Ron Baensch

Ronald Baensch (5 June 1939 – 28 December 2017) was an Australian racing cyclist, specialising in track sprinting events. He represented Australia at the 1960 Olympics and several World Championships in the 1960s and in 1970.

Ron Baensch
Personal information
Full nameRonald Baensch
Born(1939-06-05)5 June 1939
Melbourne, Australia
Died28 December 2017(2017-12-28) (aged 78)
Height1.77 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in)
Weight58 kg (128 lb; 9.1 st)
Team information
Current teamRetired
DisciplineTrack
RoleRider
Rider typeSprinter
Professional teams
1965Lamot-Libertas
1966Libertas
1967Casagrande
1970Carlton-Truwel-Campagnolo

Cycling career

1960 Olympic Games

Baensch competed in the 1,000 metre sprint at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. Losing to eventual gold medalist Sante Gaiardoni in the semi-final and to Valentino Gasparella in the final round race for bronze, Baensch finished in fourth place.[1][2]

UCI Track Cycling World Championships

Baensch won a bronze medal in the men's amateur sprint at the 1961 World Championships in Zurich.[3] After turning professional in 1964, he won silver in the men's sprint at the 1964 World Championships in Paris,[4] bronze in the 1965 (San Sebastian)[5] and silver again in 1966 (Frankfurt).[6]

Baensch was fined ƒ 2,000 and disqualified from the 1967 World Championships in Amsterdam after testing positive to ephedrine.[7] He claimed to have taken the drug to combat a heavy cold.[7]

Baensch was beaten by Angelo Domiano in the quarter finals at the 1970 World Championships in Leicester.[8]

Later life

After his professional cycling career, Baensch was a truck driver in Europe and, on his return to Australia in 1974, he settled in Newcastle, New South Wales and worked on oil rigs.[9] He continued to compete in local cycle races in Australia until 1980, winning his last race.[9] In 2011, Baensch was inducted into the Victorian Cycling Hall of Fame.[10]

He died on 28 December 2017 at the age of 78.[11]

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References
  1. "Baensch among World cyclists". The Sydney Morning Herald. 29 August 1960. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
  2. "Cycling at the 1960 Roma Summer Games: Men's Sprint". Sports-Reference.com. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
  3. "World Championship, Track, Sprint, Amateurs 1961". Cycling Archives. Retrieved 16 July 2011.
  4. "Baensch Second in Wild Finish". The Age. Melbourne. 15 September 1964. p. 26. Retrieved 14 June 2010.
  5. "Baensch third in world sprint title". The Age. Melbourne. 14 September 1965. p. 28. Retrieved 14 June 2010.
  6. "Italian retains cycling title". The Age. Melbourne. 6 September 1966. p. 27. Retrieved 14 June 2010.
  7. "Eight more out for dope". Cycling. 9 September 1967. p. 9. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  8. "Day of ups and downs for Australia". The Age. Melbourne. 13 August 1970. p. 26. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  9. Hood, Edmond (9 March 2011). "A Man From The Golden Age: Ron Baensch". Pez Cycling News. Retrieved 16 July 2011.
  10. "Victorian Cycling Hall of Fame Presentation night". Cycling Victoria. 1 March 2011. Archived from the original on 15 March 2011. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  11. OBITUARY: From the Rome Olympics to a Newcastle oil rig - the life and times of cyclist Ron Baensch
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