Merckx Crushes the 1969 Tour, part two - Horton Collection - 1K TO GO Newsletter

Shelly Horton has given me permission to publish this retelling of Eddy Merckx's 1969 Tour de France, originally published in the email newsletter she produces with her husband Brett, 1K TO GO, using photos from their Horton Collection. Part one is here, and part two is below.Merckx Crushes the 1969 TourWelcome back for Part 2 of Merckx’s domination of the 1969 Tour; hope you enjoy the thrilling conclusion.-Shelly A Quick Review…Merckx arrived at Roubaix for the June 28 prologue as the obvious favorite, but also as a Tour de France debutant. He was only twenty-four years old, yet his résumé already included the 1967 World Championship, the 1968 Giro d’Italia, Milan–San Remo three times, Paris–Roubaix, Liège–Bastogne–Liège and, earlier in 1969, his first victory in the Tour of Flanders.The field contained an extraordinary collection of established Tour champions.Jan Janssen returned as the defending winner after his narrow victory in 1968. Roger Pingeon, the 1967 champion and runner-up…