Enjoy Tadej Pogačar, the new Eddy Merckx, while you can – Ned Boulting’s Tour de France column

Eddy Merckx won the Tour de France for the first time in his career a week or so after I was born. And although my Mum and Dad tell me I was hoisted out of my cot to watch the lunar landing on TV (it was on the exact same day that Merckx made it to Paris in yellow), I am pretty sure that I was unaware, aged 9 days, of the significance of Merckx’s ascent to the throne; a first of five race wins sealed with victory in stage 22b, an individual time trial in Paris which he won by 53 seconds ahead of Raymond Poulidor. It was his 7^th win of the Tour (if you include the team time trial). Three of those other wins were in time trials.

Famously, Merckx would go on to win 34 stages in total. He also picked up three green jerseys and two king of the mountains; collateral success to accompany his five Tour wins.