Federico Martn Bahamontes, the Eagle of Toledo, is rated by many as the greatest climber in cyclings history. The first Spaniard to win the Tour de France and a six-time champion of the races gruelling King of the Mountains classification, he became a national hero in a Spain struggling to rebuild after the atrocities and divisions of the Civil War. An eccentric of phenomenal willpower, he is one of the few key personalities from Spains lost generations to remain alive and as Alasdair Fotheringham discovered when interviewing him for this fascinating biography more than willing to tell the tale.
