Pavel Tonkov

Tonkov in 2005
Personal information
Full name	Pavel Sergeyevich Tonkov
Nickname	The Tsar
Born	(1969-02-09) 9 February 1969 (age 54) Izhevsk, Soviet Union
Team information
Current team	Retired
Discipline	Road
Role	Rider
Rider type	All-rounder
Professional teams
1992	Russ
1992–1995	Lampre
1996	Ceramiche Panaria–Vinavil
1997–2000	Mapei
2001	Mercury–Viatel
2002	Lampre–Daikin
2003	CCC-Polsat
2004	Vini Caldirola-Nobili Rubinetterie
2005	Team LPR
Major wins
Grand Tours Giro d'Italia General classification (1996) Young rider classification (1992, 1993) 7 individual stages (1996, 1997,1998, 2002, 2004) Vuelta a España 2 individual stages (1997) Stage Races Tour de Suisse (1995) Tour de Romandie (1997)

Pavel Sergeyevich Tonkov (Павел Сергеевич Тонков; born 9 February 1969 in Izhevsk)^[1] is a former professional road racing cyclist from Russia. His talents were first showcased when winning the world junior title as part of the Soviet Union team in 1987. This alerted the world to his talents, and he turned pro in 1992 with the RUSS-Baïkal team.

Professional career

His biggest success was the overall win in the 1996 Giro d'Italia. He went on to place 2nd in the following two editions of the Italian race and all total he placed in the top 5 of the Giro on seven occasions. He also had two top 5 performances in the Vuelta and while he entered the Tour de France on three occasions he never completed one.

He won the 1995 Tour de Suisse and the 1997 Tour de Romandie.^[2] He placed 3rd overall in the 2000 Vuelta a España.^[2]

Throughout much of his career, he was a client of the controversial Michele Ferrari.

He retired in 2005.

Personal life

He lives in Córdoba, Spain, where he manages a hotel.

Career achievements

Major results

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

Grand Tour	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004
Giro d'Italia	7	5	4	6	1	2	2	—	5	—	5	DNF	13
Tour de France	—	—	DNF	DNF	—	—	—	DNF[N 1]	—	—	—	—	—
Vuelta a España	—	—	—	—	—	DNF	—	4	3	—	67	—	DNF

Notes