Miguel Induráin’s Tour de France-winning bike goes up for auction and is expected to fetch up to €75,000

Not giving up on the Tour de France just yet? Think a mythical bike is all that’s keeping you from winning the yellow jersey? Perhaps if you got hold of the bike that Miguel Induráin rode during one of his five-year consecutive conquests you too could be on the top step of the podium in Paris. (Spoiler alert: you won't)...

The Pinarello that legendary Spanish cyclist Induráin rode to Tour de France victory in 1994 is going up for auction with "completely original parts" on the online auction platform Catawiki. Experts estimate it will sell for around €50,000-75,000.

Induráin, riding with the Spanish team Banesto, had already won three Tour de France titles in a row between 1991 and 1993, and won again in 1994 with the bike that’s currently being auctioned off. He would go on to win the 1995 Tour as well, sharing the record for most wins with Jacques Anquetil, Bernard Hinault and Eddy Merckx, and becoming the only one to achieve all five victories in a row.

The previous owner putting the bike for auction said that when Banesto had held a lottery for its team’s bikes, their father turned out to be the winner of Induráin’s hallowed bicycle, which eventually got passed down to them.

The auction website mentions them saying: “Not only is it verified by Banesto's own documentation, but recently I also asked Pinarello to confirm it using the engine chassis number. Pinarello has confirmed to me that it is Miguel Indurain's bike from that year with which he won the Tour de France in 1994.

“The bike is INTACT, like new and never used by anyone except Miguel Indurain himself. All elements of the bike are original. Everything works perfectly.”

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Induráin had already established him as a cycling legend by 1992, winning the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France, joining the select club of riders to have done so in the same year. The year after, he won the Giro-Tour double once again, and came close to becoming the third man to win two oldest Grand Tours and a World Championship road race title in the same year, finishing second behind a certain Lance Armstrong.

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During his most dominant years, he rode with Banesto, the team which now races under the Movistar banner. In 1993, Pinarello released the Banesto Line, based on Induráin’s preference for frames with Oria tubing.

The Banesto Line was supplied with Campagnolo components, Mavic rims, Aci Inox spokes, Vittoria tires, ITM handlebars and Indurain's preferred Selle Italia Turbo saddles. Riding his Pinarello bicycles, Induráin was the last cyclist to win the Tour on a steel bicycle.

The 1994 Pinarello features a chrome fork and rear triangle, along with the classic white frame with rainbow accents. The bike also has “M. Indurain” sticker on the top-tube.

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Last weekend, Induráin's pristine Pinarello was taken out of hiding and exhibited to the public in the heart of Paris, as part of the auction platform's pop-up exhibition. The bike is part of the platform’s extensive auction, with objects on sale having a total estimated value close to €2M, and running until this Sunday, 23 April.

Gustavo Radesca, from Expert Sports, said: “We're thrilled to have Miguel Induráin's legendary bike up for auction on Catawiki, offering sports fans all over the world the opportunity to own a real piece of cycling history.”

The seller mentions that the bike can be picked up in Spain or shipped abroad by a courier company, and that it will be shipped perfectly packaged, protected and insured.

What does the man himself think of it all? Well with a resting heart rate rumoured to be 28bpm in his prime, he's probably quite chilled about it; and interestingly, the 58-year-old has very recently ended his 32 year-long partnership with Pinarello after becoming an ambassador for Scott bikes... 

Big Mig will reportedly race a Scott Scale RC at the Titan Desert MTB race in Morocco on 30th April, and a Foil on the road.