Abdel-Kader Zaaf

Abdel-Kader Zaaf ( born January 28, 1917 in Chibli, Wilaya of Blida, † 22 September 1986, Algeria) was an Algerian cyclist. He took four times (1948, 1950, 1951 and 1952 ) in the Tour de France in part, but only reached the 1951 target in Paris, where he finished in 66th place overall. Nevertheless, he is one of the drivers who have written history tour.

From amateur to professional drivers

In 1935 appeared Abdel-Kader Zaaf regularly in the winners' list of amateur racing in North Africa and France. In 1942 he was awarded the Vélo Club Musulman first French street team champion and was able to repeat this success in 1947. In 1946 he was Algerian 's singles champion. He then received a professional contract with Team Volta, a year later at Duralca, for 1950 and 1951 the team Terrot Wolber and from 1952 to 1955 at its successor Terrot Hutchinson for 1948. During the Tour de France this time, however, were no factory, but national and regional teams; Zaaf drove it for one of the French teams (1950, for example, for the North African team), because his country still part of France ( Algérie française ) was.

The legendary wine history

Became famous Abdel-Kader Zaaf by an episode during the Tour de France 1950: On the 13th stage from Perpignan to Nîmes he had in common with the later stage winner Marcel molines a successful breakaway - maximum lead over the chasing pack: 16 minutes - started when given the sweltering heat in the Languedoc a strong thirst overcame him. He stopped short at an inn, where he bought two bottles of white wine and emptied it. Then he should have kept a short nap on the roadside, from the audience but soon woke him. Zaaf sat on his racing bike - and drove back in his confusion in the direction of start location. At stage 14, he joined then to not.

This story went through the forest of leaves, and in consequence he was invited to numerous post- tour criteria. Also the beginning of the 21st century waived hardly a tour commentator on telling this funny story. At the beginning of the 1980s Zaaf has the incident but presented differently in a hospital in France: he had by a spectator at the track get handed to a bottle which he emptied promptly and of which he had become so bad that he fell from his bike. They had then laid him in the shade of a tree and he instilled wine to strengthen.

Palmarčs

From 1948 to 1955 Abdel-Kader Zaaf has won several Tour stages and race days annually, and in 1950 was his most successful season with nine first places. Among other victories him arrive at the Tour d' Algérie, the Tour du Maroc, the Tour d' Afrique du Nord, the Circuit de la Côte d' Or and the Ronde des Champions. In the Tour de Luxembourg 1951 he finished the opening stage in second. He was also in 1950 at the Tour de Suisse in 1951 in the Paris- Brussels and 1952 at the Dortmund Six Days at the start.