Ron Kiefel

Ronald Alexander Kiefel (born April 11, 1960 in Denver) is a former professional road bicycle racer from the United States. Kiefel is a seven-time Tour de France racer, Olympic bronze medalist and member of the United States Bicycling Hall of Fame.

Ron Kiefel
Kiefel and Frankie Andreu (r-l) racing 1991 Thrift Drug Classic for Motorola
Personal information
Full nameRonald Alexander Kiefel
Nickname"Ron", Wookie[1]
Born (1960-04-11) April 11, 1960
Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Team information
Current teamRetired
DisciplineRoad
RoleRider
Rider typeAll-rounder
Professional teams
1985–19907-Eleven
1991–1992Motorola
1993–1994Coors Light
1995Saturn
Major wins
Grand Tours
1985 Giro d'Italia
1 individual stage

Stage races

Tour de Luxembourg (1992)
1 individual stage
Tour DuPont (1992)
1 individual stage

One-day races and Classics

Trofeo Laigueglia (1985)
Giro di Toscana (1988)

Kiefel rode for American professional teams such as 7-Eleven, Motorola, Coors Light and Saturn. His wins included the 1985 Trofeo Laigueglia and the 1987 Tour of Tuscany.

He became the first American stage winner in a Grand Tour when he won stage 15 (from L'Aquila to Perugia) in the 1985 Giro d'Italia.[2]

He competed in seven Tours de France, and represented the USA at the 1984 Olympic Games, where he won bronze in the team time trial with Roy Knickman, Davis Phinney, and Andy Weaver.[3]

In 1983 Kiefel won the USPRO road championship, the time trial and the team time trial. He was also road champion in 1988. He retired from racing in 1996 and has since commentated on TV and radio for European classics and tours. He is a coach in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, vice president of Wheat Ridge Cyclery, and promotes races and rides.

In 2004, Kiefel was inducted in the United States Bicycling Hall of Fame. He and his wife, Meegan, at one time hosted a weekly AM radio show.[4]

Major results
Ron Kiefel in 100 km team trial race in 1984 Olympics (far right)
  • Stage 15, Giro d'Italia (1985)
  • National Road Race Champion (1983, 1988)
  •  United States National Time Trial Champion (1983)
  •  United States National Team Time Trial Champion (1983)
  • Bronze Medal, Summer Olympics – Men's Team Time Trial (1984)

Year by year
1980
  • 5th, U.S. National Cyclocross Championships[5]
1981
  • 5th, U.S. National Cyclocross Championships
1983
  • 1st, U.S. National Cycling Championships – Road Race
  • 1st, U.S. National Cycling Championships – Individual Time Trial
  • 1st, U.S. National Cycling Championships – Team Time Trial
1984
  • 3rd, Bronze Medal, Los Angeles Summer Olympics – Men's Team Time Trial
  • 9th, Los Angeles Summer Olympics – Men's Individual Road Race
1985
1986
  • 1st, Prologue, Coors Classic (USA)
  • 1st, Stage 17, Coors Classic (USA)
1987
  • 1st, Los Gatos Cat's Hill Classic[6] (USA)
1988
  • 1st, Overall, Tour of Tuscany (ITA)
  • 1st, U.S. National Cycling Championships – Road Race
1989
  • 1st, Stage 10, Tour de Trump (USA)
  • 6th, Overall, Tour de Trump (USA)
1990
1993
  • 1st, Los Gatos Cat's Hill Classic (USA)

Tour de France

Teams
  • 1985 – 7 Eleven
  • 1986 – 7 Eleven
  • 1987 – 7 Eleven
  • 1988 – 7 Eleven
  • 1989 – 7 Eleven
  • 1990 – 7 Eleven-Hoonved
  • 1991 – Motorola
  • 1992 – Motorola
  • 1993 – Coors Light
  • 1994 – Coors Light
  • 1995 – Saturn
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References
  1. Vergne, Laurent (22 July 2015). "Cannibale, Chéri-pipi, Wookie, Andy torticolis… le Top 20 des surnoms mythiques du cyclisme" [Cannibal, Chéri-pipi, Wookie, Andy Torticollis... the Top 20 mythical nicknames of cycling]. Eurosport (in French). Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  2. An American in Italy cyclingnews.com, May 5, 2009
  3. "Ron Kiefel Olympic Results". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2015.
  4. http://66.165.84.174/cyclinghour/
  5. US National Cyclocross Champions 1975–2004
  6. Cat's Hill Classic Bicycle Race
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