Ferdinand Kübler (; 24 July 1919 – 29 December 2016) was a Swiss cyclist with 71 professional victories, including the

1950 Tour de France The 1950 Tour de France was the 37th edition of the Tour de France, taking place from 13 July to 7 August. It consisted of 22 stages over . Gino Bartali, captain of the Italian team, threatened and assaulted on the Col d'Aspin by some French sup ...

and the 1951 World Road Race Championship.

Biography

Kübler was born in Marthalen. He began racing professionally in 1940 but his early career was limited to Switzerland by the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

occupation elsewhere. He was multiple Swiss national champion and a three time winner of the

Tour de Suisse The Tour de Suisse () is an annual road cycling stage race. Raced over eight days, the event covers two weekends in June, and along with the Critérium du Dauphiné, it is considered a proving ground for the Tour de France, which is on the calend ...

. Kübler's most successful years in international racing were 1950–1952, when the classics had resumed after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He won the

La Flèche Wallonne La Flèche Wallonne (, French for "The Walloon Arrow") is a men's professional cycle road race held in April each year in Wallonia, Belgium. It is part of the UCI World Tour. The first of two Belgian Ardennes classics, La Flèche Wallonne is ...

and

Liège–Bastogne–Liège Liège–Bastogne–Liège , also known as ''La Doyenne'' ("The Old Lady"), is a one-day classic cycling race in Belgium.Cycling Weekly, UK, 13 March 1993 First run in 1892, it is the oldest of the five ''Cycling monument, Monuments'' of the Eur ...

, both in 1951 and 1952, in a time where these races were still contested in the same weekend. He was also World Road Race Champion in 1951, having placed second in 1949 and third in 1950. Kübler rode the

Giro d'Italia The Giro d'Italia (; ), also known simply as the Giro, is an annual stage race, multiple-stage bicycle racing, bicycle race primarily held in Italy, while also starting in, or passing through, other countries. The first race was organized in 19 ...

from 1950–1952, placing fourth once, and third twice. Kübler abandoned the 1947 and 1949 Tours de France, despite an early

stage Stage, stages, or staging may refer to: Arts and media Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly Brit ...

win in each. In the 1950 Tour, he benefited from the absence of

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 ...

, sidelined after a crash in the Giro. Overcoming

Gino Bartali Gino Bartali, (; 18 July 1914 – 5 May 2000), nicknamed Gino the Pious and (in Italy) Ginettaccio, was a champion road cyclist. He was the most renowned Italian cyclist before the Second World War, having won the Giro d'Italia twice, in ...

, Kübler became champion by over nine minutes, also winning three stages. In the 1954 Tour, Kübler won the points jersey and came second behind

Louison Bobet Louis "Louison" Bobet (; 12 March 1925 – 13 March 1983) was a French professional road racing cyclist. He was the first great French rider of the post-war period and the first rider to win the Tour de France in three successive years, from 195 ...

. Kübler was the first Swiss winner of the Tour de France. His biggest rival,

Hugo Koblet Hugo Koblet (; 21 March 1925 – 6 November 1964) was a Switzerland, Swiss champion cycle sport, cyclist. He won the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia as well as competing in six-day and pursuit races on the track. He won 70 races as a profe ...

, won the following year and as of 2021 they are the only riders from Switzerland to win the Tour. Kübler was a high-spirited and impulsive rider sometimes given to strategically unwise attacks, out of exuberance and competitive drive. He was known as "the cowboy" because of his penchant for

Stetson Stetson is an American brand of hat manufactured by the John B. Stetson Company. "Stetson" is also used as a generic trademark to refer to any campaign hat, particularly in Scouting. John B. Stetson gained inspiration for his most famous ...

hats. He retired from racing in 1957 at 38. Kübler died in Zurich on 29 December 2016 at the age of 97. Prior to his death he was the oldest living Tour de France winner.

Career achievements

Major results

Source: ;1940 : national pursuit champion ;1941 : national pursuit champion : national mountain champion ;1942 : national mountain champion :

;1943 : national pursuit champion ;1945 : national cyclo-cross champion ;1947 :

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

: ::Winner stages 1 and 5 ::Wearing

yellow jersey The general classification of the Tour de France is the most important classification of the race and determines the winner of the race. Since 1919, the leader of the general classification has worn the yellow jersey ( ). History For the first t ...

for one day :Paris-Lille ;1948 : national road race champion :

Tour de Romandie The Tour de Romandie is a stage race which is part of the UCI World Tour. It runs through the Romandie region, or French-speaking part of Switzerland. The competition began in 1947, to coincide with the 50-year anniversary of Swiss Cycling. It ...

;1949 :

: ::Winner stage 5 : national road race champion ;1950 :Challenge Desgrande-Colombo :Trophée Edmond Gentil : national road race champion :

: ::

:Winner overall classification ::Winner stages 6, 10 and 20 ;1951 : national road race champion :World road champion :

Flèche Wallonne Flèche or Fleche may refer to: *Flèche (architecture), a type of church spire * Flèche (cycling), a team cycling competition *Flèche (fencing) The flèche is an aggressive attacking technique in fencing, used with foil and épée. Backgr ...

:Week-end Ardennais :

:Rome-Naples-Rome ;1952 :Challenge Desgrande-Colombo :

:Week-end Ardennais ;1953 :

Bordeaux–Paris The Bordeaux–Paris professional road bicycle racing, cycle race was one of Europe's classic cycle races, and one of the longest in the professional calendar, covering approximately – more than twice most single-day races. It started in north ...

;1954 : national road race champion :Challenge Desgrande-Colombo :

: ::2nd place overall classification ::Winner stages 5 and 14 :: Jersey green

Winner points classification ;1956 :Milan-Turin

Grand Tour results timeline

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kubler, Ferdi Swiss male cyclists Tour de France winners UCI Road World Champions (elite men) 1919 births 2016 deaths People from Andelfingen District Tour de Suisse stage winners Challenge Desgrange-Colombo winners Cyclists from the canton of Zürich 20th-century Swiss sportsmen