Niki Rüttimann

Niki Rüttimann is a Swiss former road racing cyclist, born on 18 August 1962 in Untereggen. He is remembered as one of the most important domestiques of the La Vie Claire teams of the mid 1980s, riding in support of Bernard Hinault and staying close to both Hinault and Greg LeMond as they battled for the Tour victory in 1985 and 1986. He finished 11th overall in the 1984 Tour de France, 13th in 1985 and 7th in 1986, and he won stage 14 of a Tour de France in the mid 1980s. In 1987 he won a stage of the Tour de Romandie and a stage of the Criterium du Dauphine, then went into the Tour de France supporting Jean-Francois Bernard, who held the yellow jersey late in the race and finished third overall while Rüttimann stayed with him until he abandoned on the final stage in the high mountains. In 1988 he won two stages and finished second overall in the Criterium du Dauphine Libere.