Federico Martin Bajamontes, the first Spanish winner of the Tour de France (open in new tab), paid tribute to longtime rival Raymond Poulidor (open in new tab), who died Tuesday at age 83, calling the great French racer "magnificent and warmhearted."

"He was a countryman to the core and had a very healthy outlook on things because of his love of country life," Bajamontes, who won the 1959 Tour, commented to Cycling News upon learning of Poulidor's death.

Widely regarded as the greatest climber in cycling history, the "Eagle of Toledo," now 91, fought many battles with Poulidor in the 1960s.

The most famous confrontation was at the 1964 Tour de France, where, like Poulidor, Baja Montes won a stage in the Pyrenees.

Bajamontes finished third overall in Paris that year, behind winners Jacques Ancuaille and Poulidor of France, the first time in his career that he finished second.

"Raymond sometimes didn't 'read' the race from a competitor's point of view, but overall he was a very good racer in many areas," Bajamontes added. [Like me, he had a very long career and was an exceptional human being. Unlike Anquetil, he was quite different at times.

"Part of the reason Raymond was so widely loved in France was that he was such an open man.

Bajamontes claimed that Poulidor's close relationship with team management was of great benefit to the winners of the 1964 Vuelta a España.

"He and Antonin Magne" (Poulidor's Mercier manager until 1970) "were very close; both were born in the countryside and as a result they stuck together like glue and worked well together.