2024 - Tour de France 2022: these riders who lost their lives in the race

Friday July 1 started the 109th edition of the Tour de France. On this occasion, a look back at the tragedies that marked the Great Loop.

Every summer, to the delight of fans, the Tour de France gets back in the saddle. Major event in the world of sport, it is the most followed in the world after the World Cup and the Olympic Games and attracts thousands of roadside spectators every year. Theater of moments rich in emotions, the Tour de France can also be ruthless. Since its creation in 1903, the event has seen many accidents, including three fatalities among the runners.

Tour de France 1935: death of Francisco Cepeda

The Spaniard Francisco Cepeda was the first victim of the Tour de France, on July 11, 1935. While descending the summit of Galibier, during the 7th stage of the Tour, the 29-year-old rider lost control of his bike. Put back in the saddle by a few spectators, it collapses a few meters further before being taken to hospital. Cranial trauma and multiple fractures… The toll is heavy for the injured man who finally died of his injuries three days later.

Tour de France 1967: death of Tom Simpson

The second fatal accident – tragically filmed live by ORTF cameras – occurred in 1967. British Tom Simpson, 29, was then in 7th place overall. Suffering from acute gastroenteritis for two days, he hardly eats and the thermometer indicates more than 50 degrees. Difficult conditions which are added to the explosive cocktail ingested by the runner who, we will quickly discover, has mixed alcohol and doping products used to delay fatigue. During the ascent of Mont Ventoux, Tom Simpson collapses, before pronouncing in a last breath according to the legend “Put me back on my bike“. He then climbed back on the saddle and began to pedal for a few meters before collapsing definitively. After an hour of cardiac massage, he was evacuated to the nearest hospital and died in the helicopter.

Tour de France 1995: death of Fabio Casartelli

In 1995, the Italian Fabio Casartelli lost his life during the 15th stage of the Tour, in the descent of the Col de Portet-d’Aspet. Due to the heat, the 24-year-old runner was not wearing a helmet that day – not yet made compulsory by the federation – and during a serious fall, his head hit a concrete stud which bordered the road. Fabio Casartelli is transported to hospital in Tarbes and dies a few moments later.

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Francisco Cepeda
1935

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Tom Simpson
1967

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Fabio Casartelli
1995

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Tour de France 2022
2nd stage of the 109th edition of the Tour de France between Roskilde and Nyborg in Denmark on July 2, 2022 – The peloton at The Great Belt Bridge during the second stage of Tour de France between Roskilde and Nyborg, Denmark on July 2, 2022. (Photo: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix)

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Tour de France 2022
2nd stage of the 109th edition of the Tour de France between Roskilde and Nyborg in Denmark on July 2, 2022 – The peloton at the Great Belt Bridge during the second stage of Tour de France between Roskilde and Nyborg, Denmark on July 2, 2022. (Photo: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix)

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Tour de France 2022
Dutchman D.Groenewegen (Bikeexchange-Jayco) wins the 3rd stage of the Tour de France and Belgian W.van Aert retains the yellow jersey in Sonderborg, after a 182 kilometer race, the last in Denmark before returning to France. July 3, 2022.
© Photo News / Panoramic / Bestimage

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Tour de France 2022
Van Aert Wout (BEL) – Dutchman D.Groenewegen (Bikeexchange-Jayco) wins the 3rd stage of the Tour de France and Belgian W.van Aert retains the yellow jersey in Sonderborg, after a 182 kilometer race, the last in Denmark before returning to France. July 3, 2022.
© Photo News / Panoramic / Bestimage

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Tour de France 2022
Benoot Tiesj (BEL) – Dutchman D.Groenewegen (Bikeexchange-Jayco) wins the 3rd stage of the Tour de France and Belgian W.van Aert retains the yellow jersey in Sonderborg, after a 182 kilometer race, the last in Denmark before returning to France. July 3, 2022.
© Photo News / Panoramic / Bestimage

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Tour de France 2022
Groenewegen Dylan (NED) – Dutchman D.Groenewegen (Bikeexchange-Jayco) wins the 3rd stage of the Tour de France and Belgian W.van Aert retains the yellow jersey in Sonderborg, after a 182 kilometer race, the last in Denmark before returning to France. July 3, 2022.
© Photo News / Panoramic / Bestimage