Lucien Van Impe facts for kids
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Van Impe at the 1975 Acht van Chaam
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Lucien Van Impe | ||
| Nickname | de kleine van Mere | ||
| Born | 20 October 1946 Mere, Belgium |
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| Team information | |||
| Current team | Retired | ||
| Discipline | Road | ||
| Role | Rider | ||
| Rider type | Climber | ||
| Major wins | |||
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Lucien Van Impe (born 20 October 1946) is a famous former Belgian cyclist. He rode bikes professionally from 1969 to 1987. Lucien was especially good at climbing mountains during long races, which is why he was known as a climber. He won the tough 1976 Tour de France and also won the "mountains classification" six times in the Tour de France. This means he was the best climber in those races!
Contents
Lucien Van Impe's Cycling Journey
Lucien Van Impe says his cycling career started thanks to Spanish cyclist Federico Bahamontes. Bahamontes was a famous climber, nicknamed "the eagle of Toledo". In 1968, Lucien won the "King of the Mountains" title in a race called the Tour de l'Avenir. Bahamontes helped Lucien get a professional cycling contract. In 1969, Lucien started his professional career and finished 12th in the 1969 Tour de France.
Becoming the King of the Mountains
In 1971, Lucien won his first "mountains classification" in the Tour de France. This award goes to the best climber in the race. He won it five more times, making it a total of six victories. This was a record he shared with Bahamontes for many years. Later, another cyclist named Richard Virenque broke this record in 2004.
Winning the Tour de France in 1976
In 1975, Lucien's team joined with another to become Gitane-Campagnolo. A former French champion, Cyrille Guimard, became their team manager, called a directeur sportif, in 1976. Many people thought Lucien would win the 1976 Tour de France. This race had eight stages with lots of high mountains, which was perfect for a climber like him.
The race became a close fight between Lucien and Joop Zoetemelk. The mountain stages were key to deciding the winner. Lucien attacked Zoetemelk in the mountains and gained a big lead. He then secured his victory by finishing ahead of Zoetemelk in the final time trial. This win earned him the famous yellow jersey, worn by the leader of the Tour de France.
Later Years and Records
After his big win in 1976, Lucien changed teams. In the 1977 Tour de France, he was a favorite again. He attacked in the last mountain stage, but he had some bad luck. He forgot to eat enough, which made him lose energy. Then, a TV car hit him! He had to wait for a new bike, and other riders passed him.
In the 1981 Tour de France, Lucien rode very well again. He finished second overall, even though he was far behind the winner, Bernard Hinault. He also won the mountains classification for the sixth time that year. Overall, Lucien finished in the top 5 of the Tour de France eight times! He also won the mountains classification twice in the Giro d'Italia, another major cycling race.
Even though he was known for mountains, he surprised everyone by winning the Belgian national road race championship in 1983.
Lucien Van Impe started 15 Tour de France races and finished every single one. This was a record for a while! Later, Joop Zoetemelk and Sylvain Chavanel finished more Tours than him. Lucien is now tied for second place with Viatcheslav Ekimov for most Tour finishes.
Life After Racing
From 2007 to 2013, Lucien worked as a sporting director for a professional cycling team.
Lucien Van Impe lives in Impe with his wife, Rita. They have two grown children. His house is even named "Alpe D'Huez" after a famous French mountain where he took the yellow jersey in 1976. When he won the Tour that year, the bar where his fans watched him race was painted completely yellow!
Lucien has always been known for his fair play. He has never failed a doping test or admitted to using banned substances during his career.
He has been honored with a special statue in Erpe-Mere, Belgium, showing him on his bike. He was also made an honorary citizen of Lede in 2018. In 2017, Lucien had a heart attack but thankfully made a full recovery.
Major Achievements
Lucien Van Impe had many great achievements in his cycling career. Here are some of his most important wins and titles:
- Tour de France Winner: 1976
- Tour de France Mountains Classification Winner: 1971, 1972, 1975, 1977, 1981, 1983 (6 times!)
- Tour de France Stage Wins: 9 stages in total
- Giro d'Italia Mountains Classification Winner: 1982, 1983 (2 times!)
- Belgian National Road Race Champion: 1983
- Tour de l'Avenir Mountains Classification Winner: 1968
- Tour de l'Aude Overall Winner: 1975
- Trophée des Grimpeurs Winner: 1976
Grand Tour Performance Timeline
This table shows how Lucien Van Impe finished in the biggest cycling races, called Grand Tours:
| Grand Tour | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Vuelta a España |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 11 |
 Giro d'Italia |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 9 | 7 | 13 | — |
| Tour de France |
12 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 18 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 11 | 16 | 2 | — | 4 | — | 27 | — |
| — | Did not compete |
|---|---|
| DNF | Did not finish |
Honours and Awards
- Challenge Sedis: 1976
- Held the record for most Mountains classification wins in the Tour de France (6 wins) from 1983 to 2004.
- A cycling race in Mere is named after him: GP Lucien Van Impe.
- Voted "Best climber of all times" by climbbybike.com in 2007.
- A race in Serskamp is called the Lucien Van Impe Classic since 2014.
- A statue honoring him was placed in Erpe-Mere in 2016.
- Became an Honorary citizen of Lede in 2018.
Images for kids
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Van Impe in 2001
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Van Impe in 1971
See also
In Spanish: Lucien van Impe para niños
