It’s July 20, 1982. Beat Breu, a 24-year-old Tour de France fledgling, sets out on a mission in Orcières, France. He wants to be the first Swiss to conquer the Alpe d’Huez, to win on the mythical mountain. “My sporting director at the time said: ‘If you win today, you’ll be immortalized in the history books!’ That didn’t reduce the pressure, but it didn’t break me,” Breu recalls. And indeed: the St. Gallen makes it, he triumphs at 1850 meters above sea level – as the first and to this day the last Swiss.
Now the tour returns to Alpe d’Huez. For the 31st time, the 21 “bends of the devil”, as the distinctive serpentines are called, lead up to the finish line. Breu: “Unfortunately, the four Swiss are not so timid in the Tour de France. So I will probably remain the last Swiss winner on the Alpe d’Huez for at least another year.”
The farmers went on strike, Breu attacked
Breu won’t miss this bike spectacle on Thursday afternoon – he will be sitting in front of the TV. “With a beer in hand,” as he says. And who knows, maybe he’ll think back to that big moment in the summer 40 years ago. “It was a fun day. Down in the valley the farmers went on strike, they closed the streets with tractors – no idea why. We sat on the asphalt for an hour and a half, waiting for the start,” said the 64-year-old.
When it finally started, many pairs of eyes were on Breu. No wonder, since he had already won a mountain stage four days earlier. Up to the foot of the final climb, in Le Bourg d’Oisons at 718 meters above sea level, the peloton is still closed – just as you like. «But I didn’t know the mountain. My team-mate Marcel Russenberger then showed it to me: ‘There you go!’ I looked up and didn’t know whether I should be happy or afraid.”
Breu takes heart in hand. Already in the first of the 21 curves he attacks – the field explodes. But the stage is far from decided. Because: The mountain flea has little lead, maybe 15 seconds. Robert Alban is his closest rival, the Frenchman catching up twice. «He never let up, the bastard. I drove away from him again, but he was always breathing down my neck.”
“They screamed in my ears non-stop”
Breu is still the strongest today. He drives past 200,000 roaring fans to the greatest triumph of his life. “Back then there were no barriers, not even at the top. The atmosphere was crazy, people screamed in my ears non-stop. And sometimes I didn’t even see where I was going. Luckily I had a motorbike in front of me, which made my way through the crowd.”
Ultimately, Breu is 16 seconds ahead of Alban in the small winter sports resort. “The climb isn’t the hardest, but it’s one of the most important in cycling. I’m proud of the win.” Did he become a star in Alpe d’Huez? Breu hesitates. “Star? I have trouble with this word. No, I just stayed a cyclist.”