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115-434: The Brussels Cycling Classic (known until June 2013 as Paris–Brussels ) is a semi classic European bicycle race , one of the oldest races on the international calendar. Paris–Brussels was first run on 12 August 1893 as an amateur event over a distance of 397 km, Belgian Andre Henry took the inaugural victory from compatriot Charles Delbecque with France's Fernand Augenault coming in third. The race did not return to

230-591: A chasing group; failing to recover. He finished the Tour in twenty-ninth place overall, losing 2 st (13 kg; 28 lb) in weight over the three weeks. After the Tour, Simpson rode criteriums around Europe until crashing in central France; he returned home to Paris and checked himself into a hospital. Following a week's bed-rest, he rode in the road world championships at the Sachsenring in East Germany. During

345-493: A classic since 1953. He replied: "An Englishman had not won one since 1896!" A week later, Simpson rode in Paris–Roubaix in the hope of bettering his previous year's ninth place. As the race reached the paved section he went on a solo attack, at which point he was told that Mercier–BP–Hutchinson rider Raymond Poulidor was chasing him down. Simpson increased his speed, catching the publicity and press vehicles ahead (known as

460-613: A distance of 43.995 km (27.337 mi) and blaming his failure on the low temperature generated by an ice rink in the centre of the velodrome. The following week he travelled to Ghent , in the Flanders region of Belgium, to ride amateur track races. He stayed at the Café Den Engel, run by Albert Beurick, who organised for him to ride at Ghent's Kuipke velodrome in the Sportpaleis (English: Sport Palace). Simpson decided to move to

575-420: A four-time winner but was disqualified after crossing the line first in the 1910 race when he and two other riders did not observe a mid race neutralised section, Maurice Brocco who crossed the line in fourth place was declared the eventual winner. In 2007, Robbie McEwen broke the record by winning his fourth race, and bettered this again with a fifth win in 2008. In 2005 the race was set to change its name to

690-509: A group of four riders, which included the 1961 winner, Poulidor of Mercier–BP–Hutchinson. On final climb, the Poggio, Poulidor launched a series of attacks on the group; only Simpson managed to stay with him and they crossed the summit and descended into San Remo. With 500 m to go, Simpson began his sprint; Poulidor could not respond, leaving Simpson to take the victory with a record average speed of 27.1 mph (43.6 km/h). Simpson spent

805-588: A margin of two minutes. His lead steadily increased, and he finished in the Parc des Princes over five minutes ahead of teammate Piet Rentmeester . Simpson announced that he would not ride the Tour de France, concentrating on the world road championships instead. Before, he won the Isle of Man International in treacherous conditions where only sixteen out of seventy riders finished. At the road world championships in Ronse, Belgium,

920-660: A month). On Simpson's return to Harworth for Christmas, the RAF were notified and the press ran stories on his apparent draft avoidance. He passed a medical in Sheffield, but history repeated itself and the papers arrived the day after his departure for his team's training camp in Narbonne in southern France. The French press, unlike the British, found the situation amusing. In July, four months after leaving England, Simpson rode his first race as

1035-515: A personal nature. One of the few objective criteria is the official categorization of races as classified by the UCI, although this is not a defining feature either, as many fans dispute the presence of some of the highest-categorized races and some older races are not included in the UCI World Tour . Because of the growing ambiguity and inflation of the term "classic", the much younger term "monument"

1150-438: A press motorcycle. The crash required five stitches in his arm. The next day he struggled to hold the handlebars and could not use the brake lever with his injured arm, forcing him to abandon. His answer to journalists asking about his future was, "I don't know. I'm heartbroken. My season is ruined." After recovering from his injury Simpson rode 40 criteriums in 40 days, capitalising on his world championship and his attacks in

1265-483: A professional, the Tour de l'Ouest in west France. He won the fourth stage and took the overall race leader's jersey. He won the next stage's individual time trial, increasing his lead. On the next stage he lost the lead with a punctured tyre, finishing the race in fourteenth place overall. In August Simpson competed at the world championships in the 5000 m individual pursuit at Amsterdam's large, open-air velodrome and

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1380-688: A red light in a race and was suspended from racing for six months by the BLRC. During his suspension he dabbled in motorcycle trials , nearly quitting cycling but unable to afford a new motorcycle necessary for progress in the sport. Berger told Simpson that if he wanted to be a successful road cyclist, he needed experience in track cycling , particularly in the pursuit discipline. Simpson competed regularly at Fallowfield Stadium in Manchester, where in early 1956 he met amateur world pursuit silver medallist Cyril Cartwright , who helped him develop his technique. At

1495-497: A shock of hair thundering up the hill past me, carried on a solid wave of excitement. The overall feeling that day was that this was the future, this was the man to watch – Tom Simpson. After the Olympics, Simpson trained throughout his winter break into 1957. In May, he rode in the national 25-mile championships; although he was the favourite, he lost to Sheil in the final. In a points race at an international event at Fallowfield

1610-692: A short time trial. As the race reached the Alps, he decided to make his move. During stage sixteen he attacked on the descent of the first of three cols, the Croix de Fer . He crashed but continued, attacking again. Simpson was joined by Ford France–Hutchinson 's Julio Jiménez on the climb of the Télégraphe to the Galibier . Simpson was caught by a chase group descending the Galibier before he crashed again, knocked off his bike by

1725-416: A step backwards. Peugeot–BP–Englebert bought the contract from Louviot, which ran until the end of the season. Simpson's season opened with Paris–Nice; he fell out of contention after a series of tyre punctures in the opening stages, using the rest of the race as training. He withdrew from the race on the final stage to rest for his next race, Milan–San Remo ; after breaking away by himself he stopped beside

1840-663: A team, and signed with Gitane–Leroux–Dunlop–R. Geminiani for the 1962 season. After training camp at Lodève in southern France, he rode in Paris–Nice . He helped his team win the stage-3a team time trial and finished second overall, behind Flandria–Faema–Clément 's Jef Planckaert . He was unable to ride in Milan–San Remo when its organisers limited the race to Italian-based teams; instead he rode in Gent–Wevelgem , finishing sixth, then defended his Tour of Flanders title. At

1955-539: A tyre puncture while in the lead group of riders. In Simpson's last race of the season, he finished fourth in the Trofeo Baracchi , a two-man team time trial with Gérard Saint , racing against his boyhood idol, Fausto Coppi; it was Coppi's final race before his death. Simpson finished the season with twenty-eight wins. His first major race of the 1960 season was the one-day "monument" Milan–San Remo in March, in which

2070-499: A week later Simpson crashed badly, almost breaking his leg; he stopped working for a month and struggled to regain his form. At the national pursuit championships, he was beaten in the quarter-finals. After this defeat Simpson returned to road racing, winning the BLRC national hill climb championship in October before taking a short break from racing. In spring 1958 he traveled to Sofia with Sheil for two weeks' racing. On his return he won

2185-510: Is held in high esteem by many fans for his character and will to win. Simpson was born on 30 November 1937 in Haswell, County Durham , the youngest of six children of coal miner Tom Simpson and his wife Alice (née Cheetham). His father had been a semi-professional sprinter in athletics. The family lived modestly in a small terraced house until 1943, when his parents took charge of the village's working men's club and lived above it. In 1950

2300-490: The caravane ). A press car swerved to avoid a pothole; this forced him into a roadside ditch. Simpson fell, damaging his front wheel and injuring his knee. He found his team car and collected a replacement wheel, but by then the front of the race had passed. Back in the race he crashed twice more, finishing 88th. At Simpson's next race, the four-day Grand Prix d'Eibar, his first in Spain, his knee injury still bothered him. He won

2415-713: The 1956 Olympics . In mid-September, Simpson competed for two weeks in Eastern Europe against Russian and Italian teams to prepare for the Olympics. The seven-rider contingent began with races in Leningrad , continuing to Moscow before finishing in Sofia . He was nicknamed "the Sparrow" by the Soviet press because of his slender build. The following month he was in Melbourne for the Olympics, where

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2530-524: The 2008 season because of disputes between the UCI and the ASO , which organizes the Tour de France and several other major races. Since 2009, many classic cycle races are part of the UCI World Tour . Although cycling fans and sports media eagerly use the term "classic", there is no clear consensus about what constitutes a classic cycling race. UCI , the international governing body of cycling, has no mention at all of

2645-590: The Ardennes classics , placing thirty-third in Liège–Bastogne–Liège , after he rode alone for about 100 km (62 mi) before being caught in the closing kilometres. On 26 May, Simpson rode in the one-day, 557 km (346 mi) Bordeaux–Paris . Also known as the "Derby of the Road", it was the longest he had ever ridden. The race began at 1:58 am; the initial 161 km (100 mi) were unpaced until

2760-483: The Bassetlaw district by bicycle and traded with a customer for a better road bike. He was often left behind in club races; members of his cycling club nicknamed him "four- stone Coppi", after Italian rider Fausto Coppi , due to his slim physique. Simpson began winning club time trials, but sensed resentment of his boasting from senior members. He left Harworth & District and joined Rotherham 's Scala Wheelers at

2875-600: The British Cycling Federation . When settled with the Murphy family, 21-year-old Simpson met 19-year-old Helen Sherburn, an au pair from Sutton, Yorkshire. Simpson began attracting attention, winning races and criteriums . He was invited to race in the eight-day stage race Route de France by the Saint-Raphaël VC 12e, the amateur club below the professional team Saint-Raphaël–R. Geminiani–Dunlop . Simpson won

2990-833: The Constant Vanden Stock Stadium in the Place de Linde. However the 2005 edition saw a new finishing line at the Atomium north of the centre of Brussels. The quality of field has suffered since the Vuelta a España moved to September in 1995, many sprinter-roadmen preferring the Spanish Tour. In June 2013 it was announced that the race would be renamed the Brussels classic and would take place entirely within Belgium. Starting at Cinquantenaire ,

3105-473: The Giro di Lombardia . Halfway through the race he was given the wrong musette (bag) by his team in the feed zone , and threw it away. With the head of the race reduced to five riders, Molteni 's Gianni Motta attacked. Simpson was the only one who could follow, but he began to feel the effects of not eating. Motta gave him part of his food, which sustained him for a while. On the final climb Simpson led Motta, but

3220-517: The Giro di Lombardia ; this made him the BBC Sports Personality of the Year , the first cyclist to win the award. Injuries hampered much of Simpson's 1966 season. He won two stages of the 1967 Vuelta a España before he won the general classification of Paris–Nice that year. In the thirteenth stage of the 1967 Tour de France , Simpson collapsed and died during the ascent of Mont Ventoux . He

3335-579: The Mont Faron hill climb and the overall general classification of the Tour du Sud-Est , his first overall win in a professional stage race. He planned to ride in the Isle of Man International road race, excited to see to his home fans. There were rumours, which proved correct, that the Royal Military Police were waiting for him at the airport, so he decided not to travel. This was the last he heard from

3450-589: The National Cyclists' Union South Yorkshire individual pursuit track event as a junior; the same year, he won the British League of Racing Cyclists (BLRC) junior hill climb championship and placed third in the senior event. Simpson immersed himself in the world of cycling, writing letters asking for advice. Naturalised Austrian rider George Berger responded, travelling from London to Harworth to help him with his riding position. In late 1955, Simpson ran

3565-724: The Omloop , but receive a lot of attention because of their position early in the season, typically in February. Together, Strade Bianche, Milan–San Remo, the Cobbled classics and the Ardennes classics make up the "Spring Classics", all held in March and April. After Liege, the one-day races begin to give way to the stage races leading to the Grand Tours between May and September. Although there are no 'monuments' in this period, some important summer classics are held from July to September. Following

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3680-637: The Union Cycliste Internationale . This event series also included various stage races including the Tour de France , Giro d'Italia , Vuelta a España , Paris–Nice , and the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré . The UCI ProTour replaced the UCI Road World Cup series (1989–2004) which contained only one-day races. Many of the classics, and all the Grand Tours , were not part of the UCI ProTour for

3795-402: The road race on the nearby Circuit Park Zandvoort motor-racing track. He placed fourth in the individual pursuit, losing by 0.3 seconds in the quarter-finals. He prepared for the 180 mi (290 km) road race, eight laps of the track. After 45 mi (72 km) a ten-rider breakaway formed; Simpson bridged the gap . As the peloton began to close in, he tried to attack . Although he

3910-422: The 16th stage, which crossed four cols , Simpson finished 33rd, 25 minutes and 10 seconds behind the stage winner, and dropped to 17th overall. He finished the Tour in 14th place overall. Simpson later discovered that he rode the Tour suffering from tapeworms . After the race, Simpson prepared for the world road championships with distance training and criteriums. At the world championships on 3 September,

4025-409: The 1965 Tour de France and seven days earlier had triumphed at Paris–Roubaix . Gimondi was the favourite for the race and a marked man, he lived up to his billing by breaking away with the help of teammate Dino Zandegu and winning the race in what was then a record time. Marc Demeyer claimed a close victory from Roger De Vlaeminck and Roger Rosiers in 1974 in the town of Alsemberg which hosted

4140-612: The 1980s in Senlis . The race is level for much of its route and quite often there is a headwind against the riders. The last 25 km of the race are characterised by a series of cobbled climbs such as the Alsemberg , Mont Saint Roch and the Keperenberg and it is on these climbs that the winning break is often made. The race ended for many years in the Anderlecht district of Brussels outside

4255-514: The 290 km (180 mi) road race consisted of twenty-four laps of a varying circuit at Sallanches in the French Alps. Simpson crashed on the third lap while descending in wet conditions, damaging a pedal. He got back to the peloton, launching a solo attack on a descent; he then chased down the group of four leaders with two laps to go. On the last lap he was dropped by three riders, finishing six seconds behind. On 17 October, Simpson rode in

4370-413: The Alps, taking Helen and his two young daughters, Jane and Joanne. After a training camp near Nice in southern France Simpson rode in the one-day Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne in Belgium, finishing second to Solo–Superia 's Arthur Decabooter . The conditions were so cold, he only completed the race to keep warm. Albert Beurick started Simpson's supporters club at the Café Den Engel, raising £250 for him in

4485-655: The Antwerp six-day, he dropped out on the fourth day with a cold. His cold worsened and he missed most of March. He abandoned Milan–San Remo at the foot of the Poggio. On 11 April, he finished seventh in Paris–Roubaix after crashing in the lead group. The crash forced him to miss the Tour of Flanders as he struggled to walk on his injured foot. In Liège–Bastogne–Liège he attacked with Salvarani 's Felice Gimondi , catching an early break. They worked together for 25 km (15.5 mi), until Gimondi gave up. Simpson rode alone before slipping on oil mixed with water; he stayed with

4600-641: The Belgian border; with 50 km (31.1 mi) remaining he was left with world road race champion Jean Stablinski of Saint-Raphaël–Gitane–R. Geminiani, who attacked on a cobbled climb in Alsemberg outside Brussels. Simpson's bike slipped a gear, and Stablinski stayed away for the victory. After his second-place finish, Simpson led the Super Prestige Pernod International season-long competition for world's best cyclist. The following week he raced in

4715-669: The Belgians controlled the race until Simpson broke free, catching two riders ahead: Henry Anglade (France) and Shay Elliott (Ireland). Anglade was dropped, and Elliott refused to work with Simpson. They were caught; the race finished in a bunch sprint, with Simpson crossing the line in 29th. Simpson's season ended with six-day races across Europe and an invitation only race on the Pacific island of New Caledonia , along with other European riders. He skipped his usual winter training schedule for his first skiing holiday at Saint-Gervais-les-Bains in

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4830-602: The British Cycling Federation's Personality of the Year. Simpson and Helen were expecting their second child and upgraded to a larger house in Sint-Amandsberg , a sub-municipality of Ghent. Leroux withdrew its sponsorship of the Gitane team for the 1963 season. Simpson was contracted to their manager, Raymond Louviot; Louviot was rejoining Saint-Raphaël–Gitane–R. Geminiani and Simpson could follow, but he saw that as

4945-736: The Grand Prix Eddy Merckx when an agreement was reached by the race organisers to amalgamate the two events. However, the deal fell through at the last minute and Paris–Brussels retained its name and the Grand Prix Eddy Merckx , a two rider time trial event, disappeared from the racing calendar. In 2013 the race became the Brussels Cycling Classic and took place entirely in Belgium. Octave Lapize's second victory in 1912 had an element of good fortune about it, Lucien Petit-Breton and Cyrille van Hauwaert had broken away and

5060-464: The North", the first cycling race to be shown live on Eurovision . He launched an attack as an early breakaway, riding alone at the front for 40 km (24.9 mi), but was caught around a mile from the finish at Roubaix Velodrome , coming in ninth. Simpson rode a lap of honour after the race at the request of the emotional crowd. His televised effort gained him attention throughout Europe. He then won

5175-611: The Simpsons moved to Harworth on the Nottinghamshire–Yorkshire border, where young Simpson's maternal aunt lived; new coalfields were opening, with employment opportunities for him and older brother Harry, by now, the only children left at home. Simpson rode his first bike, his brother-in-law's, at age 12, sharing it with Harry and two cousins for time trials around Harworth. Following Harry, Tom joined Harworth & District CC (Cycling Club) aged 13. He delivered groceries in

5290-910: The Super Prestige Pernod International, and won the Daily Express Sportsman of the Year, the Sports Journalists' Association Sportsman of the Year, presented by the Prime Minister Harold Wilson , and the BBC Sports Personality of the Year . In British cycling Simpson won the British Cycling Federation Personality of the Year and the Bidlake Memorial Prize. He was given the freedom of Sint-Amandsberg; his family, including his parents, were driven in an open-top car along

5405-635: The Tour at Paris' Parc des Princes stadium 17 minutes and 9 seconds behind in 6th place. After the Tour Simpson rode criteriums before the road world championships in Salò, Italy, where he retired after missing a large breakaway. He began riding six-day track races into his winter break. In December he made an appearance at the Champions' Concert cycling awards held at Royal Albert Hall in London. Separately, he won

5520-429: The Tour. He retired from the road world championships at the Nürburgring with cramp . His road season ended with retirements from autumn classics Paris–Tours and the Giro di Lombardia. He rode six-day races, finishing fourteenth in the winter rankings. The misfortune he endured during the season made him the first rider named as a victim of the " curse of the rainbow jersey ". For the winter Simpson took his family to

5635-412: The amateur world championships in Paris. Against reigning champion Carlo Simonigh of Italy in the opening round of the individual pursuit, he crashed on the concrete track at the end of the race. Simpson was briefly knocked unconscious and sustained a dislocated jaw; however, he won the race since he crashed after the finish line. Although he was in pain, team manager Benny Foster forced Simpson to race in

5750-404: The authorities regarding his call-up. The British Cycling Federation fined him £25 for his absence. In June, Simpson made his Grand Tour debut in the Tour de France aged 22. Rapha directeur sportif (team manager) Raymond Louviot opposed his participation, but since the race was contested by national teams Simpson accepted the invitation from the British squad. During the first stage, he

5865-410: The break, however his gears slipped in the final sprint and he lost out to France's Jean Stablinski . The 1966 edition of Paris–Brussels was to be the last for seven years, as the race was beset by traffic problems to the route and a loss of prestige as the Amstel Gold Race took its place on the Spring Classics calendar. However, the 1966 race was made memorable by Italian Felice Gimondi who had won

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5980-409: The continent for a better chance at success, and contacted French brothers Robert and Yvon Murphy, whom he met while racing. They agreed that he could stay with them in the Breton fishing port of Saint-Brieuc . His final event in Britain was at Herne Hill, riding motor-paced races. Simpson won the event and was invited to Germany to train for the 1959 motor-paced world championships , but declined

6095-458: The crowd-lined route from the Café Den Engel to the Town Hall . As in the previous winter, Simpson went on a skiing holiday. On 25 January he fell, breaking his right tibia , and his leg was in a plaster cast until the end of February. He missed contract races, crucial training and most of the spring classics. Simpson began riding again in March, and in late April started, but did not finish, Liège–Bastogne–Liège . Simpson's injury did not stop

6210-399: The end of 1954. Simpson's first road race was as a junior at the Forest Recreation Ground in Nottingham. After leaving school he was an apprentice draughtsman at an engineering company in Retford , using the 10 mi (16.1 km) commute by bike as training. He placed well in half mile races on grass and cement, but decided to concentrate on road racing. In May 1955 Simpson won

6325-452: The end of 1961, but in fact wed on 3 January 1961 in Doncaster, Yorkshire. Simpson's first major event of the 1961 season was the Paris–Nice stage race in March. In stage three he helped his team win the team time trial and took the general classification lead by three seconds; however, he lost it in the next stage. In the final stages of the race Simpson's attacks were thwarted, and he finished fifth overall. On 26 March, Simpson rode in

6440-472: The end of the Vuelta a Espana in early September, the nature of the racing once more tends towards the one-day races. The autumn classics are held from September to November. Some Classics have disappeared, often because of financial problems. These include: The Monuments are generally considered to be the oldest, hardest and most prestigious one-day events in cycling. They each have a long history and specific individual characteristics. They are currently

6555-446: The end of the eleventh stage Simpson was third in the overall, over a minute behind race leader Willy Schroeders (Flandria–Faema–Clément) and fifty-one seconds behind Darrigade. Stage twelve from Pau to Saint-Gaudens, the hardest stage of the 1962 Tour (known as the " Circle of Death "), was the Tour's first mountain stage. Simpson saw an opportunity to lead the race. The team now solely concentrated on his interests, since Darrigade

6670-465: The end of the latter, Simpson was in a select group of riders at the head of the race. Although he led over each of the final climbs, at the finish he finished fifth and won the King of the Mountains prize. A week later Simpson finished thirty-seventh in Paris–Roubaix , delayed by a crash. Coming into the Tour de France , Simpson was leader of his team; it was the first time since 1929 that company teams were allowed to compete. He finished ninth in

6785-437: The ensuing years. 2010 saw the first victory in the race by a Spaniard when Francisco Ventoso took victory as the race finished in the Uccle municipality of Brussels for the first time. Before 1926, the race was always over 400 km, with the longest versions being 440 km in 1913 and 1914. When the race returned after a break for the First World War in 1919 the race length was 417 km but this has reduced over

6900-427: The final stage, breaking away from the peloton and holding on for victory. After this win, he declined an offer to ride in the Tour de France for the professional team. Simpson had contract offers from two professional teams, Mercier–BP–Hutchinson and Saint-Raphaël–R. Geminiani–Dunlop, which had a British cyclist, Brian Robinson ; opting for the latter team, on 29 June he signed a contract for 80,000 francs (£80

7015-477: The finish of the race between 1973 and 1980. Gimondi's record time lasted until 1975 when Freddy Maertens won the race in what was then a record average speed for a professional race and being awarded the Ruban Jaune for averaging 46.11 km per hour throughout the 285.5 km course. Felice Gimondi won again in 1976, ten years after his first victory, once more breaking away while the sprinters watched each other. The 1983 race saw Sweden's Tommy Prim become

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7130-402: The finish; he finished third, missing the thirty-second bonus for a first-place finish, which would have put him in the overall race leader's yellow jersey . He dropped to ninth overall by the end of the first week. During stage ten, Simpson crashed descending the Col d'Aubisque in the Pyrenees but finished the stage in fourteenth place. In the following stage he was dropped, exhausted, from

7245-399: The first British professional world road race champion. On 16 October, Simpson rode in the Giro di Lombardia , which featured five mountain passes. He escaped with Motta, and dropped him before the finish in Como to win his third "monument" classic over three minutes ahead of the rest. Simpson was the second world champion to win in Italy; the first was Alfredo Binda in 1927. Simpson

7360-572: The first Scandinavian rider to win a classic race. The 1994 race saw a breakaway by Sean Yates , Rolf Sørensen and Franco Ballerini , animosity existed between Yates and Sørensen after a shirt pulling incident in the Tour de France of that year, however, Sørensen dropped his breakaway companions and triumphed. The 1983 victory by Prim saw the start of the trend of the Paris–Brussels winner coming from more diverse nationalities from non traditional cycling nations with victories going to riders from Germany, Holland, Denmark, Latvia, Australia and Luxembourg in

7475-501: The first lap, a strong break was begun by British rider Barry Hoban . As his lead stretched to one minute, Simpson and teammates Vin Denson and Alan Ramsbottom bridged the gap, followed by Germany's Rudi Altig. Hoban kept the pace high enough to prevent any of the favourites from joining. Simpson and Altig broke clear with two-and-a-half laps remaining, staying together until the final kilometre, when Simpson launched his sprint; he held off Altig for victory by three bike lengths, becoming

7590-420: The first nine months. In Paris–Nice , his tyre punctured during stage four, losing five minutes and used the rest of the race for training. On 19 March, two days later, Simpson rode in Milan–San Remo . Before the race, French journalist René de Latour advised Simpson not to attack early: "If you feel good then keep it for the last hour of the race." In the final 32 km (19.9 mi), Simpson escaped in

7705-446: The first stage, in a group of twenty-two riders who finished over eight minutes ahead of the rest. Simpson's team finished second to Flandria–Faema–Clément in the stage-2b team time trial; he was in seventh place in the general classification, remaining in the top ten the rest of the first week. During stage 8a he was in a thirty-rider group which gained about six minutes, moving him to second overall behind teammate André Darrigade. At

7820-429: The following year, and won the 1961 Tour of Flanders . Simpson then joined Gitane–Leroux–Dunlop–R. Geminiani ; in the 1962 Tour de France he became the first British rider to wear the yellow jersey , finishing sixth overall. In 1963 Simpson moved to Peugeot–BP–Englebert , winning Bordeaux–Paris that year and the 1964 Milan–San Remo . In 1965 he became Britain's first professional world road race champion and won

7935-466: The front group, finishing tenth. On 29 May, Simpson rode in the London– Holyhead race, the longest unpaced one-day race, with a distance of 265 mi (426 km); he won in a bunch sprint, setting a record of ten hours and twenty-nine minutes. He followed with an appearance at Bordeaux–Paris. François Mahé ( Pelforth–Sauvage–Lejeune ) went on a lone break, Simpson attacked in pursuit, followed by Jean Stablinski. Simpson's derny broke down, and he

8050-402: The great escapes in the history of the race, Mottard broke away from the peloton with 130 miles (210 km) remaining and stayed away until the finish. Ireland's Shay Elliott was particularly unfortunate in 1958, he had a lead of over a minute with only three miles remaining when he smashed the frame of this bike with no team car near at hand, he was offered a touring bicycle by a spectator but

8165-422: The headline: " Les carnets du Major Simpson " ("The notes of Major Simpson"), referencing the 1950s series of books, Les carnets du Major Thompson by Pierre Daninos . Simpson moved up to Saint-Raphaël–R. Geminiani–Dunlop's first team, Rapha–Gitane–Dunlop , for the end-of-season one-day classic races . In his first appearance in the Giro di Lombardia , one of the five "monuments" of cycling , he retired with

8280-591: The inflammation. Once healed, he competed in the road world championships in Berne, Switzerland. On the track he qualified for the individual pursuit with the fourth-fastest time, losing in the quarter-finals to Peter Post of the Netherlands. In the road race, Simpson was part of a seventeen-rider breakaway that finished together in a sprint; he crossed the line in ninth place. Helen became pregnant; Simpson's apartment in Paris

8395-403: The island of Corsica , planning the build of his retirement home. Simpson's primary objective for 1967 was overall victory in the Tour de France ; in preparation, he planned to ride stage races instead of one-day classics. Simpson felt his chances were good because this Tour was contested by national, rather than professional teams. He would lead the British team, which – although one of

8510-481: The lead on the following stage, a short time trial ending with a steep uphill finish at Superbagnères . He finished thirty-first and dropped to sixth overall. On stage nineteen he advanced recklessly descending the Col de Porte in the Alps, crashing on a bend and only saved from falling over the edge by a tree, leaving him with a broken left middle finger. He lost almost eleven minutes in the next stage's time trial, finishing

8625-506: The move were, "I don't want to be sitting here in twenty years' time, wondering what would have happened if I hadn't gone to France". The next day, his National Service papers were delivered; although willing to serve before his move, he feared the call-up would put his potential career at risk. His mother returned them, with the hope they would understand this. He applied to local cycling clubs, and joined Club Olympique Briochin , racing with an independent (semi-professional) licence from

8740-485: The national championships at Fallowfield the 18-year-old Simpson won a silver medal in the individual pursuit, defeating amateur world champion Norman Sheil before losing to Mike Gambrill . Simpson began working with his father as a draughtsman at the glass factory in Harworth. He was riding well; although not selected by Great Britain for the amateur world championships , he made the 4,000-metre team pursuit squad for

8855-564: The national individual pursuit championship at Herne Hill Velodrome . In July, Simpson won a silver medal for England in the individual pursuit at the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, losing to Sheil by one-hundredth of a second in the final. A medical exam taken with the Royal Air Force (RAF) revealed Simpson to be colour blind . In September 1958, Simpson competed at

8970-414: The next three stages before the Tour doctor stopped him from racing. He was taken to hospital, where they operated on his hand and treated him for blood poisoning, bronchitis and a kidney infection. After ten days off his bike, Simpson was only contracted to three post-Tour criteriums. His training for the road world championships included kermesse circuit races in Flanders. Simpson's last race before

9085-400: The next two months training for the Tour de France at the end of June. After the first week of the Tour, Simpson was in tenth place overall. On the ninth stage, he was part of 22-rider breakaway which finished together at Monaco's Stade Louis II ; he placed second to Anquetil, moving up to eighth overall. The next day, he finished 20th in the 20.8 km (12.9 mi) time trial. During

9200-478: The one-day Tour of Flanders . With Carpano 's Nino Defilippis , he chased down an early breakaway. Simpson worked with the group; with about 8 km (5 mi) to go he attacked, followed by Defilippis. The finish, three circuits around the town of Wetteren , was flat; Defilippis, unlike Simpson, was a sprinter and was expected to win. One kilometre from the finish, Simpson launched a sprint; he eased off with 300 m to go, tricking Defilippis into thinking he

9315-604: The one-day races in which most points can be earned in the UCI World Tour . Since the early 2000s, many classic events have started women's races, now part of the UCI Women's World Tour . These events are often held on the same day or on the same weekend of the men's races. Three of the five cycling 'monuments' have equivalent races: Tour of Flanders for Women (first held in 2004), Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes (first held in 2017) and Paris–Roubaix Femmes (first held in 2021). A women's version of Milan–San Remo, named Primavera Rosa ,

9430-416: The opportunity in favour of a career on the road. Bicycle manufacturer Elswick Hopper invited him to join their British-based team, but Benny Foster advised him to continue with his plans to move to France. In April 1959, Simpson left for France with £ 100 savings and two Carlton bikes, one road and one track, given in appreciation of his help promoting the company. His last words to his mother before

9545-667: The organisers introduced the Poggio climb (the final climb) to keep the race from finishing with a bunch sprint . Simpson broke clear from a breakaway group over the first climb, the Turchino , leading the race for 45 km (28 mi) before being caught. He lost contact over the Poggio, finishing in 38th place. In April he moved to the Porte de Clichy district of Paris , sharing a small apartment with his teammate Robinson. Days after his move, Simpson rode in Paris–Roubaix , known as "The Hell of

9660-441: The press from naming him a favourite for the Tour de France . He was subdued in the race until stage twelve, when he forced a breakaway with Altig (Molteni), finishing second. Simpson again finished second in the next stage, jumping clear of the peloton in a three-rider group in the final kilometres. After the stage he was eighteenth overall, over seven minutes down. Simpson moved up to 16th after finishing 5th in stage 14b –

9775-474: The quarter-final against New Zealand's Warwick Dalton , hoping to unsettle Dalton ahead of a possible meeting with Simpson's teammate Sheil. Simpson wanted to turn professional, but needed to prove himself first, setting his sights on the world amateur indoor hour record . Reg Harris arranged for an attempt at Zürich's Hallenstadion velodrome on Simpson's birthday in November. He failed by 320 metres, covering

9890-513: The race Simpson stopped to adjust his shoes on the right side of the road and was hit from behind by a car, sustaining a cut to his head which required five stitches. In the last of the classics, the Giro di Lombardia , he struggled, finishing eighty-fourth. Simpson had been in constant contact with Helen, who was now working in Stuttgart , Germany, meeting with her between races. They became engaged on Christmas Day, and originally planned to marry at

10005-417: The race looked certain to be decided between them when both riders were knocked off their bikes by a police horse allowing Lapize to overtake and claim victory. The 1921 race won by Frenchman Robert Reboul was made controversial by the fact that a group of riders chasing a 15-man breakaway (including Reboul) was sent down the wrong route by the race director. One of the riders sent the wrong way in that 1921 race

10120-712: The race now takes in 92 km within Walloon Brabant, 86 km in Flemish Brabant, and 23 km in the Brussels-Capital Region, for a total distance of 201 km. The race included eleven climbs including the double ascent of Vossemberg (twice), Smeysberg (twice) and the Langestraat (three times). Classic cycle races For the 2005 to 2007 seasons, some classics formed part of the UCI ProTour run by

10235-446: The race returned in 1973 it was staged on a midweek date towards the end of September, just before Paris-Tours. The 1973 race was won by Eddy Merckx . In 1996 the race was switched from its midweek date back to being run on a Saturday. The most individual wins stood for a long time at three, by Octave Lapize (France) and Félix Sellier (Belgium). Lapize won in 1911, 1912 and 1913 and Sellier in 1922, 1923 and 1924. Lapize could have been

10350-565: The race reverted to being a one-day race and quickly established itself as one of the Spring Classics with a date towards the end of April, between Paris–Roubaix and Gent–Wevelgem . The event lost its prestige during the 1960s when the race was beset by traffic problems between the two capitals and the Dutch-promoted Amstel Gold Race took its place on the classics calendar. The race was not run between 1967 and 1972. When

10465-465: The racing calendar until 1906 when it was run as a two-day event on 3 and 4 June. The first stage of this 1906 event was run from the Paris suburb of Villiers-sur-Marne to Reims over 152 km and was won by France's Maurice Bardonneau. Albert Dupont took the more challenging second stage on the following day from Reims to Brussels over 239 km to take the overall race victory from compatriots Jules Patou and Guillaume Coeckelberg. The following year

10580-403: The road, which annoyed his fellow riders. At Milan–San Remo, Simpson was in a four-rider breakaway; his tyre punctured, and although he got back to the front, he finished nineteenth. He placed third in the Tour of Flanders in a three-rider sprint. In Paris–Roubaix Simpson worked for teammate, and winner, Emile Daems , finishing ninth. In the one-day Paris–Brussels he was in a breakaway near

10695-531: The second stage, but was forced to quit during the following stage. His injury had not healed, even after treatment by various specialists, but for financial reasons he was forced to enter the Tour de France with the British team. He abandoned on stage three, which started in Roubaix, struggling to pedal on the cobbles. Three months after his fall at Paris–Roubaix he saw a doctor at St. Michael's Hospital in Paris. He gave Simpson injections in his knee, which reduced

10810-447: The team qualified for the team-pursuit semi-finals against Italy; they were confident of defeating South Africa and France but lost to Italy, taking the bronze medal. Simpson blamed himself for the loss for pushing too hard on a turn and being unable to recover for the next. There was one name on everyone's lips on that day: "Tom Simpson". There was a buzz in the crowd as he began to climb, you could feel it, and I remember this lad with

10925-431: The term in its rulings. This poses problems to define the characteristics of these races and makes it impossible to make precise lists. Several criteria are used to denote the importance of a cycling race: date of creation, historical importance and tradition, commercial importance, location, level of difficulty, level of competition field, etc. However, many of these paradigms tend to shift over time and are often opinions of

11040-400: The town of Châtellerault , where dernys (motorised bicycles) paced each rider to the finish. Simpson broke away in a group of three riders. Simpson's pacer, Fernand Wambst, increased his speed, and Simpson dropped the other two. He caught the lead group, thirteen minutes ahead, over a distance of 161 km (100 mi). Simpson attacked, and with 36 km (22.4 mi) remaining, opening

11155-588: The weakest – would support him totally, unlike Peugeot. During Simpson's previous three years with Peugeot, he was only guaranteed a place on their Tour team if he signed with them for the following year. Free to join a new team for the 1968 season, he was offered at least ten contracts; Simpson had a verbal agreement with Italian team Salvarani, and would share its leadership with Felice Gimondi. In an interview with Cycling (now Cycling Weekly ) journalist, Ken Evans, in April, Simpson revealed his intention to attempt

11270-534: The world championships was the Paris–Luxembourg stage race, riding as a super- domestique (lieutenant). On 5 September, Simpson rode in the road race at the world championships in San Sebastián , Spain. The race was a 267.4 km (166 mi) hilly circuit of fourteen laps. The British team had no support; Simpson and his friend Albert Beurick obtained food and drink by stealing from other teams. During

11385-524: The years with the 2010 edition being over a distance of 218 km, although as recently as 1987 the distance was 309 km when Wim Arras triumphed. The fastest edition of the race was 1975 when a tailwind helped Freddy Maertens finish with an average speed of 46.11 km/h. The race started at Soissons , in Picardy , 85 km north-east of Paris, although prior to 1996 the race started in Noyon and during

11500-467: Was 29 years old. The post-mortem examination found that he had mixed amphetamines and alcohol; this diuretic combination proved fatal when combined with the heat, the hard climb of the Ventoux and a stomach complaint. A memorial near where he died has become a place of pilgrimage for many cyclists. Simpson was known to have taken performance-enhancing drugs during his career, when no doping controls existed. He

11615-472: Was Felix Sellier who made up for that disappointment by triumphing in the next three editions of the race. His three victories were not without difficulties however, in 1922 he survived a fierce attack from a cloud of insects, in 1923 he had to catch a break that had gained a fifteen-minute advantage and in 1924 he suffered two punctures in the latter part of the race just as the vital break was forming. The victory by Belgian Ernest Mottard in 1930 featured one of

11730-423: Was a sprinter and would no longer be involved in the general classification. As the peloton reached the Col du Tourmalet , Simpson attacked with a small group of select riders, finishing eighteenth place in a bunch sprint. As he finished ahead of all the other leaders in the general classification, he became the overall new leader of race, and the first British rider to wear the leader's yellow jersey. Simpson lost

11845-485: Was always on the Saturday before Liege–Bastogne–Liege (it was known as The Ardennes Weekend), before being shortened and moved to the preceding Wednesday. The remaining five then became known as the 'Monuments'. Rik van Looy is the only rider to win all eight. Eddy Merckx and Roger De Vlaeminck both won seven, both missing out at Paris–Tours. Season openers are usually not regarded as highly as other classics apart from

11960-560: Was born in Haswell, County Durham , and later moved to Harworth , Nottinghamshire. Simpson began road cycling as a teenager before taking up track cycling , specialising in pursuit races . He won a bronze medal for track cycling at the 1956 Summer Olympics and a silver at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games . In 1959, at age 21, Simpson was signed by the French professional road-racing team Saint-Raphaël–R. Geminiani–Dunlop . He advanced to their first team ( Rapha–Gitane–Dunlop )

12075-434: Was brought back each time, Simpson placed fourth in a sprint for the best finish to date by a British rider. He was praised by the winner, André Darrigade of France, who thought that without Simpson's work on the front, the breakaway would have been caught. Darrigade helped him enter criteriums for extra money. His fourth place earned Simpson his nickname, "Major Simpson", from French sports newspaper L'Équipe . They ran

12190-524: Was considered open due to Anquetil's absence, and Simpson was among the riders favoured by L'Équipe . During stage nine he injured his hand crashing on the descent of the Col d'Aubisque in the Pyrenees, finishing tenth in the stage and seventh in general classification. Simpson developed bronchitis after stage fifteen and cracked on the next stage, losing nearly nineteen minutes. His hand became infected, but he rode

12305-490: Was delayed changing motorbikes. He caught Stablinski, and was joined by Anquetil. Outside Paris Mahé was caught and dropped, after 200 km (124 mi) on his own. Anquetil won the race by fifty-seven seconds ahead of Stablinski, who beat Simpson in a sprint. Peugeot manager Gaston Plaud ordered Simpson to ride the Midi Libre stage race to earn a place in the Tour de France , and he finished third overall. The 1965 Tour

12420-404: Was exhausted. As Defilippis passed, Simpson jumped again to take victory, becoming the first Briton to win a "monument" classic. Defilippis protested that the finishing banner had been blown down, and he did not know where the finish was; however, the judges noted that the finish line was clearly marked on the road itself. Defilippis' team asked Simpson to agree to a tie, saying no Italian had won

12535-473: Was exhausted. Over the remaining 10 km (6.2 mi) of flat terrain, Motta dropped him; Simpson cracked, and was repeatedly overtaken, finishing twenty-first. He closed the year riding track races. The Simpson family spent Christmas in England, before a trip to Saint-Gervais-les-Bains, where Simpson injured himself skiing, suffering a broken foot and a sprained ankle. He recovered, riding six-day races. At

12650-421: Was initiated in 1999, but cancelled after 2005. Other major races include La Flèche Wallonne Féminine (first held in 1998), Women's Amstel Gold Race (first held in 2001) and Strade Bianche Donne (first held in 2015). Tom Simpson Stage races One-day and classic races Thomas Simpson (30 November 1937 – 13 July 1967) was one of Britain's most successful professional cyclists . He

12765-537: Was introduced in the 21st century to denote the five most revered of the classic cycling races. Until the 1980s there were originally eight recognised classics, the five Monuments (see Cycling Monuments below) plus La Flèche Wallonne , Paris–Brussels and Paris–Tours . Due to various traffic and organizational problems these events came and went in various guises (for example, Paris–Tours became Blois–Chaville, before returning in its current form). Paris–Brussels disappeared altogether between 1967 and 1976. Flèche Wallonne

12880-510: Was now unsuitable and a larger home in France was not in their means. In October, with help from his friend, Albert Beurick, they moved into a small cottage in Ghent. Low on funds, Simpson earned money in one-day track races in Belgium. Simpson's contract with Rapha-Gitane-Dunlop had ended with the 1961 season. Tour de France winner Jacques Anquetil signed with them for 1962, but Simpson wanted to lead

12995-426: Was offered lucrative contracts by teams, including Flandria–Faema–Clément who were prepared to pay him the year's salary in advance. He could not escape his contract with Peugeot, which ran until the end of the 1967 season. For the next three weeks he rode contract races, riding an estimated 12,000 mi (19,000 km). He rode 18 races, with each earning him £300–£350. Simpson ended the year second to Anquetil in

13110-466: Was part of a thirteen-rider breakaway which finished over two minutes in front of the field; he crashed on the cinder track at Heysel Stadium in Brussels, finishing thirteenth, but received the same time as the winner. Later that day he finished ninth in the time trial, moving up to fifth place overall. During the third stage Simpson was part of a breakaway with two French riders who repeatedly attacked him, forcing him to chase and use energy needed for

13225-400: Was quickly caught by the chasing bunch and finished well down the field with Belgium's Rik Van Looy taking final victory. The 1963 edition of the race was made memorable by a small breakaway forming well before the border into Belgium, which was a rare event in itself. The break established a 13-minute lead and included Britain's Tom Simpson who was expected to win, being the best sprinter in

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