The history of the productMAURICE 1903

MAURICE GARIN, THE "LITTLE CHIMNEY SWEEP"

The World's Fair of 1889 has remained famous for having given us the Eiffel Tower. After the exhibition, the other buildings of the Champ de Mars hosted many shows. Thus, several covered velodromes were installed between 1890 and 1909.

In 1895, the 24 hours of Liberal Arts took place during the month of February. The aim was to cover the greatest possible distance by riding behind "trainers". The weather was very cold and only two riders would ride for the 24 hours.

Maurice Garin covered 701 kms, 49 kms more than his last competitor. This was the first major victory for “Le Petit Ramoneur”, the "little chimney sweep" (such was his nickname, recalling his first job and his small size, 1.63m). Among the reasons for his success, the commentators suggested the food. Maurice Garin refused to drink red wine to keep warm. He was satisfied with 19 liters of hot chocolate and 7 liters of tea!

After this great victory on the track, Maurice Garin achieved an impressive record of achievements in road races, including Paris-Roubaix, Bordeaux-Paris and a memorable Paris-Brest-Paris (1200kms covered in 52 hours and 11 minutes). Maurice Garin also won, of course, the first "Grande Boucle" in 1903.