The Most Famous

CYCLISTS from Spain

This page contains a list of the greatest Spanish Cyclists. The pantheon dataset contains 1,613 Cyclists, 123 of which were born in Spain. This makes Spain the birth place of the 3rd most number of Cyclists behind France, and Italy.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Spanish Cyclists of all time. This list of famous Spanish Cyclists is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Spanish Cyclists.

1. Federico Bahamontes (1928 - 2023)

With an HPI of 64.42, Federico Bahamontes is the most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 32 different languages on wikipedia.

Federico Martín Bahamontes, born Alejandro Martín Bahamontes (Spanish: [feðeˈɾiko maɾˈtim ba(a)ˈmontes]; 9 July 1928 – 8 August 2023), was a Spanish professional road racing cyclist. He won the 1959 Tour de France and a total of 11 Grand Tour stages between 1954 and 1965. He won a total of nine mountain classifications and was the first cyclist to complete a "career triple" by winning the mountain classification in all three Grand Tours. Following his retirement, Bahamontes ran a bicycle and motorcycle shop and was named the best climber in the history of the Tour de France by a panel organised by L'Équipe in 2013.

2. Miguel Induráin (b. 1964)

With an HPI of 59.44, Miguel Induráin is the 2nd most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 58 different languages.

Miguel Induráin Larraya (Spanish pronunciation: [miˈɣel induˈɾajn laˈraʝa]; born 16 July 1964) is a retired Spanish road racing cyclist. Induráin won five Tours de France from 1991 to 1995, the fourth, and last, to win five times, and the only five-time winner to achieve those victories consecutively. He won the Giro d'Italia twice, becoming one of seven people to achieve the Giro-Tour double in the same season. He wore the race leader's yellow jersey in the Tour de France for 60 days. He holds the record for the most consecutive Tour de France wins and shares the record for most wins with Jacques Anquetil, Bernard Hinault and Eddy Merckx. In 1993, Indurain came close to cycling's 'Triple Crown' when, after having already won the Giro and the Tour, he finished just 0:19 behind in the World Championship. Induráin's ability and physical size—1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) and 76 kilograms (168 lb)—earned him the nickname "Miguelón" or "Big Mig". He was the youngest rider ever to win the Spanish amateur national road championship, when he was 18, at 20 the youngest rider to lead the Vuelta a España, and at 20 he won a stage of the Tour de l'Avenir.

3. Luis Ocaña (1945 - 1994)

With an HPI of 57.75, Luis Ocaña is the 3rd most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 28 different languages.

Jesús Luis Ocaña Pernía (pronounced [xeˈsus ˈlwis oˈkaɲa peɾˈnia]; 9 June 1945 – 19 May 1994) was a Spanish road bicycle racer who won the 1973 Tour de France and the 1970 Vuelta a España. During the 1971 Tour de France he launched an amazing solo breakaway that put him into the Yellow Jersey and stunned the rest of the main field, including back to back Tour champion Eddy Merckx, but abandoned in the fourteenth stage after a crash on the descent of the Col de Menté. Ocaña would abandon many Tours, but he finished every Vuelta a España he entered except for his first, and finished in the top 5 seven times in a row.

4. Francisco Gabica (1937 - 2014)

With an HPI of 55.67, Francisco Gabica is the 4th most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Francisco Gabicagogueascoa Ibarra (31 December 1937 – 7 July 2014) was a professional road bicycle racer between 1961 and 1972. Of his 21 professional victories, Gabica is most famous for winning the 1966 Vuelta a España, besting runner-up Eusebio Vélez and third-place finisher Carlos Echeverría, both compatriots. At the 1968 Vuelta, Gabica captured three mountainous stages to win the climbers classification.

5. Alberto Contador (b. 1982)

With an HPI of 52.97, Alberto Contador is the 5th most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 63 different languages.

Alberto Contador Velasco (Spanish pronunciation: [alˈβeɾto kontaˈðoɾ βeˈlasko]; born 6 December 1982) is a Spanish former professional cyclist. He is one of the most successful riders of his era, winning the Tour de France twice (2007, 2009), the Giro d'Italia twice (2008, 2015), and the Vuelta a España three times (2008, 2012, 2014). He is one of only six riders to have won all three Grand Tours of cycling, and one of only two riders to have won all three more than once. He has also won the Vélo d'Or a record 4 times. He was regarded as the natural successor of Lance Armstrong and won the 2007 Tour de France with the Discovery Channel team. During his time at the Astana team, he won the 2008 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Vuelta a España and the 2009 Tour de France. Between 2007 and 2011 he won six consecutive Grand Tours that he entered. This included winning the 2010 Tour de France with Astana, although it later emerged that he had tested positive for clenbuterol during the race. After a long battle in court, he was suspended by the Court of Arbitration for Sport and stripped of his 2010 Tour and 2011 Giro wins. Contador was known as an attacking rider who excelled as a climber, and on his best days was also an excellent time-trialist. He was also known for being able to turn races around to his favour, most notably during the Fuente Dé stage at the 2012 Vuelta a España. Following his return from suspension, he won the Vuelta twice and the Giro once more. On the penultimate day of his career, he won a stage victory at the mountaintop finish of the Alto de l'Angliru.

6. José Manuel Fuente (1945 - 1996)

With an HPI of 51.63, José Manuel Fuente is the 6th most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

José Manuel Fuente Lavandera (September 30, 1945 – July 18, 1996) was a professional road racing cyclist and noted climbing specialist. Fuente was a professional from 1970 to 1976. He had the same nickname as his father and grandfather, which was "El Tarangu", a word in the Asturian language for a man reputed for his strength and character. Fuente was known as one of the greatest climbers of his generation. He was a two-time winner of the Vuelta a España and won four consecutive climbers classification (or King of the Mountains) at the Giro d'Italia. He was rivals with the great cyclists of his time: Eddy Merckx and Luis Ocaña. He won the Vuelta a España in 1972, which at that time was held in late April and early May. Several weeks later, in the 1972 Giro d'Italia, Fuente had a great battle with Eddy Merckx. Fuente took the pink jersey as leader of the general classification early on in the race but Merckx took it back. On the mountain stage to Bardonecchia, Fuente put in an attack that put pressure on Merckx. Little by little, Merckx increased his pace and came back to Fuente and ended up winning the stage. Health problems due to kidney disease forced Fuente to retire in 1975. After retirement he opened a successful cycle business in Oviedo and in 1988 was appointed directeur sportif of the CLAS team. This lasted only a year, after which he was replaced in 1989 by Juan Fernadez. Fuente died following a long battle with kidney disease at the age of 50.

7. Julio Jiménez (1934 - 2022)

With an HPI of 51.51, Julio Jiménez is the 7th most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Julio Jiménez Muñoz (28 October 1934 – 8 June 2022) was a Spanish professional road racing cyclist.

8. Francisco Cepeda (1906 - 1935)

With an HPI of 50.62, Francisco Cepeda is the 8th most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Francisco Cepeda (8 March 1906 – 14 July 1935) was a Spanish cyclist. On July 11 1935 Cepeda crashed on the outskirts of Rioupéroux during the seventh stage of the Tour de France, 60 kilometres after crossing the summit of the Col du Galibier. His unconscious body was rushed to a hospital in Grenoble where he died three days later, on July 14, becoming the Tour’s first racing fatality, and only the second rider to die during the race, after Adolphe Hélière’s rest-day death in 1910 while swimming.

9. Pedro Delgado (b. 1960)

With an HPI of 49.76, Pedro Delgado is the 9th most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 29 different languages.

Pedro Delgado Robledo (pronounced [ˈpeðɾo ðelˈɣaðo roˈβleðo]; born 15 April 1960), also known as Perico ([peˈɾiko]), is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer. He won the 1988 Tour de France, as well as the Vuelta a España in 1985 and 1989. He finished in the top 10 of eighteen Grand Tours. Delgado tested positive for the known masking agent Probenecid during the 1988 tour. The drug, which had been placed on the International Olympic Committee's list of banned substances in January of that year, had not yet been banned by the sport's governing body, the Union Cycliste Internationale; as a consequence, Delgado was allowed to continue racing and was not charged with any doping offence. He now works as a sports commentator for Televisión Española during important cycling events.

10. Fernand Sanz (1881 - 1925)

With an HPI of 49.14, Fernand Sanz is the 10th most famous Spanish Cyclist. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Fernando "Fernand" Sanz y Martínez de Arizala (28 February 1881 – 8 January 1925) was a Spanish-born naturalized French racing cyclist, younger of two illegitimate sons of King Alfonso XII of Spain and his mistress, Elena Sanz. He participated in cycling at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris for France, and there won the silver medal in the men's sprint.

People

Pantheon has 136 people classified as Spanish cyclists born between 1881 and 2002. Of these 136, 117 (86.03%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Spanish cyclists include Miguel Induráin, Alberto Contador, and Pedro Delgado. The most famous deceased Spanish cyclists include Federico Bahamontes, Luis Ocaña, and Francisco Gabica. As of April 2024, 13 new Spanish cyclists have been added to Pantheon including Francisco Cepeda, Domingo Perurena, and Marcos Serrano.