Louis Gardent

Louis Gardent (18 August 1878 – 10 December 1917) was a French road cyclist.

Gardent had not an easy childhood and adolescence, but nevertheless he went on to participate in major cycling events. He participated in three editions of the Tour de France, in the 1907 edition, 1908 edition and 1909 edition, finishing the 1909 edition in 40th place. He died during World War I in 1917.

Biography

Early life Louis Gardent was born on 18 August 1878 at Les Prénards in Auris, in Oisans, the fifth of eleven children, nine of whom survived. Like his brothers and sisters, he attended school during the winter. In spring, the boys were placed with local families to tend livestock or assist with agricultural work.

Gardent later worked at the papermills of Lancey. He used what little leisure time he had to train, cycling with friends on the steep roads of the region. According to an account of his training, he would sometimes buy a bundle of wood at the top of the Laffrey climb and attach it to the back of his bicycle with a rope, using it as a brake during the dangerous and dusty descent. He was listed 90th among 162 entrants, of whom 115 started. He reached the eighth stage after crossing several of the race's major climbs, including the Ballon d'Alsace, Côte de Cerdon, Col de la Porte, Côte de Laffrey and Col Bayard. In the eighth stage, from Nîmes to Toulouse, a distance of 303 km, he was eliminated after several punctures and a crash because he finished outside the time limit.