Paris) :1st - 6 days of Boston :1st - 6 days of Chicago ;1880 :1st - 6 days of London :1st - 6 days of Edinburgh :1st - 6 days of Kingston upon Hull :1st - Fougères :1st - Saint Denis :1st - Paris ;1881 :1st - Tours :1st - Paramé ;1882 :1st - Agen :1st - 6 hours of Angers :3rd Speed Championships of France ;1883 :1st - Fougères :2nd - Speed Championships of France ;1884 :1st - Fougères ;1885 :3rd - Speed Championships of France ;1886 :2nd - Speed Championships of France :3rd Middle distance Championships of France ;1887 :1st - 100 mile Championship of Great Britain :Rennes :2nd Middle distance Championships of France ;1888 :1st - Middle distance Championships of France :1st - 10 mile Championship of Great Britain ;1889 :1st - Middle distance Championships of France ;1891 :1st -

References

Bibliography

* Duncan, Herbert Osbaldo & Lafitte, Pierre, ''En suivant Terront de St-Petersbourg à Paris'', 1894 * Terront, Charles, ''Les mémoires de Terront: sa vie, ses performances, son mode d'entraînement'' (Collection Les Introuvables), 1980

External links

Gallica - National library of France, Image of Charles Terront from 1922 riding his 1869 Michaud velocipede at the velodrome.Palmarès of Charles Terront at Mémoire du cyclisme
{{DEFAULTSORT:Terront, Charles 1857 births 1932 deaths People from Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine French male cyclists Ultra-distance cyclists Cycling writers Sportspeople from Seine-Saint-Denis Cyclists from Île-de-France