Editing Tom Simpson (section)

==Professional career==

===1959: Foundations===
In July, four months after leaving England, Simpson rode his first race as a professional, the [[Tour de l'Ouest]] in west France. He won the fourth stage and took the overall race leader's jersey. He won the next stage's individual time trial, increasing his lead. On the next stage he lost the lead with a punctured tyre, finishing the race in fourteenth place overall.<ref name="remembering" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=77}}

[[File:Circuit Park Zandvoort aerial photo.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Aerial photo of multi-sport racetrack|Simpson's fourth place in the 1959 [[1959 UCI Road World Championships|world road race championships]] at [[Circuit Park Zandvoort]] in the Netherlands ''(pictured in 2011)'' was the highest ever by a British rider.]]
In August Simpson competed at the world championships in the 5000&nbsp;m [[UCI Track Cycling World Championships – Men's individual pursuit|individual pursuit]] at Amsterdam's large, open-air velodrome and the [[UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|road race]] on the nearby [[Circuit Park Zandvoort]] motor-racing track. He placed fourth in the individual pursuit, losing by 0.3 seconds in the quarter-finals. He prepared for the {{convert|180|mi|0|abbr=on}} road race, eight laps of the track. After {{convert|45|mi|0|abbr=on}} a ten-rider [[Glossary of cycling#breakaway|breakaway]] formed; Simpson bridged the [[Glossary of cycling#gap|gap]]. As the peloton began to close in, he tried to [[Glossary of cycling#attack|attack]]. Although he was brought back each time, Simpson placed fourth in a sprint for the best finish to date by a British rider.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=78–80}}{{sfn|Simpson|2009|pp=73–75}}<ref name="first-big-wins">{{cite magazine|title=The first big wins|series=Remembering Tom Simpson|magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling]]|publisher=[[IPC Media]]|location=London|pages=16–17|date=8 January 1977}}</ref> He was praised by the winner, [[André Darrigade]] of France, who thought that without Simpson's work on the front, the breakaway would have been caught. Darrigade helped him enter criteriums for extra money.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=81}} His fourth place earned Simpson his nickname, "Major Simpson", from French sports newspaper ''[[L'Équipe]]''. They ran the headline: "''Les carnets du Major Simpson''" ("The notes of Major Simpson"), referencing the 1950s series of books, ''Les carnets du Major Thompson'' by [[Pierre Daninos]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=108}}

Simpson moved up to {{UCI team code|Saint-Raphaël|1959|nolink=yes}}'s first team, {{UCI team code|Rapha|1960}}, for the end-of-season one-day [[Classic cycle races|classic races]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=83}} In his first appearance in the [[1959 Giro di Lombardia|Giro di Lombardia]], one of the [[Cycling monument|five "monuments" of cycling]], he retired with a tyre puncture while in the lead group of riders.<ref name="1959-lombardia">{{cite news |title=Volatone a Milano e vittoria di Van Looy |trans-title=Volatone in Milan and win Van Looy |url=http://archiviostorico.unita.it/cgi-bin/highlightPdf.cgi?t=ebook&file=/archivio/uni_1959_10/19591019_0006.pdf |newspaper=[[l'Unità]] |date=19 October 1959 |page=6 |language=it |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202235452/http://archiviostorico.unita.it/cgi-bin/highlightPdf.cgi?t=ebook&file=%2Farchivio%2Funi_1959_10%2F19591019_0006.pdf |archive-date=2 December 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In Simpson's last race of the season, he finished fourth in the [[Trofeo Baracchi]], a two-man [[team time trial]] with [[Gérard Saint]], racing against his boyhood idol, Fausto Coppi; it was Coppi's final race before his death.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=83–84}} Simpson finished the season with twenty-eight wins.<ref name="first-big-wins" />

===1960: Tour de France debut===
His first major race of the 1960 season was the one-day "monument" [[1960 Milan–San Remo|Milan–San Remo]] in March,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=86}} in which the organisers introduced the [[Poggio di San Remo|Poggio climb]] (the final climb) to keep the race from finishing with a [[Glossary of cycling#bunch sprint|bunch sprint]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2003|p=44}} Simpson broke clear from a breakaway group over the first climb, the [[Passo del Turchino|Turchino]], leading the race for {{convert|45|km|0|abbr=on}} before being caught. He lost contact over the Poggio, finishing in 38th place.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=86–87}}<ref name="1960-msr">{{cite web|title=The 1960 Milan–San Remo result |url=http://www.milansanremo.co.uk/1960result.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131207104025/http://www.milansanremo.co.uk/1960result.htm |archive-date= 7 December 2013  |url-status=dead |work=The Milan–San Remo Cycle Race }}</ref> In April he moved to the Porte de Clichy district of [[Paris]], sharing a small apartment with his teammate Robinson.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=87}}

Days after his move, Simpson rode in [[1960 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]],{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=87}} known as "The Hell of the North", the first cycling race to be shown live on [[Eurovision (network)|Eurovision]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=99}} He launched an attack as an early breakaway, riding alone at the front for {{convert|40|km|1|abbr=on}}, but was caught around a mile from the finish at [[Roubaix Velodrome]], coming in ninth. Simpson rode a lap of honour after the race at the request of the emotional crowd. His televised effort gained him attention throughout Europe.<ref name="lion-tamer">{{cite web|last=Jones|first=Graham|title=The Flanders Lion Tamer|url=http://www.cyclingrevealed.com/Apr06/cover_apr_Lion.htm|work=CyclingRevealed|access-date=28 February 2013|date=April 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130530040745/http://www.cyclingrevealed.com/Apr06/cover_apr_Lion.htm|archive-date=30 May 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=88–91}}{{sfn|Saunders|1971|p=123}} He then won the [[Mont Faron]] hill climb and the overall [[general classification]] of the [[:ca:Tour del Sud-Est|Tour du Sud-Est]], his first overall win in a professional stage race. He planned to ride in the [[Manx Trophy|Isle of Man International]] road race, excited to see to his home fans. There were rumours, which proved correct, that the [[Royal Military Police]] were waiting for him at the airport, so he decided not to travel.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=91–93}} This was the last he heard from the authorities regarding his call-up. The British Cycling Federation fined him £25 for his absence.{{sfn|Simpson|2009|pp=85–85}}

[[File:Col Aubisque.jpg|thumb|alt=Cyclist riding down a mountain in the Pyrenees|Simpson crashed descending the [[Col d'Aubisque]] ''(pictured)'' during the tenth stage of the [[1960 Tour de France]], finishing the tour in 29th place overall.]]
In June, Simpson made his [[Grand Tour (cycling)|Grand Tour]] debut in the [[1960 Tour de France|Tour de France]] aged 22. Rapha ''[[directeur sportif]]'' (team manager) [[Raymond Louviot]] opposed his participation, but since the race was contested by national teams Simpson accepted the invitation from the British squad.<ref name="tackling-first-tour">{{cite magazine|title=Tackling his first Tour|series=Remembering Tom Simpson|magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling]]|publisher=[[IPC Media]]|location=London|pages=18–19|date=15 January 1977}}</ref> During the first stage, he was part of a thirteen-rider breakaway which finished over two minutes in front of the field; he crashed on the [[cinder track]] at [[King Baudouin Stadium|Heysel Stadium]] in Brussels, finishing thirteenth, but received the same time as the winner.<ref name="tackling-first-tour" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=94}} Later that day he finished ninth in the time trial, moving up to fifth place overall.<ref name="bri-1960tdf">{{cite web|title=1960 Tour de France|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1960.html|work=BikeRaceInfo|publisher=McGann Publishing|location=Cherokee Village, AR|access-date=3 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603023557/http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1960.html|archive-date=3 June 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> During the third stage Simpson was part of a breakaway with two French riders who repeatedly attacked him, forcing him to chase and use energy needed for the finish; he finished third, missing the thirty-second bonus for a first-place finish, which would have put him in the overall race leader's [[General classification in the Tour de France|yellow jersey]].<ref name="tackling-first-tour" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=94–95}} He dropped to ninth overall by the end of the first week.<ref name="bri-1960tdf" /> During stage ten, Simpson crashed descending the [[Col d'Aubisque]] in the Pyrenees but finished the stage in fourteenth place.<ref name="tackling-first-tour" /> In the following stage he was dropped, exhausted, from a chasing group; failing to recover.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=95–96}} He finished the Tour in twenty-ninth place overall,<ref name="tackling-first-tour" /><ref name="bri-1960tdf" /> losing {{convert|2|st|kg lb|abbr=on}} in weight over the three weeks.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=190}}

After the Tour, Simpson rode criteriums around Europe until crashing in central France; he returned home to Paris and checked himself into a hospital.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|pp=129–130}} Following a week's bed-rest, he rode in the [[1960 UCI Road World Championships|road world championships]] at the [[Sachsenring]] in East Germany. During the race Simpson stopped to adjust his shoes on the right side of the road and was hit from behind by a car, sustaining a cut to his head which required five stitches.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=98}} In the last of the classics, the [[1960 Giro di Lombardia|Giro di Lombardia]], he struggled,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=100}} finishing eighty-fourth.<ref name="the-sports">{{cite web|title=Tom Simpson (Great Britain)|url=http://www.the-sports.org/tom-simpson-cycling-spf47465.html|work=The-Sports.org|publisher=Info Média Conseil|access-date=6 May 2015|location=Québec, Canada|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150215214755/http://www.the-sports.org/tom-simpson-cycling-spf47465.html|archive-date=15 February 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Simpson had been in constant contact with Helen, who was now working in [[Stuttgart]], Germany, meeting with her between races. They became engaged on Christmas Day, and originally planned to marry at the end of 1961,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=100}} but in fact wed on 3 January 1961 in Doncaster, Yorkshire.{{sfn|Pierre|1967|p=28}}

===1961: Tour of Flanders and injury===
Simpson's first major event of the 1961 season was the [[1961 Paris–Nice|Paris–Nice]] stage race in March. In stage three he helped his team win the team time trial and took the general classification lead by three seconds; however, he lost it in the next stage. In the final stages of the race Simpson's attacks were thwarted, and he finished fifth overall.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=102–103}}

[[File:Wetteren Sint-Gertrudiskerk 22-09-2010 13-28-17.JPG|thumb|left|alt=Belgian town with large church in background|Simpson won the [[1961 Tour of Flanders]] in a two-man sprint with [[Nino Defilippis]] in [[Wetteren]], Belgium, becoming the first Briton to win a [[Cycling monument|"monument" classic]].]]
On 26 March, Simpson rode in the one-day [[1961 Tour of Flanders|Tour of Flanders]]. With {{UCI team code|Carpano|1961}}'s [[Nino Defilippis]], he chased down an early breakaway. Simpson worked with the group; with about {{convert|8|km|0|abbr=on}} to go he attacked, followed by Defilippis. The finish, three circuits around the town of [[Wetteren]], was flat; Defilippis, unlike Simpson, was a [[Cycling sprinter|sprinter]] and was expected to win. One kilometre from the finish, Simpson launched a sprint; he eased off with 300&nbsp;m to go, tricking Defilippis into thinking he was exhausted. As Defilippis passed, Simpson jumped again to take victory, becoming the first Briton to win a "monument" classic.<ref name="lion-tamer" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=106–107}} Defilippis protested that the finishing banner had been blown down, and he did not know where the finish was; however, the judges noted that the finish line was clearly marked on the road itself.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=107}} Defilippis' team asked Simpson to agree to a tie, saying no Italian had won a classic since 1953. He replied: "An Englishman had not won one since 1896!"{{sfn|Simpson|2009|pp=103–104}}

A week later, Simpson rode in [[1961 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]] in the hope of bettering his previous year's ninth place. As the race reached the [[Sett (paving)|paved]] section he went on a solo attack, at which point he was told that {{UCI team code|Mercier|1961|nolink=yes}} rider [[Raymond Poulidor]] was chasing him down. Simpson increased his speed, catching the publicity and press vehicles ahead (known as the ''[[Glossary of cycling#caravane|caravane]]''). A press car swerved to avoid a pothole; this forced him into a roadside ditch. Simpson fell, damaging his front wheel and injuring his knee. He found his team car and collected a replacement wheel, but by then the front of the race had passed. Back in the race he crashed twice more, finishing 88th.<ref name="lion-tamer" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=108–109}}

At Simpson's next race, the four-day Grand Prix d'Eibar, his first in Spain, his knee injury still bothered him. He won the second stage, but was forced to quit during the following stage.<ref name="memoire">{{cite web|title=Palmarès de Tom Simpson (Gbr)|language=fr|trans-title=Awards of Tom Simpson (Gbr)|url=http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.eu/palmares/simpson_tom.php|work=Memoire du cyclisme|access-date=8 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150521075641/http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.eu/palmares/simpson_tom.php|archive-date=21 May 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>{{sfn|Simpson|2009|pp=105–106}} His injury had not healed, even after treatment by various specialists, but for financial reasons he was forced to enter the [[1961 Tour de France|Tour de France]] with the British team.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=110–111}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=65}} He abandoned on stage three, which started in Roubaix, struggling to pedal on the cobbles.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Longchamp |first=Marcel |title=Simpson "Disaster" |url=http://www.tour-racing.org.uk/html/1961_tour_de_france.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150610050235/http://www.tour-racing.org.uk/html/1961_tour_de_france.html |archive-date=10 June 2015 |access-date=29 October 2016  |url-status=dead |magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling and Mopeds]] |publisher=Longacre Press |location=London |date=5 July 1961 |via=Tour-Racing.org.uk}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Stage 3 Roubaix > Charlero|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1961/300/etape.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819054220/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1961/300/etape.html|archive-date=19 August 2010|access-date=9 June 2015}}</ref> Three months after his fall at Paris–Roubaix he saw a doctor at St. Michael's Hospital in Paris. He gave Simpson injections in his knee, which reduced the inflammation.{{sfn|Simpson|2009|pp=106–107}} Once healed, he competed in the [[1961 UCI Road World Championships|road world championships]] in Berne, Switzerland. On the track he qualified for the individual pursuit with the fourth-fastest time, losing in the quarter-finals to [[Peter Post]] of the Netherlands. In the road race, Simpson was part of a seventeen-rider breakaway that finished together in a sprint; he crossed the line in ninth place.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=111–113}}

Helen became pregnant; Simpson's apartment in Paris was now unsuitable and a larger home in France was not in their means. In October, with help from his friend, Albert Beurick, they moved into a small cottage in Ghent.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=113}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=117}} Low on funds, Simpson earned money in one-day track races in Belgium.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=114}}

===1962: Yellow jersey===
Simpson's contract with Rapha-Gitane-Dunlop had ended with the 1961 season. Tour de France winner [[Jacques Anquetil]] signed with them for 1962, but Simpson wanted to lead a team, and signed with {{UCI team code|Alcyon|1962}} for the 1962 season.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=114}}{{sfn|Simpson|2009|p=110}} After training camp at [[Lodève]] in southern France, he rode in [[1962 Paris–Nice|Paris–Nice]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=115}} He helped his team win the stage-3a team time trial and finished second overall, behind {{UCI team code|FLA|1962}}'s [[Jef Planckaert]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=115}}<ref name="letour-1962tdf-starters">{{cite web|title=The 1962 starters|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1962/partants.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130705041514/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1962/partants.html|archive-date=5 July 2013 |access-date=7 July 2013}}</ref> He was unable to ride in [[1962 Milan–San Remo|Milan–San Remo]] when its organisers limited the race to Italian-based teams;{{refn|The organisers of the [[1962 Milan–San Remo]] only allowed Italian teams to participate as an attempt to get an Italian winner, as the last one was in 1953.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=115}}<ref>{{cite web|title=Past winners |url=http://www.milansanremo.co.uk/palmares.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130818120956/http://milansanremo.co.uk/palmares.htm |archive-date=18 August 2013 |access-date=29 October 2016  |url-status=dead |work=The Milan-San Remo Cycle Race }}</ref>|group=n|name=1962ms}} instead he rode in [[1962 Gent–Wevelgem|Gent–Wevelgem]], finishing sixth,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=115}} then defended his [[Tour of Flanders]] title. At the end of the latter, Simpson was in a select group of riders at the head of the race. Although he led over each of the final climbs, at the finish he finished fifth and won the [[King of the Mountains]] prize.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=116–117}} A week later Simpson finished thirty-seventh in [[1962 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]], delayed by a crash.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=117}}<ref name="yellow-jersey">{{cite magazine|title=The Yellow Jersey|series=Remembering Tom Simpson|magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling]]|publisher=[[IPC Media]]|location=London|pages=22–23|date=22 January 1977}}</ref>

[[File:1962 Tour de France yellow jersey (Gitane-Leroux).svg|thumb|upright|alt=Yellow jersey with Leroux-Gitane insignia|At the [[1962 Tour de France]] Simpson claimed the yellow jersey at the end of stage 12 as [[General classification in the Tour de France|general classification]] leader, losing it the next day.]]
Coming into the [[1962 Tour de France|Tour de France]], Simpson was leader of his team;{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=122}} it was the first time since 1929 that company teams were allowed to compete.{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2006|p=253}} He finished ninth in the first stage,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=122}} in a group of twenty-two riders who finished over eight minutes ahead of the rest.<ref name="yellow-jersey" /> Simpson's team finished second to {{UCI team code|FLA|1962|nolink=yes}} in the stage-2b team time trial; he was in seventh place in the general classification,<ref name="bri-1962tdf">{{cite web|title=1962 Tour de France|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1962.html|work=BikeRaceInfo|publisher=McGann Publishing|location=Cherokee Village, AR|access-date=1 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161111003512/http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1962.html|archive-date=11 November 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> remaining in the top ten the rest of the first week.<ref name="bri-1962tdf" /> During stage 8a he was in a thirty-rider group which gained about six minutes, moving him to second overall behind teammate André Darrigade.<ref>{{cite web|title=Stage 8.01 Saint-Nazaire > Luçon|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1962/801/etape.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819055802/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1962/801/etape.html|archive-date=19 August 2010|access-date=3 June 2013}}</ref> At the end of the eleventh stage Simpson was third in the overall, over a minute behind race leader [[Willy Schroeders]] ({{UCI team code|FLA|1962|nolink=yes}}) and fifty-one seconds behind Darrigade.<ref name="letour-1962tdf-starters" /><ref>{{cite web|title=Stage 11 Bayonne > Pau|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1962/1100/etape.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819053131/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1962/1100/etape.html|archive-date=19 August 2010|access-date=29 May 2015}}</ref> Stage twelve from [[Pau, Pyrénées-Atlantiques|Pau]] to Saint-Gaudens, the hardest stage of the 1962 Tour (known as the "[[Glossary of cycling#circle of death|Circle of Death]]"), was the Tour's first mountain stage.<ref>{{cite web|title=Stage 12 Pau > Saint-Gaudens|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1962/1200/etape.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819060544/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1962/1200/etape.html|archive-date=19 August 2010|access-date=3 June 2013}}</ref>{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2006|pp=277–288}} Simpson saw an opportunity to lead the race. The team now solely concentrated on his interests, since Darrigade was a sprinter and would no longer be involved in the general classification.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=124}} As the peloton reached the [[Col du Tourmalet]], Simpson attacked with a small group of select riders, finishing eighteenth place in a bunch sprint. As he finished ahead of all the other leaders in the general classification, he became the overall new leader of race, and the first British rider to wear the leader's yellow jersey.<ref name="yellow-jersey" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=123–125}} Simpson lost the lead on the following stage, a short time trial ending with a steep uphill finish at [[Superbagnères]]. He finished thirty-first and dropped to sixth overall.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=126}}<ref name="bri-1962tdf" /> On stage nineteen he advanced recklessly descending the [[Col de Porte]] in the Alps, crashing on a bend and only saved from falling over the edge by a tree, leaving him with a broken left middle finger. He lost almost eleven minutes in the next stage's time trial, finishing the Tour at Paris' [[Parc des Princes]] stadium 17 minutes and 9 seconds behind in 6th place.<ref name="yellow-jersey" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=126–128}}

After the Tour Simpson rode criteriums before the [[1962 UCI Road World Championships|road world championships]] in Salò, Italy, where he retired after missing a large breakaway.<ref name="yellow-jersey" /> He began riding [[six-day racing|six-day]] track races into his winter break. In December he made an appearance at the Champions' Concert cycling awards held at [[Royal Albert Hall]] in London. Separately, he won the British Cycling Federation's Personality of the Year. Simpson and Helen were expecting their second child and upgraded to a larger house in [[Sint-Amandsberg]], a sub-municipality of Ghent.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=130–136}}

===1963: Bordeaux–Paris===
[[:fr:Leroux (entreprise)|Leroux]] withdrew its sponsorship of the Gitane team for the 1963 season. Simpson was contracted to their manager, Raymond Louviot; Louviot was rejoining {{UCI team code|Saint-Raphaël|1963|nolink=yes}} and Simpson could follow, but he saw that as a step backwards. {{UCI team code|Peugeot|1963}} bought the contract from Louviot, which ran until the end of the season.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=134}} Simpson's season opened with Paris–Nice; he fell out of contention after a series of tyre punctures in the opening stages, using the rest of the race as training. He withdrew from the race on the final stage to rest for his next race, [[1963 Milan–San Remo|Milan–San Remo]]; after breaking away by himself he stopped beside the road, which annoyed his fellow riders.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=137–138}} At Milan–San Remo, Simpson was in a four-rider breakaway; his tyre punctured, and although he got back to the front, he finished nineteenth.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=138}}<ref>{{cite web|title=1963 Milano&nbsp;– San Remo|url=http://www.bikeraceinfo.com/classics/Milan-San%20Remo/1963-milan-san-remo.html|work=BikeRaceInfo|publisher=McGann Publishing|location=Cherokee Village, AR|access-date=4 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131209010756/http://www.bikeraceinfo.com/classics/Milan-San%20Remo/1963-milan-san-remo.html|archive-date=9 December 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> He placed third in the Tour of Flanders in a three-rider sprint.<ref name="paris-tours">{{cite web|title=1963 Tour of Flanders|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/classics/Tour%20of%20Flanders/1963-tour-of-flanders.html|work=BikeRaceInfo|publisher=McGann Publishing|location=Cherokee Village, AR|access-date=4 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131209010918/http://bikeraceinfo.com/classics/Tour%20of%20Flanders/1963-tour-of-flanders.html|archive-date=9 December 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> In [[1963 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]] Simpson worked for teammate, and winner, [[Emile Daems]], finishing ninth. In the one-day [[Paris–Brussels]] he was in a breakaway near the Belgian border; with {{convert|50|km|1|abbr=on}} remaining he was left with world road race champion [[Jean Stablinski]] of {{UCI team code|Saint-Raphaël|1963|nolink=yes}}, who attacked on a cobbled climb in Alsemberg outside Brussels. Simpson's bike slipped a gear, and Stablinski stayed away for the victory. After his second-place finish, Simpson led the [[Super Prestige Pernod International]] season-long competition for world's best cyclist. The following week he raced in the [[Ardennes classics]], placing thirty-third in [[1963 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|Liège–Bastogne–Liège]], after he rode alone for about {{convert|100|km|0|abbr=on}} before being caught in the closing kilometres.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=139–144}}<ref name="letour-1963tdf-starters">{{cite web|title=The 1963 starters|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1963/partants.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130705041507/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1963/partants.html|archive-date=5 July 2013 |access-date=7 July 2013}}</ref>

{{Location map+|France|AlternativeMap=France relief location map.jpg|overlay_image=Bordeaux–Paris route overlay.svg|width=220|float=left|alt=Map of France showing the route of the Bordeaux–Paris race|caption=In 1963, Simpson won the {{convert|557|km|0|abbr=on}} [[derny]]-paced [[Bordeaux–Paris]] race, one of the longest [[Classic cycle races|one-day]] races.|places={{Location map~|France|label='''Bordeaux'''|lat=44.8386|long=-0.5783|position=right}}{{Location map~|France|label=Angoulême|lat=45.6489|long=0.1608|label_size=80|marksize=6|position=right}}{{Location map~|France|label=Châtellerault|lat=46.8178|long=0.5461|label_size=80|marksize=6|position=right}}{{Location map~|France|label=Orléans|lat=47.9025|long=1.9090|label_size=80|marksize=6|position=right}}{{Location map~|France|label='''Paris'''|lat=48.8567|long=2.3508|position=right}}}}
On 26 May, Simpson rode in the one-day, {{convert|557|km|0|abbr=on}} [[Bordeaux–Paris]]. Also known as the "Derby of the Road", it was the longest he had ever ridden.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bordeaux–Paris 1963|url=http://www.cyclingarchives.com/ritfiche.php?ritid=12289|work=Cycling Archives|publisher=de Wielersite|access-date=5 June 2013}}</ref>{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=145}} The race began at 1:58&nbsp;am; the initial {{convert|161|km|0|abbr=on}} were unpaced until the town of [[Châtellerault]], where [[derny]]s (motorised bicycles) paced each rider to the finish. Simpson broke away in a group of three riders. Simpson's pacer, Fernand Wambst, increased his speed, and Simpson dropped the other two. He caught the lead group, thirteen minutes ahead, over a distance of {{convert|161|km|0|abbr=on}}. Simpson attacked, and with {{convert|36|km|1|abbr=on}} remaining, opening a margin of two minutes. His lead steadily increased, and he finished in the Parc des Princes over five minutes ahead of teammate [[Piet Rentmeester]].<ref name="yellow-jersey" /><ref>{{cite magazine|last=Wadley|first=J. B.|author-link=Jock Wadley|title=Tea-Time at the Parc|url=http://www.internationalcyclesport.com/html/1963_bordeaux-paris.html|magazine=[[Sporting Cyclist]]|publisher=[[Charlie Buchan]]|access-date=28 February 2013|date=July 1963|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111006035221/http://www.internationalcyclesport.com/html/1963_bordeaux-paris.html|archive-date=6 October 2011|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=147–149}}

Simpson announced that he would not ride the Tour de France, concentrating on the world road championships instead. Before, he won the Isle of Man International in treacherous conditions where only sixteen out of seventy riders finished.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=150–151}} At the [[1963 UCI Road World Championships|road world championships]] in Ronse, Belgium, the Belgians controlled the race until Simpson broke free, catching two riders ahead: [[Henry Anglade]] (France) and [[Shay Elliott]] (Ireland). Anglade was dropped, and Elliott refused to work with Simpson.{{refn|[[Shay Elliott]] rode for {{UCI team code|Saint-Raphaël|1963|nolink=yes}}, the rival team of Simpson's Peugeot team, and would not work with Simpson and risk him winning.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=154}} Two years later Simpson revealed in ''[[The Sunday People|The People]]'' that he offered Elliott £1,100 for him to work with him.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=106}}|group=n|name=elliott}} They were caught; the race finished in a bunch sprint,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=153–155}} with Simpson crossing the line in 29th.<ref>{{cite web|title=World Championships 1963|url=http://www.the-sports.org/cycling-world-championships-results-1963-men-epm11986.html|work=The-Sports.org|publisher=Info Média Conseil|access-date=5 May 2015|location=Québec, Canada|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150215220517/http://www.the-sports.org/cycling-world-championships-results-1963-men-epm11986.html|archive-date=15 February 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Simpson's season ended with six-day races across Europe and an invitation only race on the Pacific island of [[New Caledonia]], along with other European riders. He skipped his usual winter training schedule for his first skiing holiday at [[Saint-Gervais-les-Bains]] in the Alps, taking Helen and his two young daughters, Jane and Joanne.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=157–161}}

===1964: Milan–San Remo===
After a training camp near Nice in southern France Simpson rode in the one-day [[Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne]] in Belgium,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=162}} finishing second to {{UCI team code|Solo|1964}}'s [[Arthur Decabooter]]. The conditions were so cold, he only completed the race to keep warm.<ref name="letour-1964tdf-starters">{{cite web|title=The 1964 starters|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1964/partants.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130705041503/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1964/partants.html|archive-date=5 July 2013 |access-date=7 July 2013}}</ref> Albert Beurick started Simpson's supporters club at the Café Den Engel, raising £250 for him in the first nine months. In [[1964 Paris–Nice|Paris–Nice]], his tyre punctured during stage four, losing five minutes and used the rest of the race for training.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=163}}

[[File:1964 Milan–San Remo profile.svg|thumb|upright=1.5|alt=Topography chart of Milan-San Remo Classic race|Profile of the [[1964 Milan–San Remo]], which Simpson won, riding his second season with {{UCI team code|Peugeot|1964}}]]
On 19 March, two days later, Simpson rode in [[1964 Milan–San Remo|Milan–San Remo]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=163}} Before the race, French journalist [[René de Latour]] advised Simpson not to attack early: "If you feel good then keep it for the last hour of the race."{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=163}} In the final {{convert|32|km|1|abbr=on}}, Simpson escaped in a group of four riders, which included the 1961 winner, Poulidor of {{UCI team code|Mercier|1964|nolink=yes}}. On final climb, the Poggio, Poulidor launched a series of attacks on the group; only Simpson managed to stay with him and they crossed the summit and descended into San Remo. With 500&nbsp;m to go, Simpson began his sprint; Poulidor could not respond, leaving Simpson to take the victory with a record average speed of {{convert|27.1|mph|1|abbr=on}}.<ref name="letour-1964tdf-starters" /><ref name="1964-story">{{cite web|title=The 1964 Milan-San Remo |url=http://www.milansanremo.co.uk/1964/1964story.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921060123/http://www.milansanremo.co.uk/1964/1964story.htm |archive-date=21 September 2013 |access-date=29 October 2016  |url-status=dead |work=The Milan-San Remo Cycle Race }}</ref><ref name="world-champion">{{cite magazine|title=World Champion|series=Remembering Tom Simpson|magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling]]|publisher=[[IPC Media]]|location=London|pages=8–9|date=29 January 1977}}</ref>

Simpson spent the next two months training for the [[1964 Tour de France|Tour de France]] at the end of June.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=167}} After the first week of the Tour, Simpson was in tenth place overall.<ref name="bri-1964tdf">{{cite web|title=1964 Tour de France|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1964.html|work=BikeRaceInfo|publisher=McGann Publishing|location=Cherokee Village, AR|access-date=3 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603003916/http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1964.html|archive-date=3 June 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> On the ninth stage, he was part of 22-rider breakaway which finished together at Monaco's [[Stade Louis II (1939)|Stade Louis II]]; he placed second to Anquetil, moving up to eighth overall.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=169}}<ref name="c-1964tdf">{{cite magazine|title=1964 Tour de France|url=http://www.tour-racing.co.uk/html/1964_tour_de_france.html|magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling]]|publisher=Temple Press|location=London|access-date=1 March 2013|date=July 1964|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130606113407/http://www.tour-racing.co.uk/html/1964_tour_de_france.html|archive-date=6 June 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> The next day, he finished 20th in the {{convert|20.8|km|1|abbr=on}} time trial.<ref name="bri-1964tdf" /> During the 16th stage, which crossed four [[col]]s, Simpson finished 33rd, 25 minutes and 10 seconds behind the stage winner, and dropped to 17th overall.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=171}}<ref>{{cite web|title=Stage 16 Luchon > Pau|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1964/1600/etape.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819055742/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1964/1600/etape.html|archive-date=19 August 2010|access-date=7 June 2013}}</ref> He finished the Tour in 14th place overall.<ref name="bri-1964tdf" /> Simpson later discovered that he rode the Tour suffering from [[Cestoda|tapeworms]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=171}}<ref name="scotsman" />

After the race, Simpson prepared for the [[1964 UCI Road World Championships|world road championships]] with distance training and criteriums.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=151}} At the world championships on 3 September, the {{convert|290|km|0|abbr=on}} road race consisted of twenty-four laps of a varying circuit at [[Sallanches]] in the French Alps.<ref name="bri-worlds">{{cite web|title=World Professional (Elite) Road Cycling Championship|url=http://www.bikeraceinfo.com/worlds/world-championships-index.html|work=BikeRaceInfo|publisher=McGann Publishing|location=Cherokee Village, AR|access-date=7 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921055509/http://www.bikeraceinfo.com/worlds/world-championships-index.html|archive-date=21 September 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=173}} Simpson crashed on the third lap while descending in wet conditions, damaging a pedal.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=136}} He got back to the peloton, launching a solo attack on a descent; he then chased down the group of four leaders with two laps to go. On the last lap he was dropped by three riders, finishing six seconds behind.<ref name="world-champion" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=172–175}} On 17 October, Simpson rode in the [[1964 Giro di Lombardia|Giro di Lombardia]]. Halfway through the race he was given the wrong ''[[Glossary of bicycling#Musette|musette]]'' (bag) by his team in the [[Glossary of cycling#feed zone|feed zone]], and threw it away. With the head of the race reduced to five riders, [[Molteni (cycling team)|Molteni]]'s [[Gianni Motta]] attacked. Simpson was the only one who could follow, but he began to feel the effects of not eating. Motta gave him part of his food, which sustained him for a while. On the final climb Simpson led Motta, but was exhausted. Over the remaining {{convert|10|km|1|abbr=on}} of flat terrain, Motta dropped him; Simpson cracked, and was repeatedly overtaken,<ref name="letour-1964tdf-starters" /><ref name="world-champion" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=177}} finishing twenty-first.<ref name="the-sports" /> He closed the year riding track races.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=179}}

===1965: World championship and Lombardia===
The Simpson family spent Christmas in England, before a trip to Saint-Gervais-les-Bains, where Simpson injured himself skiing, suffering a broken foot and a sprained ankle. He recovered, riding six-day races. At the Antwerp six-day, he dropped out on the fourth day with a cold. His cold worsened and he missed most of March. He abandoned [[1965 Milan–San Remo|Milan–San Remo]] at the foot of the Poggio.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=183–184}}{{sfn|Simpson|2009|pp=158–160}} On 11 April, he finished seventh in [[1965 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]] after crashing in the lead group.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=185–186}}<ref name="1965-pr">{{cite news|title=Trionfo solitario di Rik Van Looy sul traguardo dell Parigi–Roubaix|trans-title=Rik Van Looy solitary triumph at the finish line of the Paris–Roubaix|url=http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,13/articleid,0102_02_1965_0086_0013_5571167/|newspaper=[[La Stampa]]|date=13 April 1965|page=13|language=it|access-date=3 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150528140923/http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,13/articleid,0102_02_1965_0086_0013_5571167/|archive-date=28 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> The crash forced him to miss the Tour of Flanders as he struggled to walk on his injured foot. In [[1965 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|Liège–Bastogne–Liège]] he attacked with {{UCI team code|Salvarani|1965}}'s [[Felice Gimondi]], catching an early break. They worked together for {{convert|25|km|1|abbr=on}}, until Gimondi gave up. Simpson rode alone before slipping on oil mixed with water; he stayed with the front group, finishing tenth.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=187–188}}<ref name="letour-1965tdf-starters">{{cite web|title=The 1965 starters|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1965/partants.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130705041454/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1965/partants.html|archive-date=5 July 2013 |access-date=7 July 2013}}</ref>

On 29 May, Simpson rode in the London–[[Holyhead]] race, the longest unpaced one-day race, with a distance of {{convert|265|mi|0|abbr=on|adj=on}};<ref name="world-champion" />{{sfn|Saunders|1971|p=66}} he won in a bunch sprint, setting a record of ten hours and twenty-nine minutes.{{sfn|Simpson|2009|pp=163–165}} He followed with an appearance at Bordeaux–Paris. [[François Mahé]] ({{UCI team code|Pelforth|1965}}) went on a lone break, Simpson attacked in pursuit, followed by Jean Stablinski. Simpson's derny broke down, and he was delayed changing motorbikes. He caught Stablinski, and was joined by Anquetil. Outside Paris Mahé was caught and dropped, after {{convert|200|km|0|abbr=on}} on his own. Anquetil won the race by fifty-seven seconds ahead of Stablinski, who beat Simpson in a sprint.<ref name="letour-1965tdf-starters" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=191–192}}<ref>{{cite web|last=Jones|first=Graham|title=The Legend, the D.S., the Domestique and an Englishman|url=http://www.cyclingrevealed.com/Nov10/Nov_feature10_B-P1965.html|work=CyclingRevealed|access-date=5 June 2013|date=November 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921061509/http://www.cyclingrevealed.com/Nov10/Nov_feature10_B-P1965.html|archive-date=21 September 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> Peugeot manager [[:fr:Gaston Plaud|Gaston Plaud]] ordered Simpson to ride the [[Grand Prix du Midi Libre|Midi Libre]] stage race to earn a place in the [[1965 Tour de France|Tour de France]], and he finished third overall.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=193}} The 1965 Tour was considered open due to Anquetil's absence,{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2006|p=6}} and Simpson was among the riders favoured by ''L'Équipe''. During stage nine he injured his hand crashing on the descent of the Col d'Aubisque in the Pyrenees,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=195}} finishing tenth in the stage and seventh in general classification.<ref name="bri-1965tdf">{{cite web|title=1965 Tour de France|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1965.html|work=BikeRaceInfo|publisher=McGann Publishing|location=Cherokee Village, AR|access-date=13 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603014958/http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1965.html|archive-date=3 June 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> Simpson developed bronchitis after stage fifteen and [[Glossary of cycling#crack|cracked]] on the next stage, losing nearly nineteen minutes. His hand became infected, but he rode the next three stages before the Tour doctor stopped him from racing.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=196}} He was taken to hospital, where they operated on his hand and treated him for blood poisoning, bronchitis and a kidney infection.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=196}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=190}}

[[File:Tom Simpson rainbow jersey.svg|thumb|left|upright|alt=World champion's rainbow jersey, with Peugeot insignia|Simpson won the [[1965 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|1965 world road race championship]], claiming the [[rainbow jersey]] and wearing it during the following season.]]
After ten days off his bike, Simpson was only contracted to three post-Tour criteriums. His training for the [[1965 UCI Road World Championships|road world championships]] included [[Kermesse (cycling)|kermesse]] circuit races in Flanders. Simpson's last race before the world championships was the [[Paris–Luxembourg]] stage race, riding as a super-''[[domestique]]'' (lieutenant).{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=197–198}} On 5 September, Simpson rode in the [[1965 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|road race]] at the world championships in [[San Sebastián]], Spain.<ref name="bri-worlds" /> The race was a {{convert|267.4|km|0|abbr=on}} hilly circuit of fourteen laps. The British team had no support; Simpson and his friend Albert Beurick obtained food and drink by stealing from other teams.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=199–200}} During the first lap, a strong break was begun by British rider [[Barry Hoban]]. As his lead stretched to one minute, Simpson and teammates [[Vin Denson]] and [[Alan Ramsbottom]] bridged the gap, followed by Germany's Rudi Altig. Hoban kept the pace high enough to prevent any of the favourites from joining. Simpson and Altig broke clear with two-and-a-half laps remaining, staying together until the final kilometre, when Simpson launched his sprint; he held off Altig for victory by three bike lengths, becoming the first British professional world road race champion.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=200–202}}<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Simpson Champion|magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling]]|publisher=Go Magazine|location=London|pages=16–17|date=11 September 1965|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/tom-simpson-britains-first-pro-road-champion-57139|access-date=6 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150529200521/http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/tom-simpson-britains-first-pro-road-champion-57139|archive-date=29 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 16 October, Simpson rode in the [[1965 Giro di Lombardia|Giro di Lombardia]], which featured five mountain passes. He escaped with Motta, and dropped him before the finish in [[Como]] to win his third "monument" classic over three minutes ahead of the rest. Simpson was the second world champion to win in Italy; the first was [[Alfredo Binda]] in 1927.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=204–205}}{{sfn|Simpson|2009|pp=179–180}}<ref name="tragic-day">{{cite magazine|title=That last tragic day on Mont Ventoux|series=Remembering Tom Simpson|magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling]]|publisher=[[IPC Media]]|location=London|pages=11–12|date=5 February 1977}}</ref> Simpson was offered lucrative contracts by teams, including {{UCI team code|FLA|1962|nolink=yes}} who were prepared to pay him the year's salary in advance. He could not escape his contract with Peugeot, which ran until the end of the 1967 season.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=206}} For the next three weeks he rode contract races, riding an estimated {{convert|12000|mi|abbr=on}}. He rode 18 races, with each earning him £300–£350.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=129}}

Simpson ended the year second to Anquetil in the Super Prestige Pernod International, and won the ''[[Daily Express]]'' Sportsman of the Year, the [[Sports Journalists' Association]] Sportsman of the Year, presented by the Prime Minister [[Harold Wilson]], and the [[BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award|BBC Sports Personality of the Year]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=207–210}}{{sfn|Pierre|1967|p=66}} In British cycling Simpson won the British Cycling Federation Personality of the Year and the [[Frederick Thomas Bidlake|Bidlake]] Memorial Prize.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=208}}<ref name="bidlake">{{cite web|title=Recipients|url=http://www.bidlakememorial.org.uk/Recipients.htm|work=The F. T. [[Frederick Thomas Bidlake|Bidlake]] Memorial Trust|access-date=20 April 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130724054459/http://bidlakememorial.org.uk/Recipients.htm|archive-date=24 July 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> He was given the [[Freedom of the City|freedom]] of Sint-Amandsberg; his family, including his parents, were driven in an open-top car along the crowd-lined route from the Café Den Engel to the [[:nl:Stadhuis van Gent|Town Hall]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=208}}
{{clear}}

===1966: An injury-ridden season===
As in the previous winter, Simpson went on a skiing holiday. On 25 January he fell, breaking his right [[tibia]], and his leg was in a plaster cast until the end of February. He missed contract races, crucial training and most of the spring classics. Simpson began riding again in March, and in late April started, but did not finish, [[1966 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|Liège–Bastogne–Liège]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=211–216}}

[[File:Col du Galibier, October 8, 2009.jpg|thumb|alt=Winding mountain road, with messages painted on the pavement|Simpson crashed descending the [[Col du Galibier]] ''(pictured)'' during stage sixteen of the [[1966 Tour de France]], injuring his arm and forcing him to abandon the Tour the next day.]]
Simpson's injury did not stop the press from naming him a favourite for the [[1966 Tour de France|Tour de France]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=211–216}} He was subdued in the race until stage twelve, when he forced a breakaway with Altig (Molteni), finishing second.<ref name="bri-1966tdf">{{cite web|title=1966 Tour de France|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1966.html|work=BikeRaceInfo|publisher=McGann Publishing|location=Cherokee Village, AR|access-date=1 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170901140011/http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1966.html|archive-date=1 September 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="letour-1966tdf-starters">{{cite web|title=The 1966 starters|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1966/partants.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130704010426/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1966/partants.html|archive-date=4 July 2013 |access-date=4 July 2013}}</ref> Simpson again finished second in the next stage, jumping clear of the peloton in a three-rider group in the final kilometres. After the stage he was eighteenth overall, over seven minutes down.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=220–221}}<ref name="letour-1966tdf-starters" /> Simpson moved up to 16th after finishing 5th in stage 14b&nbsp;– a short time trial.<ref name="bri-1966tdf" /><ref name="letour-1966tdf-starters" /> As the race reached the Alps, he decided to make his move. During stage sixteen he attacked on the descent of the first of three cols, the [[Col de la Croix de Fer|Croix de Fer]]. He crashed but continued, attacking again. Simpson was joined by {{UCI team code|Ford France|1966}}'s [[Julio Jiménez (cyclist)|Julio Jiménez]] on the climb of the [[Col du Télégraphe|Télégraphe]] to the [[Col du Galibier|Galibier]]. Simpson was caught by a chase group descending the Galibier before he crashed again, knocked off his bike by a press motorcycle. The crash required five stitches in his arm.{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2006|p=253}}<ref name="letour-1966tdf-starters" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=222–225}} The next day he struggled to hold the handlebars and could not use the brake lever with his injured arm, forcing him to abandon. His answer to journalists asking about his future was, "I don't know. I'm heartbroken. My season is ruined."{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=175}}

After recovering from his injury Simpson rode 40 criteriums in 40 days, capitalising on his world championship and his attacks in the Tour.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=226}} He retired from the [[1966 UCI Road World Championships|road world championships]] at the Nürburgring with [[cramp]].<ref name="tragic-day" /> His road season ended with retirements from autumn classics Paris–Tours and the Giro di Lombardia. He rode six-day races, finishing fourteenth in the winter rankings.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=227–228}} The misfortune he endured during the season made him the first rider named as a victim of the "[[curse of the rainbow jersey]]".{{sfn|Wilcockson|2009|p=159}} For the winter Simpson took his family to the island of [[Corsica]], planning the build of his retirement home.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=228}}

===1967: Paris–Nice and Vuelta stages===
Simpson's primary objective for 1967 was overall victory in the [[1967 Tour de France|Tour de France]]; in preparation, he planned to ride stage races instead of one-day classics. Simpson felt his chances were good because this Tour was contested by national, rather than professional teams.<ref name="win-tour">{{cite interview|last=Simpson|first=Tom|interviewer=Ken Evans|title='We can win the Tour'|magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling]]|publisher=Longacre Press|location=London|pages=14–15|date=8 April 1967}}</ref>{{refn|The national team format was used in the [[1967 Tour de France]] after tour organiser, [[Félix Lévitan]], believed the team sponsors were behind the riders' strike in the previous year's Tour.{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2008|p=24}}|group=n|name=teams}} He would lead the British team, which&nbsp;– although one of the weakest&nbsp;– would support him totally,<ref name="haunts">{{cite news|last=Gallagher|first=Brendan|title=Tom Simpson haunts Tour 40 years on|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/columnists/brendangallagher/2316933/Tom-Simpson-haunts-Tour-40-years-on.html|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=30 April 2013|location=London|date=13 July 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111024543/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/columnists/brendangallagher/2316933/Tom-Simpson-haunts-Tour-40-years-on.html|archive-date=11 November 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> unlike Peugeot.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=238}} During Simpson's previous three years with Peugeot, he was only guaranteed a place on their Tour team if he signed with them for the following year.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=176}} Free to join a new team for the 1968 season, he was offered at least ten contracts; Simpson had a verbal agreement with Italian team Salvarani, and would share its leadership with Felice Gimondi.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=228}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=130}} In an interview with ''Cycling'' (now [[Cycling Weekly]]) journalist, Ken Evans, in April, Simpson revealed his intention to attempt the hour record in the 1967 season. He also said he wanted retire from road racing aged 33, to ride on the track and spend more time with his family.<ref>{{cite interview|last=Simpson|first=Tom|interviewer=Ken Evans|title='I'll get the hour&nbsp;– before the others try'|magazine=[[Cycling Weekly|Cycling]]|publisher=Longacre Press|location=London|pages=4–5|date=1 April 1967}}</ref>

[[File:Eddy Merckx 1967cr.jpg|thumb|left|upright|alt=Eddy Merckx on a bike wearing the Peugeot team kit|Simpson contested leadership of {{UCI team code|Peugeot|1967}} with 21-year-old [[Eddy Merckx]] ''(pictured)'' at the [[1967 Paris–Nice]], which Simpson won.]]
In March he rode in the [[1967 Paris–Nice|Paris–Nice]]. After stage two his teammate, [[Eddy Merckx]], took the overall lead.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=58}} Simpson moved into the lead the next day as part of a breakaway, missed by Merckx, which finished nearly twenty minutes ahead. Merckx thought Simpson double-crossed him, but Simpson was a passive member of the break.<ref name="tragic-day" />{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=230–231}} At the start of stage six, Simpson was in second place behind {{UCI team code|Bic|1967}}'s [[Rolf Wolfshohl]].{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=231}} Merckx drew clear as the race approached Mont Faron, with Simpson following. They stayed together until the finish in [[Hyères]], with Simpson allowing Merckx to take first place. Simpson finished over a minute ahead of Wolfshohl, putting him in the race leader's white jersey.<ref>{{cite web|last=Sidwells |first=Chris |title=Paris–Nice 1967 – Part 4 |url=http://www.chrissidwells.com/archive/Paris-Nice-1967-4.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029185929/http://www.chrissidwells.com/archive/Paris-Nice-1967-4.html |archive-date=29 October 2013 |access-date=29 October 2016  |url-status=dead |work=ChrisSidwells.com |date=March 2012 }}</ref> He held the lead in the next two stages to win the race.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=232}} Three days later Simpson and Merckx both raced in [[1967 Milan–San Remo|Milan–San Remo]].<ref name="MSR67">{{cite web|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/classics/Milan-San%20Remo/1967-milan-san-remo.html|title=1967 Milano&nbsp;— San Remo|work=BikeRaceInfo|publisher=McGann Publishing|location=Cherokee Village, AR|access-date=3 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150610070044/http://bikeraceinfo.com/classics/Milan-San%20Remo/1967-milan-san-remo.html|archive-date=10 June 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Simpson escaped early in a five-rider breakaway lasting about {{convert|220|km|0|abbr=on}}, before Merckx won in a bunch sprint with assistance from Simpson,{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|pp=59–60}}{{sfn|Saunders|1971|p=55}} who finished in seventieth place.<ref name="MSR67" /> After {{convert|110|mi|0|abbr=on}} of [[1967 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]], Simpson's bike was unridable and he retired from the race.<ref name="tragic-day" />

In late April Simpson rode in his first [[1967 Vuelta a España|Vuelta a España]], using the eighteen-stage race to prepare for the Tour. During stage two a breakaway group gained over thirteen minutes, dashing his hopes for a high placing. Simpson nearly quit the race before the fifth stage, from Salamanca to Madrid, but rode it because it was easier to get home by air from Madrid. He won the stage, attacking from a breakaway,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=233–234}} and finished second in stage seven.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.com/preview/1967/05/04/pagina-9/944143/pdf.html#&mode=fullScreen|format=PDF|title=Clasificacions|language=es|trans-title=Classifications|newspaper=[[Mundo Deportivo]]|page=9|date=4 May 1967|access-date=30 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161030075647/http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.com/preview/1967/05/04/pagina-9/944143/pdf.html#&mode=fullScreen|archive-date=30 October 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> On the eleventh stage, concluding in Andorra, Simpson rode away from the peloton on his own. With {{convert|30|km|1|abbr=on}} remaining, he began to lose control of his bike and was halted by Peugeot manager Gaston Plaud until he had recovered, by which time the race had passed.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|pp=217–218}} In an interview with ''L'Équipe'''s Philippe Brunel in February 2000,{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=156}} Tour de France physician [[Pierre Dumas]] revealed that Simpson told him that he was taken to hospital during the Vuelta.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=167}} Simpson won stage sixteen, which ended in San Sebastián,{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=233–234}} and finished the Vuelta thirty-third overall.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.com/preview/1967/05/15/pagina-9/937779/pdf.html#&mode=fullScreen|format=PDF|title=Clasificacions|language=es|trans-title=Classifications|newspaper=[[Mundo Deportivo]]|page=9|date=15 May 1967|access-date=30 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161030140325/http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.com/preview/1967/05/15/pagina-9/937779/pdf.html#&mode=fullScreen|archive-date=30 October 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

Simpson was determined to make an impact in the Tour de France; in his eighth year as a professional cyclist, he hoped for larger appearance fees in post-Tour criteriums to help secure his financial future after retirement.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|pp=237–238}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|pp=130–131}} His plan was to finish in the top three, or to wear the yellow jersey at some point in the race. He targeted three key stages, one of which was the thirteenth, over [[Mont Ventoux]], and planned to ride conservatively until the race reached the mountains.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=239}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|pp=28–29}}{{sfn|McGann|McGann|2008|pp=27–28}} In the prologue, Simpson finished thirteenth.<ref name="tragic-day" /> After the first week he was in sixth place overall, leading the favourites.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=244}} As the race crossed the Alps, Simpson fell ill, across the Col du Galibier, with diarrhoea and stomach pains.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=179}} Unable to eat, he finished stage ten in 16th place and dropped to seventh overall as his rivals passed him.{{sfn|Sidwells|2000|p=244}}<ref name="letour-1967tdf-10">{{cite web|title=Stage 10 Divonne > Briançon|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1967/1000/etape.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819053821/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1967/1000/etape.html|archive-date=19 August 2010|access-date=28 May 2015}}</ref> Teammate Vin Denson advised Simpson to limit his losses and accept what he had.<ref name="haunts" /> He placed in 39th position on stage 11 and 7th on stage 12.<ref name="letour-1967tdf-11">{{cite web|title=Stage 11 Briançon > Digne|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1967/1100/etape.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819053823/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1967/1100/etape.html|archive-date=19 August 2010|access-date=28 May 2015}}</ref><ref name="letour-1967tdf-12">{{cite web|title=Stage 12 Digne > Marseille|url=http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1967/1200/etape.html|work=The history of the Tour de France|publisher=[[Amaury Sport Organisation|ASO]]|location=Paris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819054558/http://www.letour.fr/HISTO/us/TDF/1967/1200/etape.html|archive-date=19 August 2010|access-date=28 May 2015}}</ref> In Marseille, on the evening before stage thirteen, Simpson's manager, Daniel Dousset, pressured him for good results.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=131}} Plaud begged Simpson to quit the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2007|p=217}}
{{clear}}