Patrick Sercu facts for kids
Sercu in 2008
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Patrick Sercu | ||
| Nickname | Emperor of the oval | ||
| Born | 27 June 1944 Roeselare, West Flanders, Belgium |
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| Died | 19 April 2019 (aged 74) Roeselare, West Flanders, Belgium |
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| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Weight | 76 kg (168 lb) | ||
| Team information | |||
| Current team | Retired | ||
| Discipline | Track and road | ||
| Role | Rider | ||
| Rider type | Sprinter | ||
| Major wins | |||
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Patrick Sercu (born June 27, 1944 – died April 19, 2019) was a famous Belgian cyclist. He raced both on the road and on the track from 1961 to 1983. On the track, he won a gold medal at the 1964 Summer Olympics in the 1 km time trial. He also won three world titles in sprint races in 1963, 1967, and 1969.
On the road, Patrick Sercu won the green jersey in the 1974 Tour de France. This jersey is given to the best sprinter. He holds the record for the most wins in six-day track races, with 88 victories out of 223 starts. Many of these wins were with the legendary cyclist Eddy Merckx. He also won six stages in the Tour de France and thirteen stages in the Giro d'Italia.
With 38 national and 15 European championship titles, he is known as one of the most successful track cyclists ever. In total, he won an amazing 1,206 races. This included 168 road races and 1,038 track races.
Contents
Patrick Sercu's Cycling Journey
Early Days in Cycling
Patrick Sercu's father, Albert Sercu, was also a successful cyclist. He encouraged Patrick to focus on track cycling. Patrick's father worried that road racing might be too tough on him too early.
Patrick was naturally fast and perfect for the explosive energy needed on the track. In 1962, at just 18 years old, he won his first national titles. These were in the sprint and madison events. The next year, at 19, Sercu became the world amateur sprint champion in Rocourt, Belgium.
A year later, young Sercu won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. This was in the 1 km time trial. It was his only time at the Olympics because, back then, only amateur cyclists could compete.
Becoming a Professional Cyclist
After the Olympics, Patrick Sercu became a professional cyclist. He started to focus more on road races. He joined the famous team Solo–Superia, which included other cycling stars like Eddy Merckx.
While he was still getting stronger on the road, he became even more successful on the track. Between 1965 and 1969, he won two more gold medals and two silver medals at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships. He often competed against his Italian rival, Giuseppe Beghetto.
He quickly became a winner in Six-day races. In 1965, he won his first of eleven Six Days in Ghent with Eddy Merckx. Sercu was known as the "uncrowned king" of Six-day races until the early 1980s.
He holds the record with 88 Six-day race victories. He once joked that he would have won even more if Eddy Merckx hadn't been so busy with his road racing schedule!
Over time, Sercu also became a strong road racer. In 1970, he rode his first major tour, the Giro d'Italia, and won his first stage. He would go on to win twelve more stages in the Giro.
By the mid-1970s, Sercu was one of the best sprinters in cycling. In 1974, at 30 years old, he rode his first Tour de France. He won three stages and the green jersey for being the best sprinter. Three years later, he added three more stage wins to his Tour de France total, making it six in all. He also won other races like the Giro di Sardegna in 1970.
Life After Racing
Patrick Sercu stopped racing in 1983. After his racing career, he became an organizer of six-day events and other track races around the world. He was also the director of the famous Six Days of Ghent race. Patrick Sercu passed away on April 19, 2019, at the age of 74, after a period of poor health.
Patrick Sercu's Achievements
Patrick Sercu achieved many great things in cycling.
- He won an Olympic gold medal in 1964.
- He won three world championships in sprint cycling.
- He won 15 European championships.
- He won 38 national track championships in Belgium.
- He holds the record for the most Six-day race wins, with 88 victories.
- He won 11 Six Days of Ghent races.
- He won 9 Six Days of London races.
- He won the green jersey in the 1974 Tour de France.
- He won 6 stages in the Tour de France.
- He won 13 stages in the Giro d'Italia.
Honours and Recognition
Patrick Sercu received many awards and honors for his amazing career:
- He was made an Honorary Citizen of Izegem in 1996.
- Two velodromes (cycling tracks) were named after him: Wielerbaan Patrick Sercu in Bruges (2007) and Wielerpiste Defraeye-Sercu in Roeselare (2011).
- He received the BOIC Order of Merit in 2014.
- The Patrick Sercu trophy was created in his honor in 2019.
- A street in Izegem, Patrick Sercudreef, was named after him in 2020.
Images for kids
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Jean-Pierre Monseré and Patrick Sercu in the 1970 Six Days of Brussels
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See also
In Spanish: Patrick Sercu para niños
