The year was 1969, and while Fagor Automation hadn’t existed yet, the Fagor Group itself was participating in Tour de France. In this grand tour, Luis Ocaña, a member of the Fagor cycling team, suffered a fall while competing on the Ballon d’Alsacie stage. Despite severe injuries, the Fagor team together was able to complete the 83 mile course.
Story adapted from original article by Fagor Arrasate
The 1969 Tour de France was 2558 miles long (467 miles longer than the 2019 tour). Instead of national teams, this edition had commercially sponsored teams. Fagor was one of the 13 teams to participate in the race.
The Ballon d’Alsacie was the 6th stage of the tour, taking place in a mountain pass close to the summit. With an elevation of 3,865 ft, this historic course is 83 miles long. It was in this stage that professional cyclist Luis Ocaña, of the Fagor team, fell.
Despite the severity of his injuries, he refused to abandon the race and all his teammates joined together to help him reach the finish line in a show of solidarity, camaraderie, and team spirit that went around the world in the form of images. Ocaña would eventually achieve the Yellow Jersey classification in the 1971 Tour de France, given to cyclists with the best overall time.
