Joaquim Agostinho facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Joaquim Agostinho

Agostinho in 1972
Personal information
Nickname	Tinho
Born	(1943-04-07)7 April 1943 Portugal
Died	10 May 1984(1984-05-10) (aged 41)
Team information
Discipline	Road
Role	Rider
Major wins
Grand Tours Tour de France 4 individual stages (1969, 1973, 1979) Vuelta a España 3 individual stages (1974, 1976) Stage races Tour of Portugal (1970, 1971, 1972) (26 stages) One-day races and Classics Trofeo Baracchi (1969) National Road Race Championships (1968–1973) National Time Trial Championships (1968–1973)

Joaquim Agostinho (born April 7, 1943 – died May 10, 1984) was a famous Portuguese professional bicycle racer. He was known for being the champion of Portugal for six years in a row! Joaquim was a strong rider who competed in the tough Tour de France 13 times. He even won stages on famous climbs like Alpe d'Huez in 1979. He finished in the top 3 of the Tour de France twice, showing how talented he was. Overall, he placed in the top 10 of a Grand Tour eleven times. He also won seven stages across the Vuelta a España and the Tour de France.

Early Life and Military Service

Joaquim Agostinho was born in a small village near Torres Vedras, Portugal. He lived for many years in Casalinhos de Alfaiata. One day, while riding his regular bicycle, he met the Sporting Clube de Portugal cycling team. He started an unplanned race with them. Even though he was on a normal bike, the professional team couldn't catch him! This showed how naturally strong he was.

Before becoming a professional cyclist, Agostinho served in the Portuguese army. He fought for three years in Angola and Mozambique during the Portuguese Colonial War (1961–1974). His captain noticed his amazing strength. He could ride 50 kilometers in two hours on a heavy bike, while others took five hours!

Becoming a Professional Cyclist

Joaquim Agostinho started racing as an amateur when he was 25 years old. This is quite late for a cyclist to begin. He borrowed cycling clothes from a friend and quickly started winning races in Portugal. Soon, he signed a professional contract with Sporting Clube de Portugal.

In 1968, Agostinho won the Tour de São Paulo in Brazil. There, he met Jean de Gribaldy, a team manager who was very impressed by Joaquim's strength. De Gribaldy described him as a rider with "the build of a rhinoceros." They became lifelong friends. De Gribaldy asked Joaquim to join his team in France, promising him a spot in the 1969 Tour de France.

Racing in the Tour de France

Agostinho joined de Gribaldy's Frimatic team and competed in his first Tour de France at age 26. He won two stages that year. He also had a bad fall, hitting his head, but he bravely continued the race and finished eighth overall.

Joaquim Agostinho rode in the Tour de France 13 times between 1969 and 1983. He finished the race 12 times, which is a great achievement. He placed third twice, in 1978 and 1979, and won four stages during his career. He was known for his incredible climbing skills.

He stayed with de Gribaldy's teams, which changed sponsors over the years (Frimatic, Hoover, and Van Cauter Magniflex). Later, he rode for other teams like Bic and Teka, and then rejoined de Gribaldy's Flandria team in 1978.

Raphaël Géminiani, another cycling expert, said that Joaquim Agostinho was "a ball of muscles of out-of-the-ordinary power." He was very strong but also very kind. He wasn't always aggressive enough to win every race, but when he decided to attack, he was unstoppable.

Joaquim Agostinho was the Portuguese champion for six years in a row, from 1968 to 1973. He loved the Tour de France the most. He didn't race much in other events, only enough to support his dream of owning a large farm near Lisbon. His farm and family were his main focus, and cycling was like a hobby. Once, during a race, he heard that 20 of his cows were stolen! He left the race immediately to go back to Portugal and help find them.

In 1982, he even took a whole year off from cycling to focus on his farm.

A Tragic Accident

In April 1984, Joaquim Agostinho was leading the Tour of the Algarve race in Portugal. Just a few hundred meters from the finish line, a dog ran into the road. Joaquim hit the dog and fell, hitting his head hard. He managed to get back on his bike and cross the finish line.

He seemed dazed but not badly hurt at first. He walked to an ambulance, holding his head. Two hours later, he was taken to a hospital in Faro. An X-ray showed he had broken a bone in his skull. He needed to be moved to a bigger hospital in Lisbon, which was 280 kilometers away. During the ambulance ride, he fell into a coma and sadly passed away later.

Honoring Joaquim Agostinho

Joaquim Agostinho is remembered as a hero in Portugal and in the world of cycling.

• In Torres Vedras, his hometown, there is a monument built in his honor at the Parque Verde da Várzea.
• Another monument was placed in the gardens of Silveira in 1989.
• A street leading to Santa Cruz Beach is named 'Avenida Joaquim Agostinho'.
• In France, on the famous Alpe d'Huez climb, there is a bronze statue of him. It marks his stage victory there in 1979.
• In 2000, sports journalists in Portugal voted Agostinho as the 4th most important Portuguese Sportsman of the 20th Century.
• In 1984, he was given a special honor, being made an Officer of the Order of Prince Henry the Navigator by the President of Portugal.

Career Achievements

Major Results

Grand Tour Results

Grand Tour	1969	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983
Vuelta a España	–	–	–	DNF	6	2	–	7	15	–	–	–	–	–	–
Giro d'Italia	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	DNF	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Tour de France	8	14	5	8	8	6	15	–	13	3	3	5	DNF	–	11

Images for kids

• 

  Agostinho in 1973

• 

  Monument of Joaquim Agostinho in Torres Vedras, Portugal

See also

In Spanish: Joaquim Agostinho para niños