Well of those who have ridden at least part of their careers since WW II, my vote on the road, would be:
Merckx (who else indeed) Hinault Coppi Bartali
I think Bartali may be the most underrated cyclist in history. Won the Tour in 1938 and 1948, with his prime years stolen by WWII. I think he was also leading a Tour just before the war when the Italian team was forced to withdraw due to attacks by French spectators. How many times might he have won but for the war? Of course Coppi probably lost a couple of TdF victories to the war as well.
I think it is hard for us to judge the riders from the 1890's to 1939, since we are much less familiar with their exploits and often know their names only from bikes or components which bear their names:
Christophe, Lapize, Maes, Bottechia, Pelissier or less associated with equipment, Petit-Breton, Thys, Franz, LeDuq. Or Italians like Girardengo and Binda who did not win the Tour only because the Italians did not ride it as often in those days. Probably at least one or two of these guys belong in the top five.
On the track, my vote would be:
Major Taylor Frank Kramer Oscar Egg Marcel Berthet Reg Harris
Egg and Berthet having spent a number of years breaking each other's Hour Record.
For the women, I think Beryl Burton was in a class to herself followed at some distince by:
Jeannie Longo Maria Canines Sheila Young Rebecca Twigg
Regards,
Jerry Moos Big Spring, Texas, USA
Edward Albert <Edward.H.Albert@hofstra.edu> wrote: My quick vote would be as follows:
Road: Male Merckx (who else) Female Jeanie Longo
Track: Male Patcick Sercu Female Sheila Young
Cross: Male Erik De Vlaeminck
Female ?
Edward Albert
Chappaqua, New York, USA (and not on the list :( )
>>> "kim klakow" 04/17/08 8:22 AM >>>
I would like to get some input on a project I am currently hatching. Any
contributions are gladly received.
Who are your top five cyclists (in History, on topic) in following fields:
Track Road Cross and cyclo-touring/long distance races (this one is a bit tough since it kinda qualifies as road, but I'd like to make the distinction).
If there are one or two female riders that come to mind, that would certainly be of interest as well.
Thx, kim -- Kim Klakow
Diplom Grafik Designer Akimbo71@gmx.net +49172-1786481 Berlin - Germany
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