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Rik Van Steenbergen
Rikvansteenbergen.jpg
Personal information
Full name Rik Van Steenbergen
Date of birth 9 September 1924(1924-09-09)
Date of death 15 May 2003 (aged 78)
Country  Belgium
Team information
Discipline Road
Role Rider
Major wins
World Champion (1949, 1956 and 1957)
Ronde van Vlaanderen (2x)
Paris-Roubaix (2x)
Flèche Wallonne (2x)
Paris-Brussels
Milan-Sanremo
Infobox last updated on:
28 August 2008

Rik Van Steenbergen (9 September 192415 May 2003) was a Belgian racing cyclist, considered to be one of the best among the great number of successful Belgian cyclists.

Contents

[edit] Career

Van Steenbergen was born in Arendonk in a poor family. He started cycling as a professional during World War II in 1942, after being an amateur since he was 14. The next year, he won his first important races, and became Belgian road cycling champion. In 1944, he won the Ronde van Vlaanderen Classic, which he won again two years later.

During his career, which lasted until 1966, Van Steenbergen won several more classics: Paris-Roubaix, Paris-Brussels and Milan-Sanremo. He also won the World Road Cycling Championships three times (1949, 1956 and 1957), equalling the (still standing) record of Alfredo Binda. His last world title, a year after his second, was won in front of a home crowd. In addition, he placed third in the first post-war championships in 1946.

Van Steenbergen also excelled on the track, and won 40 Six-day events, and improved two world records. His track capabilities made him an excellent road sprinter. However, he usually had difficulty climbing, which prevented him from winning major stage races. He nevertheless placed 2nd in the 1951 Giro d'Italia. Some suggest he could have competed for victory in stage races had he concentrated on them, instead of racing almost every race he could enter. It is estimated Van Steenbergen won slightly fewer than 1000 races, though accounts differ widely.

Van Steenbergen died in Antwerp after a prolonged sickness at the age of 78. The funeral was in the Sint Pauluskerk of Westmalle, attended by about 2000 people, including Eddy Merckx, Rik van Looy, Roger De Vlaeminck, Walter Godefroot, Johan De Muynck, Lucien van Impe, Freddy Maertens and Briek Schotte. The UCI president Hein Verbruggen and Belgian prime minister Guy Verhofstadt also attended.

When talking cycling, recalling those heroes from the past, the name of Rik Van Steenbergen is soon on the table. To honour him as the great sportsman he was, in 2004 a statue with his torso was placed on the Wampenberg in Arendonk

[edit] Career highlights

[edit] Major Road Wins

1943
Belgium Belgian Road Race Championship
Championship of Flanders
1944
Ronde van Vlaanderen
1945
Belgium Belgian Road Race Championship
1946
Ronde van Vlaanderen
1948
Paris-Roubaix
1949
Arc en ciel.svg World Road Cycling Championships
Flèche Wallonne
Tour de France
Winner stages 12 and 21
1950
Paris-Brussels
1951
Giro d'Italia
Winner stages 1 and 15
Wearing pink jersey for 7 days (2nd overall classification)
1952
Paris-Roubaix
Giro d'Italia
Winner stages 6, 9 and 10
Tour de France
Winner stage 1
Wearing yellow jersey for 2 days
1953
Giro d'Italia
Winner stage 9
1954
Belgium Belgian Road Race Championship
Milan-Sanremo
Giro d'Italia
Winner stages 5, 16, 17 and 22
1955
Tour de France
Winner stage 16
1956
Arc en ciel.svg World Road Cycling Championships
6 stages Vuelta a España (5th overall classification)
1957
Arc en ciel.svg World Road Cycling Championships
Giro d'Italia
Winner stages 1, 11, 17b, 20 and 21
1958
Flèche Wallonne

[edit] External links

Sporting positions
Preceded by
Achiel Buysse
Winner of the Ronde van Vlaanderen
1944
Succeeded by
Sylvain Grysolle
Preceded by
Sylvain Grysolle
Winner of the Ronde van Vlaanderen
1946
Succeeded by
Emiel Faignaert
Preceded by
Georges Claes
Winner of Paris-Roubaix
1948
Succeeded by
Serse Coppi & André Mahé
Preceded by
Antonio Bevilacqua
Winner of Paris-Roubaix
1952
Succeeded by
Germain Derijcke
Preceded by
Lorezno Petrucci
Winner of Milan-Sanremo
1954
Succeeded by
Germain Derijcke



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