Luis Ocaña

Luis Ocaña was a Spanish road cyclist who won the 1973 Tour de France and the 1970 Vuelta a España, best remembered for his epic 1971 Tour duel with Eddy Merckx before a career-altering crash.

Luis Ocaña's 1973 Tour de France was an act of total dominance: with Eddy Merckx absent, he won six stages and finished nearly 16 minutes clear of the field, vindicating a talent that had been denied in 1971 when a Pyrenean storm ended his bid to unseat Merckx while holding the yellow jersey with a lead of nearly nine minutes. He turned professional in 1968 with Fagor, developing into a gifted climber and time trialist, and won the Vuelta a España in 1970, his first Grand Tour title, along with the mountains classification the previous year. Ocaña's defining moment came at the 1971 Tour de France, where, riding for the Bic team, he launched a stunning solo attack in the Pyrenees to seize the yellow jersey from the great Eddy Merckx, building a lead of nearly nine minutes and appearing on course to end Merckx's dominance. Disaster struck on the descent of the Col de Menté, where a violent storm caused Ocaña to crash, and he was struck by a following rider, forcing him to abandon the race in what remains one of the most dramatic what-ifs in cycling history. Ocaña finally delivered on his immense talent at the 1973 Tour de France, where, with Merckx absent, he dominated from start to finish, winning six stages and finishing almost 16 minutes clear of the field — his last and only Tour victory. He also added a bronze medal at that year's World Championship road race. Injuries and misfortune increasingly disrupted the remainder of his career, and he retired in 1977 having won 110 professional races. After retiring, he ran a vineyard that struggled financially, and, suffering from cancer and other illnesses, Ocaña took his own life on May 19, 1994, at his home near Mont-de-Marsan, France.

Gifted climber and time trialist known for explosive, high-risk attacking rides

Remembered as one of the most naturally gifted but tragically fate-bound riders in cycling history, forever linked with his rivalry against Merckx

• Tour de France winner (1973)
• Vuelta a España winner (1970)
• 9 Tour de France individual stage wins
• 3x Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré winner
• World Championship bronze medal (1973)