In golf, we have the green jacket. In cycling, we have the yellow jersey. Both synonymous with success and the most prestigious accolade associated with each of the sports. Last year, the Tour de France winner was Egan Bernal of Team Ineos, and in wearing the yellow jersey, the young Colombian cemented the team’s dominance in the Tour over the last decade. This year, the latest Tour de France odds suggest that Primož Roglič is the favourite, and the Slovenian is ranked World Number 1 in the UCI standings. But throughout the race’s history, a number of riders have secured the yellow jersey on multiple occasions. Let’s delve through the archives and see who are the most prolific wearers of the yellow jersey.
Jacques Anquetil: 5 Wins
Frenchman Anquetil made history in 1964 when he became the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times. His first victory came in 1957, before he secured four successive titles between 1961 and 1964. The first two wins came under the previous system, whereby teams were made up as nations, and consequently, were awarded to France. However, his hat-trick of wins that followed were awarded to his cycling team, Saint-Raphaël, which disbanded in 1964, after Anquetil’s final victory. And it was that win which is the most memorable. After a shoulder-to-shoulder battle with compatriot Raymond Poulidor (of Mercier) in stage 20, Anquetil went on to win the race by a mere margin of 55 seconds.
Miguel Indurain: 5 Wins
In the early 1990s, Spaniard Indurain cemented his name in Tour de France folklore when he won the race on five consecutive occasions, becoming one of the most prolific wearers of the yellow jersey. Riding for Banesto (now known as Movistar), he won his first race in 1991, and retained the yellow jersey throughout the subsequent four editions. His first win coincided with a team classification win for Banesto, and he had led since stage 13 – going on to win the race by 3 minutes 36 seconds over Gianni Bugno.1992 and 1993 marked successful years for the cyclist, who secured a Grand Tour double of General Classification wins in both the Tour de France the Giro d’Italia. The following year, Indurain’s victory in the Tour de France was the most dominant, and having held the yellow jersey since stage 9, he went on to finish 5 minutes 39 seconds ahead of his nearest rival. Sadly, in 1996, the Spaniard finished outside of the top 10.
Chris Froome: 4 Wins
While it would be easy to list all four cyclists who have won the Tour de France five times, Chris Froome features on our list with his four wins – three of which came back-to-back during 2015-17. Froome has done wonders for British cycling and is the reason that Team Sky/Ineos have been so successful over the last few years. He missed out on the opportunity of making it five wins in the iconic race last year, after a high-speed crash in the final warm-up race, the Critérium du Dauphiné left the cyclist with multiple serious injuries – and after a struggle to return to the form he once possessed, Dave Brailsford left Froome out of his line-up for this year. In 2015, Froome became the first British rider to win the Tour twice – and he was awarded the King of the Mountains too, winning the polka dot jersey.
