The brand was synonymous with French bicycle racing from the 1960s through the mid-1980s, sponsoring riders such as Jacques Anquetil (1963–1965), Lucien Van Impe (1974–1976), Bernard Hinault (1975–1983), Laurent Fignon (1982–1988), and Greg LeMond (1981–1984).
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Later, BH sold Gitane/Peugeot and the rest of Cycleurope to the Swedish Monark conglomerate.
He ran Gitane-Campagnolo, Renault-Elf-Gitane, Système U-Gitane, Super U, Castorama, and Cofidis; riders under his direction included Van Impe, Hinault, Laurent Fignon, Greg LeMond, Charly Mottet and Marc Madiot.
The group began in Los Angeles when guitarist/vocalist Valor Kand responded to an ad for "female vocalist available" in Los Angeles newspaper The Recycler, placed by singer Gitane Demone.