In road bicycle racing, a domestique is a rider who works for the benefit of their team and leader, rather than trying to win the race. In French, domestique translates as "servant". The use of the term dates back to 1911, although such riders had existed before then. Theoretical basis Much of a cyclist's effort is to push aside the air in front of them. Riding in the slipstream of another rider is easier than taking the lead. The difference increases with speed. Racers have known this from the start and have ridden accordingly, often sharing the lead between them. From there it is a small step to employing a rider to create a slipstream while their leader rides behind them. More complicated tactics become possible as the number of domestiques available increases (see below). Where the domestique finishes a race is less important than the help he gives. During their role as domestiques, riders do not share the fame of their respective leaders, such as Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, or Miguel Induráin. Many domestiques have ultimately gone on to achieve fame of their own, however. Lucien Aimar, who supported Jacques Anquetil, won the 1966 Tour de France. Greg LeMond won the 1986 Tour de France after being Bernard Hinault's domestique in the 1985 Tour de France, as did Jan Ullrich in 1997 after riding for Bjarne Riis in 1996, and Chris Froome in 2013 after riding for Bradley Wiggins in 2012. The writer Roger St Pierre said: First domestiques The first riders known to have been employed to help a leader were Jean Dargassies and Henri Gauban. They rode in the 1907 Tour de France for Henri Pépin, who promised them the equivalent of first prize if they would pace him from restaurant to restaurant. The three never hurried. They took 12 hours and 20 minutes longer than Émile Georget on the stage from Roubaix to Metz – they were far from last – and the judges were powerless because the race was decided not on time but points. It mattered less what speed riders competed than the order in which they crossed the line. In an era when riders could be separated by hours, there was no point in hurrying after a rival who could not be caught and passed. The judges had to wait for everyone. The rules of the Tour in its first decades forbade team