Hinault auctioning Tour de France jersey for coronavirus fight
Vichot adds French champion's jersey to raise funds for protective gear
Tour de France legend Bernard Hinault, a five-time winner of the race, will auction off one of his many yellow jerseys to help in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. The Breton, together with Arthur Vichot who will auction off his 2016 French Champion's jersey, is raising funds for the Dinan-based 'Souffles d'Espoir' - a cancer charity that is collecting funds to purchase masks for a local hospital to protect healthcare workers from the coronavirus Covid-19.
Hinault, who wore the maillot jaune 75 times during his career, is auctioning off a jersey from the 1982 Tour de France - the year he achieved the Giro d'Italia-Tour double - in hopes of raising €5000. The auction started at €100 and although it does not end until Tuesday, the highest bid is already over €7500.
Vichot's signed jersey is a relative bargain. The auction started at €15 and is up to €500 as of Wednesday.
Organiser Christophe Lefort wrote on the Souffles d'Espoir Facebook page on Saturday that he aimed to put the French champion's jersey up for grabs. "The idea is to put a tricolour jersey up to finance the acquisition of protective masks that will be manufactured by a Dinannaise company, intended for the services of the hospital of Dinan-Cancale-Saint-Malo, as well as other clients in the need.
"Souffles D'Espoir Clc's goal is to help the population and more precisely the fight against cancer, but this epidemic affects the whole world if anyone is confused... So let's help..."
Hinault, an ambassador for the organisation, added his maillot jaune to the mix the following day.
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