The funeral for Raymond Poulidor, who died Wednesday, will be held next Tuesday in his hometown of Saint-Leonard de Nobla, near Limoges in midwestern France.

Poulidor, who reached the podium eight times without winning the Tour de France (opens in new tab) and was known as the "eternal second best," died early Wednesday morning after a two-month hospitalization. He was 83 years old.

Since then, tributes from the cycling world have abounded, revealing just how respected the Frenchman was in the cycling world.

The French newspaper L'Equipe devoted its Thursday front page and page 16 to Poulidor, loving Pouparité - how his name became synonymous with second place finishes, Jacques Anquetil, and his famous showdown with Eddy Merckx, and especially admiring his fighting spirit He was remembered for his love of meeting people who admired his fighting spirit.

According to French news agency AFP, his funeral will be held at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, November 19, at the UNESCO-listed church of Saint-Leonard in his hometown in central France.

Village mayor Alain Darbon told AFP that the ceremony will be open to the public and will feature a large screen to accommodate the crowds that will probably gather for France's most popular cyclist. Many former athletes and cycling luminaries will also be in attendance, including Poulidor's grandsons Mathieu and David Van der Pol.

According to Darbon, Poulidor's family has agreed to welcome Poulidor's fans and allow them to bring flowers and plaques.

In addition, next year's Tour de France will pay tribute to Poulidor when stage 12 passes through the village, which has a population of 4,700.