At the start of his career French cyclist Christian Raymond became the national amateur champion and the winner of the Route de France stage race in 1964. These results earned Raymond a place on the Olympic team at the Tokyo Games, where he finished 95th in the road race, only 0.2 seconds behind the race winner. The following year he turned professional, representing the Peugeot–BP–Michelin team. From 1966 to 1974 he rode in eight editions of the Tour de France, winning the 19th stage of the race in 1970. During this time, he was a teammate of Eddy Merckx, with Raymond’s 12-year-old daughter coming up with the nickname of “The Cannibal” for the Belgian cyclist. Raymond had some further success towards the end of his career, including winning bronze in the motor-paced event at the 1973 World Track Cycling Championships and a stage win at the 1974 Tour de Romandie.
France