RETRO

The Mercier team was ubiquitous in cycling from the 1930s to the 1980s. Though they never won the Tour, they came close, and won most other major races. Procycling looks at the history of a quintessentially French team

Writer William Fotheringham 

MERCIER TEAM

There were many remarkable things about the career of the late Raymond Poulidor: longevity, consistency, immense popularity in spite of the fact that he never wore the yellow jersey and that rivalry with Jacques Anquetil. But another thing that set Poulidor apart is often overlooked: his career-long loyalty, for the best part of 20 years, to the same team, sponsored by the Mercier cycle company. In a dog-eat-dog sport, such faith is rare indeed.

Never quite as distinguished as Peugeot, Mercier played second fiddle to Anquetil and Hinault’s squads when Master Jacques and the Badger were in their pomp. They never won the Tour de France. However, the team’s 40 stage wins in 21 starts was more than respectable, as was their record elsewhere, and they made an impact on the Tour and other races more often than not, with podiums and stage wins. In soccer terms, they were solid middleof-the-table finishers, with one astonishingly popular and durable star. Think Matt Le Tissier-era Southampton FC.

The Mercier cycle company was founded in 1919 by three brothers, Emile, Marcel and Constant, initially to make parts for pedals. By the early 1930s, they had expanded to produce complete bikes, and around the same time they ventured into team sponsorship. In 1937, the company won the Tour for the first time, with Roger Lapébie, although his bike did not actually have a Mercier badge on it and Lapébie was riding for France. After the war, the team expanded, and adopted a light purple jersey, enjoying a run of oneday classics success with Flemish riders such as Marcel Kint, Briek Schotte, Rik Van Steenbergen and Raymond Impanis.

Mercier was at its most successful at this time, taking wins in all the great Belgian classics. But the phase for which the team is best known began in the mid-1950s, by which time they had added the BP oil company to long-time tyre sponsor Hutchinson, the jersey had changed to deep purple, and former team rider Antonin Magne, who had won the Tour twice in the 1930s, joined as directeur sportif in 1953.

Briefly, Louison Bobet rode for them, but he would be listed as Bobet-BP-Hutchinson, because he used his own bikes.