frtour1-5, Exercise 2: Team loyalty in the Tour

Model answer (check the details):

How it works: a team has one or two leaders and the other riders (domestiques) work for them: fetching bottles, setting the pace, shielding from the wind and giving up a wheel if the leader punctures. In return the team shares the prize money and the leader's success. Team orders say who is allowed to attack and when.

Why it produces such stories:
- Only one rider can win, but a team may contain two strong candidates, and their interests conflict.
- Prizes, contracts and reputation depend on the result, so a rider has a reason to ignore the orders.
- The race is long, so promises made on one day can be tested on the next, and the press and fans follow every day.
- The riders are also rivals for the same jerseys.

The 1986 case: Hinault, the established leader, had said that he would help LeMond win, but attacked repeatedly. LeMond won, and the dispute became a famous example of loyalty tested (check).

Care: the story of 1986 is told differently by the two men and their supporters, so check several sources.