Richard Virenque

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Richard Virenque bigraphy, stories - French racing cyclist

Richard Virenque : biography

19 November 1969 –

Richard VirenqueRichard Virenque’s name is pronounced Ree-shah Vee-rahnk. Virenque considers himself a man of the South but pronounces his name in standard French. Confusion is caused by the southern habit of pronouncing "en" as "ang" or "eng", making it Vee-rank. But Virenque says Vee-rahnk or Vee-ronk, a sound difficult to write in English. (born November 19, 1969) is a doping user and a retired French professional road racing cyclist. He was one of the most popular French riders with fans e for his boyish personality and his long, lone attacks.Virenque’s fan club in 2000, two years after the Festina scandal had 5,000 members, of whom 2,000 were described as active. In 2000, Virenque received 589 letters in three weeks during the Tour de France, more than any other rider. He was a climber, winning the King of the Mountains competition of the Tour de France a record seven times. He is best remembered as the central figure in a widespread doping scandal in 1998, and his being regularly displayed as a moronic rubber puppet with hypodermics in his head on the satirical television programme, Les Guignols de l’info.

Virenque finished twice on the podium in the Tour de France (third in 1996 and second in 1997) and won several stages, among them Mont Ventoux in 2002. He is the 18th rider in the Tour to have won stages over 10 years apart. The other riders who have won stages over 10 years apart were Jean Alavoine, Henri Pélissier, Philippe Thys, Louis Mottiat, André Leducq, Antonin Magne, René Vietto, Gino Bartali, André Darrigade, Jean Stablinski, Raymond Poulidor, Felice Gimondi, Gerben Karstens, Ferdinand Bracke, Joaquim Agostinho, Lucien Van Impe and Lance Armstrong. The 19th to have done it is Cédric Vasseur.

Palmarès

  • 25px Seven polkadot jerseys in the Tour de France: 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2004
  • Seven mountain wins: 1994 Luz Ardiden; 1995 Cauterets; 1997 Courchevel; 2000, Morzine; 2002 Mont Ventoux; 2003, Morzine; 2004, Saint-Flour
  • Paris–Tours 2001
  • Trophée des grimpeurs: 1994
  • Tour du Piémont: 1996
  • Grand Prix La Marseillaise: 1997
  • Bol d’or des Monedières 1992
  • Circuit de l’Aulne 1994
  • Critérium de Castillon-la-Bataille 1995, 1997, 2002, 2004
  • Stage win, Tour du Limousin en 1993
  • Stage win, Giro d’Italia 1999
  • 4 stages, Critérium du Dauphiné libéré: 1995 (2), 1996 (1), 1998 (1)
  • Stage win, Route du Sud 1994
  • Critérium de Vayrac: 1996, 1997
  • 2nd national road championship 2003; 3rd 1998
  • 3rd world road championship 1994

Childhood

Virenque, his parents, his brother Lionel and sister Nathalie lived in the Iseba district of Casablanca. The family was affluent, employing both a gardener and a nurse.L’Équipe Magazine, 13 October 2001 His mother described Richard as a gentle, kind boy, full of life, who enjoyed helping her in the garden. His idol was Michael Jackson.L’Équipe Magazine, France, 5 June 2004 His father, Jacques, ran a tire company. As a child, Virenque began cycling by riding round the garden of the family’s house. "It wasn’t much of a bike," he said. "It had no mudguards, no brakes, and I had to scrape my foot along the ground to stop."Vélo, France, November 2003 Virenque often skipped school to fish on the beach.Procycling, UK, November 2001 He told a court during the Festina doping inquiry (see below): The family moved to La Londe-les-Maures, near the Côte d’Azur, in 1979 when he was nine. There his father failed to find the same sort of job and relations between his parents suffered. Jacques and Bérangère VirenqueVirenque’s mother, Bérangère, was born in the Alpes-Maritimes region of France, the daughter of a public works entrepreneur. She moved to Morocco when she was young and spent her childhood there. She gained qualifications as a hairdresser and beautician but never worked, at the request of her father and of her husband. divorced soon afterwards and Virenque said he was devastated.