Greg LeMond

The incredible story of the greatest cycling race in history, the 1989 Tour de France, and how American Greg LeMond faced down betrayal, childhood sexual abuse and death completing one of the most inspiring comebacks in history.

Before Lance Armstrong, there was Greg LeMond, who is now the first and only American to win the Tour de France. In this engrossing documentary, LeMond looks back at the pivotal 1986 Tour, and his increasingly vicious rivalry with friend, teammate, and mentor Bernard Hinault. The reigning Tour champion and brutal competitor known as “The Badger,” Hinault ‘promised’ to help LeMond to his first victory, in return for LeMond supporting him in the previous year. But in a sport that purports to reward teamwork, it’s really every man for himself.

A portrait of the man behind the greatest fraud in sporting history. Lance Armstrong enriched himself by cheating his fans, his sport and the truth. But the former friends whose lives and careers he destroyed would finally bring him down.

In 1998 Marco Pantani, the most flamboyant and popular cyclist of his era, won both the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia, a titanic feat of physical and mental endurance that no rider has repeated since. He was a hero to millions, the saviour of cycling following the doping scandals which threatened to destroy the sport. However, less than six years later, aged just 34, he died alone, in a cheap hotel room, from acute cocaine poisoning. He had been an addict for five years. This is the story of the tragic battles fought by the most important Italian cyclist of his generation; man verses mountain, athlete verses addiction, Marco Pantani verses himself.

When three young men set off to cross the United States on single-speed, fixed-gear bicycles, the physical challenge itself is incredibly daunting. But these are not just three tough guys; they ride to raise money and awareness for diabetes and to help disabled Kenyan kids. The film focuses on Adam, himself a Type-1 diabetic who has to manage his illness while riding up to 150 miles a day. And it tells the touching stories of two diabetic children the group meets along the way, and how they change the men's lives. But the ride has its comical side, too: The three are chased by wild dogs in Kentucky, ditch their rain-battered tent in Kansas to sleep on picnic tables, engage in an insane game of "foot down" with a bunch of bikers in Oregon, and struggle hilariously to achieve their goal of singing karaoke in all 16 states they pass through on their zigzag 6,500-mile journey.

In 1984 Scottish cyclist Robert Millar created a stir by winning the King of the Mountains jersey and finishing fourth overall in the Tour de France. In this unique film made in 1985 with the eyes of the UK on him, the camera records his feelings about the year, his performance and morale within the team. With flashbacks to his stage win in 1984, mixed with 1985 footage of the Tour, Vuelta and Worlds, the bike fan is treated to a behind the scenes view of life in the Peugeot team. Interviews with Millar and team mate Alan Peiper give a insight into bike racing politics at the time. Enjoy seeing some of the greats of the eighties: Kelly, LeMond, Roche, Hinault, Delgado, Yates and many more.