Breakaway: On the Road With the Tour De France

by Samuel Abt

Profiles the racers and their teams, describes the course of the two-thousand-mile race, and captures the excitement of this international sporting event

Genres: Cycling, Nonfiction

178 pages, Hardcover

First published July 12, 1985

About the author

Samuel Raphael Abt was an American sports journalist and author who covered professional cycling for 31 years, publishing articles in the New York Times and International Herald Tribune, among others. He devoted much time to chronicling the careers of English-speaking riders, especially Lance Armstrong and Greg LeMond.

Reviews

[Serge Pierro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Samuel Abt provides excellent coverage of the 1984 Tour Te France. Of course the primary riders are followed - Laurent Fignon, Bernard Hinault, and Greg LeMond, but even more interesting are the lesser riders and their stories. The book provides useful information on both the history of the race, and the country itself. There are two sections of black and white photographs that show many of the main characters and moments throughout the race. Recommended to anyone with an interest in the sport of Cycling!

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Samuel Abt's greatest cycling book. It is not only a superb account of the 1984 Tour de France (the first Tour I followed from beginning to end), but also a history of cycling itself, an examination of the French passion for the sport, and a series of in-depth stories of the riders--all told in a lean and flexible journalistic style. After reading this wonderful book, you will have a greater sense not only of one race, but of the entire culture that produced it.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book about the world's most famour bicycle race, le Tour. It was written when Greg LeMond was at the start of his three wins and before the disgusting drug scandals of today. If you have never followed bicycle racing it is a good book to start with.

[Thomas Kanyak · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read Samuel Abt's book when I began to ride and race bikes around 1986. Weaves the history of cycling into the story of Laurent Fignon, Bernard Hinault and the 1984 Tour. Brilliant, and certainly an inspiration to ride at the time. Easily the best book I have read on cycling- by a mile.