Filip Meirhaeghe facts for kids
Meirhaeghe at the start of Omloop het Volk in 2007.
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| Personal information | |||
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| Born | 5 March 1971 Ghent, Belgium |
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| Team information | |||
| Current team | Retired | ||
| Discipline | Road, Mountain bike | ||
| Role | Rider | ||
| Major wins | |||
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Filip Meirhaeghe (born March 5, 1971) is a former professional Belgian racing cyclist. He was most famous for his skills in mountain bike racing. However, he also competed in road, cyclo-cross, and track cycling.
During his career, Filip won many important medals and races. These included four medals at the Mountain Bike World Championships. He also earned an Olympic medal. In total, he won eleven mountain bike World Cup events. Towards the end of his career, he raced for the bicycle company Specialized Bicycle Components. He also rode for the professional road team Domina Vacanze-Elitron.
Fair Play in Cycling
In July 2004, before the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Filip Meirhaeghe admitted to breaking sports rules. He had used a banned substance. He tested positive during a World Cup event in Mont Sainte-Anne, Canada.
Unlike some athletes, he did not deny the test results. During a press conference, he explained that he used the substance because he really wanted to win a gold medal at the Olympics. At that time, he also announced he would stop racing and retire. He later wrote a book called Positief. This book shared his experiences as an athlete and what happened after his positive test.
Returning to the Race
Filip was not allowed to race professionally until January 14, 2006. On January 1, 2006, he announced that he would start racing again. He signed a three-year contract to race for Landbouwkrediet-Colnago in road cycling. He also joined Versluys-Landbouwkrediet-Sportstech for mountain bike races.
He made his comeback at a beach race in Oostduinkerke, Belgium. Filip Meirhaeghe retired from professional cycling again in September 2009.
Major Wins and Achievements
Filip Meirhaeghe achieved many great results during his cycling career:
- 2000 Summer Olympics
- Silver medal: 2000 – Sydney (Australia)
- Mountain Bike World Championships
- Gold medal: 2003 – Lugano (Switzerland)
- Silver medal: 2002 – Kaprun (Austria)
- Bronze medal: 1998 – Mont Sainte-Anne (Canada)
- Bronze medal: 1999 – Åre (Sweden)
- Mountain Bike World Cup
- Overall Winner: 2002
- European XC MTB Championships
- Champion: 2000
- Belgian XC MTB Championships
- Champion: 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001
- Belgian Downhill National Championships
- Champion: 1994
- Paris–Roubaix mountain bike
- Winner: 1997, 2002
See also
In Spanish: Filip Meirhaeghe para niños
