A native of Isola della Scala, Verona, Italy, Eros Poli is best remembered for his 1994 Tour de France stage 15 win of Mont Ventoux after a 106 mile solo escape. Eros, at 6 feet 4 inches and 187 pounds, was not a prospect to win one of the most difficult and famous climbs in the Tour de France. He escaped, however, from the peloton very early on and, under conditions of searing heat, arrived at the base of Mont Ventoux with a 22 minute lead. Steadily, the chase pack of climbers began taking back time. Arriving at the final 300 meters of the climb where the grade is 11% the lead had dwindled to 4 minutes. Eros survived Mont Ventoux and then hammered the descent to arrive in Carpentras to an incredible win by 3 minutes and 39 seconds ahead of Pantani and Virenque. His escape and victory earned him the nickname “Monsieur Mont Ventoux”.
Eros raced professionally from 1991 to 2000 for the Del Tongo-MG, MG-Bianchi, Mercatone Uno-Saeco, Saeco, GAN and Credit Agricole teams. He was a founding member of the famous Mario Cipollini red train, and was also the lead out man for Frederic Moncassin. In the peloton he was highly respected for his honesty and fairness. As an amateur, Eros’ palmares include: Gold Medalist in the Men’s Team Road Race, 1984 Olympics (Los Angeles, USA); Gold Medalist in the 100 Km Team Time Trial, Road World Championship (Villach, Austria); and Italian National Champion in Pursuit.
Eros Poli’s 2007 tours will be offered to international clients and will include cycling in Italy and France.