Christophe Moreau facts for kids
Moreau at the 2013 Tour de Romandie
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Christophe Moreau | ||
| Nickname | Le chien (French - "The Dog") | ||
| Born | 12 April 1971 Vervins, France |
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| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Weight | 71 kg (157 lb; 11 st 3 lb) | ||
| Team information | |||
| Current team | Retired | ||
| Discipline | Road | ||
| Role | Rider | ||
| Rider type | All-rounder | ||
| Major wins | |||
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Christophe Moreau (born 12 April 1971) is a French former professional road racing cyclist. He was known for being one of France's top riders in the Tour de France. He often finished among the best riders overall. He was also the best French rider in the Tour de France several times. Christophe Moreau won the Critérium du Dauphiné race twice, in 2001 and 2007.
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Starting His Professional Career
Christophe Moreau became a professional cyclist in 1995. He started his career as a time trialist, which means he was very good at racing against the clock alone. This skill helped him win the first part of the Tour de l'Avenir race. In 1997, he finished 19th overall in the Tour de France.
A Difficult Time
In 1998, Christophe Moreau won a time trial and the overall race at the Critérium International. Later that year, during the 1998 Tour de France, his team, Festina, faced a big problem. Some team members were found to have broken rules about what substances cyclists could use. Christophe Moreau was part of this situation and was asked to leave the race. After this, he was not allowed to race for six months. He later said that this experience made him stronger and changed his life.
Returning to Racing
After his break from racing, Christophe Moreau returned to the 1999 Tour de France. He showed his strength by finishing third in a time trial stage.
In the 2000 Tour de France, Moreau had his best result ever, finishing fourth overall. This showed he was a very good climber. He was also the highest-placed French rider in the Tour that year. This made many people hope he could win the Tour de France someday. He continued to be the best French rider in the Tour in 2003, 2004, and 2005.
In 2001, while still with the Festina team, Moreau won the important Critérium du Dauphiné race. He took the lead on the fifth stage and held onto it until the end. A few weeks later, he won the first stage of the 2001 Tour de France. This meant he got to wear the famous yellow jersey as the race leader. He later left the Tour on stage 12. After Festina stopped sponsoring a cycling team, Moreau joined the Crédit Agricole team.
Time at Crédit Agricole
In 2002, Christophe Moreau had a tough start to the season. He crashed and broke his collarbone. He still managed to finish third overall in the Dauphiné Libéré. In the 2002 Tour de France, he crashed again and had to leave the race.
In 2003, Moreau won the Four Days of Dunkirk race. He then finished 8th in the 2003 Tour de France. The next year, 2004, he injured his knee, which delayed his return to racing. But he still won the Trophée des Grimpeurs and the Tour du Languedoc Roussillon stage race. He was the best French rider in the 2004 Tour de France, finishing 12th. In the 2005 Tour de France, he almost wore the yellow jersey in the Alps but ended up in 11th place. After this, he left Crédit Agricole and joined AG2R Prévoyance.
Later Career
In 2006, Christophe Moreau was expected to help his new teammate, Francisco Mancebo, at the 2006 Tour de France. Moreau finished second in the Critérium du Dauphiné and won the "king of the mountains" title. When Mancebo was not allowed to race in the Tour, Moreau became the main leader for his team. He finished the 2006 Tour de France in 7th place.
In 2007, Moreau showed amazing form in the Critérium du Dauphiné. He attacked in stages and won two of them, including the famous Mont Ventoux stage. He then won the overall race. Just two weeks later, he won the French national cycling championships. At 36 years old, he became the French champion and got to wear the special tricolour jersey. He started the 2007 Tour de France well, but a crash on stage 15 caused him to fall back.
In 2007, Moreau joined the Agritubel team. In the 2008 Tour de France, he left the race during stage 7. In 2009, he signed with the GCE team for 2010, even though he had previously said he would retire. He officially retired from cycling after the 2010 season.
Images for kids
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Christophe Moreau during a race.
See also
- List of doping cases in cycling
- List of sportspeople sanctioned for doping offences
