MACON, France -- Laurent Jalabert will bid an emotional farewell to the Tour de France on Sunday as he waves to the crowd from the Tour podium wearing the king of the mountains polka-dot jersey.

The veteran Frenchman announced during the Tour that he would retire at the end of the season after 14 years as a professional.

But he showed that his motivation was intact by breaking away in the first climbs of the Pyrenees to score points for the polka-dot jersey he will be sporting for the second straight year on the Champs-Elysees.

And Jalabert, who was at times overshadowed by the popular Richard Virenque, was cheered as never before by French fans on the Tour route.

"It's very pleasant. I'm very touched by these signs of sympathy," he said. "They prove that I'm leaving behind a good image, that people like my attitude, my personality."

Fourth in the 1995 Tour, Jalabert won the Vuelta the same year but was never consistent enough to be a serious Tour contender.

But he has no regrets.

"People remember more than everything else the day in 1995 when I won a stage in Mende on Bastille Day," Jalabert said. "But to win two polka-dot jerseys in succession is also very moving."

Jalabert admitted that experience more than sheer climbing talent had allowed him to be the Tour's best climber twice.

"The two jerseys don't mean I was the best climber in the Tour but the most aggressive," he said. "They're the result of a race strategy and I gave all my energy to win them."

Jalabert also added he had succeeded in winning the climber's classification because the leading favorites had other goals.

"Of course I took advantage of the fact that favorites were watching one another. I showed you could make an impression in the Tour without going for overall victory," Jalabert said. "I understood long ago that I could not bid for overall victory but I wanted to leave my mark on this Tour."

The 33-year-old Frenchman said his decision to retire had not hampered his momentum.

"It proves you can make such an important decision and keep your motivation. I'll keep it until my last race, until the world championship in Zolder."

But Jalabert admitted to feeling tired at the end of his last Tour and said he hoped to pass the baton to the younger generation of French riders.

"People seem to believe that I'll be hard to replace but I see lots of young talented riders and they should confirmed my impression in the next Tour," he said.