A remarkable cycling confession revisits an era before modern sports science.
TOLEDO, Spain. Federico Martín Bahamontes, the first Spanish cyclist to win the Tour de France, once revealed an unconventional mixture of coffee, cognac and other ingredients that he consumed during the final 50 kilometers of demanding races. His account, originally published in a 1998 interview, offers a revealing glimpse into the physical demands, nutritional practices and attitudes toward performance enhancement in professional cycling during the 1950s and 1960s.
Known as the Eagle of Toledo, Bahamontes conquered the 1959 Tour de France and won the competition’s mountains classification six times. His achievements established him as one of cycling’s greatest climbers, renowned for attacking mountain passes with remarkable endurance.
During an interview with Spanish newspaper El País in August 1998, the former champion described a homemade preparation containing two coffees, half a glass of cognac, a product called Cola Astier and Agua del Carmen, an alcohol-based herbal preparation.
Bahamontes explained that he reserved the mixture for the final 50 kilometers, believing it provided additional stimulation when fatigue became particularly demanding. He maintained that the substances he used did not produce a positive result under the testing practices of his era.
His recollections also revealed a critical attitude toward the performance-enhancing substances circulating in professional cycling. Bahamontes described witnessing other riders consume stimulants while emphasizing his preference for relying on his own physical capabilities.
However, his personal account does not establish that the mixture was harmless, medically effective or compliant with contemporary anti-doping regulations. Modern sports medicine recognizes that combining stimulants and alcohol during strenuous exercise can introduce health and performance risks.
The historical context is essential. Professional cycling during Bahamontes’ career involved exceptionally long stages, limited nutritional support and considerably less sophisticated recovery methods than those available to modern athletes.
The Spanish champion recalled competing in stages extending to approximately 355 kilometers, sometimes relying on relatively simple food supplies while managing exhaustion and unpredictable weather.
Today, elite cycling depends on carefully calculated carbohydrate intake, hydration strategies, physiological monitoring and specialized nutritional programmes. These advances have fundamentally transformed how athletes prepare for demanding competitions.
Bahamontes died in August 2023 at the age of 95, leaving a sporting legacy that extends far beyond his unconventional racing habits.
His 1998 testimony remains a valuable historical account of a period when endurance, improvisation and individual experience shaped professional cycling before the emergence of modern performance science.
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