26th Tour de France 1932

“Le Joyeux DeDe” Returns to Form

Andre “Le Joyeux DeDe” Leducq returned to form in the 1932 Tour de France. With the absence of both defending champion Antonin Magne the reigns of French leadership went to Leducq.

SPECIAL NOTE: Starting in the 1931 Tour, time bonuses (3 minutes) were given to a rider who won stages by over 3 minutes. This time bonus stayed in place, while race officials expanded the bonus system to award the top 3 finishers in each stage (4 minutes for 1st, 2 min. for 2nd, and 1 min. for 3rd). This initiative seemed designed to give sprinters, such as France's Charles Pelissier, who lose large amounts of time in the mountains, a chance to compete in the General Classification. Unfortunately for the French team, an injured Charles Pelissier did not compete in 1932, but the bonus system did play a large role in the race.

Andre Leducq could sprint with the sprinter and climb with the climbers and took control of the Tour on stage 3 by out sprinting Italian Rafaele Di Paco for the stage win. With a time bonus of 3 minutes, he grabbed the overall lead and the Maillot Jaune (race leader's Yellow Jersey) from talented German Kurt Stoepel (the first German to wear the Maillot Jaune).

Leducq continued to excel with wins on stage 11 Nice to Gap, stage 13 Grenoble to Aix-les-Bains (in the snow), stage 15 Evian to Belfort. Leducq's run through the Alps extended his overall lead to 18'03” over the fading German

The overall effect of the time bonuses was substantial. Leducq won 6 stages, placed in the top 3 eleven times and got 31 minutes in time bonuses. Second place Stoepel won only 1 stage, placed in the top 3 four times, and got 7 minutes in bonuses. If the bonuses were not in effect, Le DeDe's winning margin would have been only 3 seconds. Either way, Andre Leducq's second Tour victory in 1932 was an excellent effort and outstanding achievement.

SPECIAL NOTE: Leducq's dominating performance overshadowed the accomplishments of Kurt Stoepel (Ger). Not only was he the first German to wear the Maillot Jaune, but also with his second place finish, he became the first German to gain a spot on the TdF podium in Paris.

TdF 1931

TdF 1933

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