Rik Van Steenbergen

Rik Van Steenbergen (Arendonk, 9 September 1924 – Antwerp, 15 May 2003) was a Belgian racing cyclist, considered to be one of the best among the great number of successful Belgian cyclists.

Rik Van Steenbergen
Van Steenbergen in 1967
Personal information
Full nameRik Van Steenbergen
NicknameRik I (Rik II is Rik Van Looy)
Born(1924-09-09)9 September 1924
Belgium
Died15 May 2003(2003-05-15) (aged 78)
Team information
DisciplineRoad/Track
RoleRider
Rider typeClassics specialist, Sprinter
Major wins
World Champion (1949, 1956, 1957)
Tour of Flanders (1944, 1946)
Paris–Roubaix (1948, 1952)
La Flèche Wallonne (1949, 1958)
Paris–Brussels (1950)
Milan–San Remo (1954)

Early life

Van Steenbergen was born in Arendonk into a poor family. He worked as an errand boy and a cigar-roller.[1] He began racing at 16 and became one of Belgium's best juniors from 1940 to 1942.

Career

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 Tour of Flanders 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–San Remo. He also won the World Road Cycling Championships three times (1949 Copenhagen, 1956 Copenhagen and 1957 Waregem), 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. He held the Ruban Jaune for seven years for winning the 1948 Paris-Roubaix in a record average speed for a professional race, covering the 246 km at an average of 43.612 km per hour.

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.

Career achievements

Highlights

Major results

Source:[2]

1943
1st Road race, National Road Championships
1944
1st Tour of Flanders
1945
1st Road race, National Road Championships
1946
1st Tour of Flanders
1948
1st Paris–Roubaix
1949
1st Road race, UCI Road World Championships
Tour de France
1st Stages 12 & 21
1st La Flèche Wallonne
1950
1st Paris–Brussels
1951
2nd Overall Giro d'Italia
1st Stages 1 & 15
Held after Stages 1, 7, & 13–17
1952
Giro d'Italia
1st Stages 6, 9 & 10
Tour de France
1st Stage 1
Held after Stages 1–2
1st Paris–Roubaix
1953
1st Stage 9 Giro d'Italia
1954
1st Road race, National Road Championships
Giro d'Italia
1st Stages 5, 16, 17 & 22
1st Milan–San Remo
1955
1st Stage 16 Tour de France
1956
1st Road race, UCI Road World Championships
5th Overall Vuelta a España
6 stages
1957
1st Road race, UCI Road World Championships
Giro d'Italia
1st Stages 1, 11, 17b, 20 & 21
1958
1st La Flèche Wallonne

Retirement

After his cycling career he entered a dark period. He was named in connection with many unsavory practices. He had a gambling addiction and was suspected of drug trafficking, conspiracy and incitement to debauchery.[3]

During this period, in 1968, he also starred in the Belgian adult movie Pandore as the character Dimitri. The movie tells the story of an industrialist who neglects his young wife. The couple are looking for solace in extramarital relationships. They make a trip to Greece to save their relationship, but over there the woman pays more attention to Dimitri, a local fisherman. In the context of that era the movie was a sensational, provocative, scandal movie.[3][4][5][6]

Van Steenbergen also ended up in jail for a while. He came close to prison for smuggling a suspect package over the Dutch border.[7] But his marriage with the British Doreen Hewitt saved him from ruin and he got his life back on track.[3][4]

Death and commemoration
Statue of Rik Van Steenbergen

Rik 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.

In 2004 a statue was erected in his honour on the Wampenberg in Arendonk.

Books

Walter Rottiers: Rik Van Steenbergen. Das Ass der Asse. Bielefeld, Covadonga-Verlag, 2005. 144 p. ISBN 3936973156 (German)

Rik van Steenbergen: Geschiedenis der Kruistochten. Rebo Productions. 1987 203 p. (Flemish)

Fred De Bruyne: Rik van Steenbergen. Mechelen, Uitgave G. Kolff, 1963. (Flemish)

gollark: I wrote the osmarkscalculator™ parser lately.
gollark: Don't we all? Except LyricLy.
gollark: Consume bees (milliscale).
gollark: (Not that you ever haven't been.)
gollark: Said very confidently by a person composed of attoscale bees nowadays.

See also

References
  1. The Bicycle, UK, 31 May 1950, p. 4
  2. Rik Van Steenbergen at Cycling Archives
  3. Piedfort, Dominique (8 September 2010). "Wielerlegende Rik Van Steenbergen duikt op in seksfilm" [Cycling legend Rik Van Steenbergen appears in adult movie]. Gazet van Antwerpen (in Dutch).
  4. maj (8 September 2010). "Bioscoop speelt seksfilm met Rik Van Steenbergen" [Cinema plays adult movie with Rik Van Steenbergen]. De Standaard (in Dutch).
  5. Ilegems, Andreas (30 August 2010). "Vlaamse schandaalfilms in Cinema Zuid" [Flemish scandal movies in Cinema Zuid]. Knack (in Dutch).
  6. "Pandore (1968)". Internet Movie Database.
  7. Fotheringham, William (24 May 2003). "Obituary: Henri Van Steenbergen". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
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