Benjo Maso, noted Dutch cycling historian, wrote a few paragraphs about Briek Schotte.
Mordecai Silver NY, NY
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Briek Schotte dies
Belgian cyclist Albéric "Briek" Schotte died at 10:30am on Sunday in Kortrijk, aged 84. Suffering from a lung problem since last December, Schotte died in his sleep in hospital, less than an hour after the 88th Ronde van Vlaanderen started. Schotte was one of the true Flandriens, and a two time winner of the Ronde van Vlaanderen and the World Championships in his career that spanned 20 years. The following obituary was penned by cycling expert Benjo Maso, who gave permission for it to be published on Cyclingnews.
How fitting that Briek Schotte died during the Ronde van Vlaanderen. Although he had won other important races (Paris-Tours, Paris-Brussels Gent-Wevelgem and the World Championship), he has always been identified with the Ronde. Not only because he participated 20 times in a row, winning twice (1942 and 1948), but also because he personified almost perfectly the "national spirit" of the Flemish people, propagated by Karel van Wijnendaele, the founder of the Ronde: not in the least elegant or stylish, but hard-working, tough and honest.
Schotte was the son of a poverty stricken farmer. He had five brothers and sisters and because the family couldn't afford a bicycle for all six, every day young Briek had to take two of his brothers on his bike when he went to school, five miles from his home. It must have been a good training, because when he was fifteen, he discovered he could beat most other boys in local races. He also discovered that on a bike he could make much more money than as a farm hand.
However, he realized he had to have some training if he wanted to become a professional. Because he had to do his nine hour working day at the farm of his parents, he started at four or five in the morning to have some spare hours in the afternoon. No wonder, later in his career he was considered one of the toughest riders of the peloton. He proved it in the terrible stages in the Alpes of the TdF of 1948 when it was freezing and snowing. He wasn't a climber at all, but he was only beaten by Gino Bartali.
Schotte's style as a rider was unique. He bent over his handlebars as a predator over his prey, the upper body part of his body shook constantly from left to right, and every movement seemed to cost an incredible effort. Moreover, he moaned constantly as loud as a female tennis player.
One of his colleagues said once, "When I had a weak moment, I only had to look at Schotte to feel much better. His style seemed not very efficient, but that didn't impede him to become one of the best riders of his generation. What's more, he as one the very few who didn't use doping, he never bought or sold a race and - as one of his colleagues said - he was honest beyond belief.
May he rest in peace.
Briek Schotte's Ronde van Vlaanderen results 1959: Abandoned after he broke his frame 1958: 6th 1957: 21st 1956: 8th 1955: 24th 1954: 21st 1953: 15th 1952: 3rd 1951: Abandoned (Sick) 1950: 2nd 1949: 3rd 1948: 1st 1947: Abandoned after two flats 1946: 3rd 1945: 23rd 1944: 2nd 1943: 18th 1942: 1st 1941: Abandoned after 3 flats 1940: 3rd
Also won: Gent-Wevelgem (1950, 1955), Paris-Brussels (1946, 1952), Paris-Tours (1946, 1947), Scheldeprijs (1955), Challenge Desgrange-Colombo (1948).