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{{Short description|Belgian cyclist (1920–1956)}}
{{Infobox cyclist
{{Infobox cyclist
| name = Stan Ockers
| name = Stan Ockers
| image = Stan Ockers (1951).jpg
| image = Stan Ockers (1951).jpg
| caption = Stan Ockers (1951)
| caption = Stan Ockers at the 1951 Tour de France
| fullname = Constant Ockers
| fullname = Constant Ockers
| nickname =
| nickname =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1920|2|3|df=y}}
| birth_date = {{birth date|1920|2|3|df=y}}
| birth_place = Belgium
| birth_place = [[Borgerhout]], Belgium
| death_date = {{death date and age|1956|10|1|1920|2|3|df=y}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|1956|10|1|1920|2|3|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Antwerp]], Belgium
| discipline = Road
| discipline = {{ubl|[[Road bicycle racing|Road]]|[[Track cycling|Track]]}}
| role = Rider
| role = Rider
| ridertype = Sprinter
| ridertype = Sprinter
| amateuryears1 =
| amateuryears1 =
| amateurteam1 =
| proyears1 = 1941
| amateurteam1 =
| proyears1 = 1941
| proteam1 = Individual
| proteam1 = Individual
| proyears2 = 1942
| proyears2 = 1942
| proteam2 = Helyett
| proteam2 = {{UCI team code|Helyett|1942}}
| proyears3 = 1943–1945
| proyears3 = 1943–1945
| proteam3 = Metropole
| proteam3 = [[Métropole (cycling team)|Métropole]]
| proyears4 = 1946
| proyears4 = 1946
| proteam4 = Metropole-Dunlop
| proteam4 = [[Métropole (cycling team)|Metropole–Dunlop]]
| proyears5 = 1947
| proyears5 = 1947
| proteam5 = Groene Leeuw and [[Mondia]]
| proteam5 = {{UCI team code|Groene Leeuw|1947}}
| proyears6 = 1948–1949
| proyears6 = 1947–1949
| proteam6 = Mondia and Garin-Wolber
| proteam6 = [[Mondia (bicycle company)|Mondia]] and Garin–Wolber
| proyears7 = 1950
| proyears7 = 1950
| proteam7 = Metropole-Dunlop and Terrot-Wolber
| proteam7 = [[Métropole (cycling team)|Metropole–Dunlop]] and [[Terrot (cycling team)|Terrot–Wolber]]
| proyears8 = 1951
| proyears8 = 1951
| proteam8 = Girardengo and Terrot-Wolber
| proteam8 = [[Girardengo (cycling team)|Girardengo]] and [[Terrot (cycling team)|Terrot–Wolber]]
| proyears9 = 1952
| proyears9 = 1952–1954
| proteam9 = Peugeot-Dunlop and Girardengo-Clement
| proteam9 = {{UCI team code|Peugeot|1952}} and [[Girardengo (cycling team)|Girardengo–Clement]]
| proyears10 = 1953
| proyears10 = 1955–1956
| proteam10 = Peugeot-Dunlop and Girardengo
| proteam10 = [[Elvé (cycling team)|Elvé–Peugeot]]
| proyears11 = 1954
| proyears11 = 1956
| proteam11 = Girardengo-Eldorado and Peugeot-Dunlop
| proteam11 = [[Girardengo (cycling team)|Girardengo–Icep]]
| proyears12 = 1955
| majorwins = '''[[Grand Tour (cycling)|Grand Tours]]'''
| proteam12 = Elvé-Peugeot
:'''[[Tour de France]]'''
| proyears13 = 1956
::[[Points classification in the Tour de France|Points classification]] ([[1955 Tour de France|1955]], [[1956 Tour de France|1956]])
| proteam13 = Elvé-Peugeot and Gardengo-Icep
::4 individual stages ([[1950 Tour de France|1950]], [[1954 Tour de France|1954]], [[1956 Tour de France|1956]])
| majorwins = Tour de France green jersey (1955, 1956)<br />World Road Championship (1955) <br /> La Flèche Wallonne (1953, 1955)<br />Liège–Bastogne–Liège (1955)
'''[[Race stage|Other stage races]]'''
| updated = {{date|2008-01-03}}
: [[Roma–Napoli–Roma]] (1956)
| medaltemplates =
'''[[Classic cycle races|One-day races and Classics]]'''
{{MedalCountry|{{BEL}}}}
: [[UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|World Road Race Championships]] ([[1955 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|1955]])
: [[La Flèche Wallonne]] ([[1953 La Flèche Wallonne|1953]], [[1955 La Flèche Wallonne|1955]])
: [[Liège–Bastogne–Liège]] ([[1955 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1955]])
: [[Scheldeprijs]] (1941, 1946)
'''Track Championships'''
:[[Belgian National Track Championships|National Championships]]
::Madison (1955)
'''Other'''
: [[Challenge Desgrange-Colombo]] (1955)
| medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{BEL}}}}
{{MedalSport|Men's [[road bicycle racing]]}}
{{MedalSport|Men's [[road bicycle racing]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|World Championships}}
{{MedalCompetition|World Championships}}
Line 49: Line 60:
}}
}}


'''Constant ("Stan") Ockers''' (3 February 1920 in [[Borgerhout]]&nbsp;– 1 October 1956 in [[Antwerp]]) was a [[Belgium|Belgian]] professional racing [[cyclist]].
'''Constant ("Stan") Ockers''' (3 February 1920 – 1 October 1956) was a [[Belgium|Belgian]] professional racing [[cycle sport|cyclist]].


He was runner-up in the [[Tour de France]] in 1950 and 1952, and the best [[cycling sprinter|sprinter]] in that race in 1955 and 1956. In 1955 he won the [[Classic cycle races|Classic]] "Ardennes double" by winning [[La Flèche Wallonne]] and the [[Liège–Bastogne–Liège]] in the same year. At this time the races were run on successive days as "Le Weekend Ardennais". He also won the [[World Cycling Championship]] that year.
He was runner-up in the [[Tour de France]] in 1950 and 1952, and the best [[cycling sprinter|sprinter]] in that Grand Tour in 1955 and 1956. In 1955 he won the [[Classic cycle races|Classic]] "Ardennes double" by winning [[La Flèche Wallonne]] and the [[Liège–Bastogne–Liège]] in the same year. At this time, the races were run on successive days as "[[Weekend ardennais|Le Weekend Ardennais]]". He also won the [[World Cycling Championship]] that year.
[[File:Voorbereidingsplaatjes Tour de France , Amsterdam Stan Ockers, Bestanddeelnr 906-5736.jpg|thumb|300px|Ockers and family at the start of the [[1954 Tour de France]]]]
Ockers did not have the most congenial riding style - he was known as a crafty cyclist who often took advantage of other people's work - but he more than made up for this through his contact with the public. Stan Ockers always remained himself, had time for everyone and thus became one of the most popular riders of his generation, together with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]] and the young [[Rik Van Looy]].


At the opening of the 1956 Antwerp track season, Ockers crashed heavily. He didn't see how [[Ernest Sterckx]] had returned to the track after a mechanical failure, looked back and drove full into his opponent. Ockers suffered a fractured skull and four broken ribs. The Antwerp folk hero fell into a coma, regained consciousness twice more but died of his injuries two days later on 1 October. Antwerp was in mourning, even 11-year-old [[Eddy Merckx]] was in shock at the death of his great idol. Tens of thousands of Antwerp people saluted the corpse of their ''Stanneke'' whose body was laid to rest in Antwerp [[Sportpaleis]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=14 May 2019 |title=De Giro komt vandaag aan in Frascati: wat weet u nog van Stan Ockers en welke is de link met Victor Campenaerts? |trans-title=The Giro arrives in Frascati today: what do you remember about Stan Ockers and what is the link with Victor Campenaerts? |url=https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20190513_04398115?&articlehash=fnNojdU%2FwOT%2BRHqysKenp4FyZ9r8Tkm2smFHv%2F1g40VhLNjDp1NqLz1YeKb94RnX%2FQldB6AkMOZDr1iRWvcurowQs2lwxFkXg6NtVcoxvxXUZwNtVaF9zx7lgJ9rVW4%2B2hx2oTMlUX9%2BL6%2FJVGnxXgf3D1E%2FM%2F0F9CH9wB0vZEv0QBXILiiGdK1SnluZcL%2B75a%2BTyOW%2BY8Zv0S0y6wpB%2B%2B9FA2PjcqdOQw9zW1liAR9lViI9t3zEA5xrq%2BstbLMsySThyEJA2Ff3IDyF%2F5BscOCdfzjc6gBVbapi44a1r9h4JQfVCYH7FuHBW2lvBzE11Kuehpx%2Fh4kujawCdOWRHg%3D%3D |website=[[Het Nieuwsblad]] |language=nl}}</ref>
Stan Ockers died after crashing during a track race in [[Antwerp]] in 1956. A year later a [[monument]] was built in [[Les Forges, Sprimont]], in the south of Belgium.


A year later, a [[monument]] was built in [[Les Forges, Sprimont]], in the south of Belgium.
==Major results==

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
==Career achievements==
* [[Challenge Desgrange-Colombo]] 1955, 2nd 1956, 3rd (1952, 1953)
===Major results===
* [[Trophée Gentil]]: 1955
=== Road ===
* [[UCI Road World Championships&nbsp;– Men's road race|World road champion]] 1955
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Liège–Bastogne–Liège]] 1955
;1941
* [[Flèche Wallonne]] 1953, 1955
: 1st [[Scheldeprijs]]
* [[Weekend Ardennais]] 1955
: 1st Antwerp Province championship
* [[Tour of Belgium]] 1948
;1943
* [[Rome–Naples–Rome]] 1956
: 3rd [[1943 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|Liège–Bastogne–Liège]]
* [[Grand Prix de l'Escaut]] 1941, 1946
* 3 stages [[Tour de France]]
: 3rd [[Schaal Sels]]
;1944
* [[File:Jersey green.svg|20px]] Points Classification Tour de France 1955, 1956
: 1st Bruxelles-Everbeek
* 2nd [[Tour de France]] 1950, 1952
: 4th Overall Omloop van België
* 2nd [[1954 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]] 1954
;1946
* 2nd [[Tour of Flanders]] 1956
: 1st [[Scheldeprijs]]
* 2nd [[Bordeaux–Paris]] 1956
: 1st [[Heist-op-den-Berg]]
* 2nd [[Tour de Suisse]] 1955
: 1st Bruxelles–Sint-Truiden
* 2nd [[Bruxelles-Couvin]] 1956
: 1st Antwerp Province championship
* 2nd [[Critérium des As]] 1952, 1953
: 5th [[1946 Gent–Wevelgem|Gent–Wevelgem]]
* 2nd [[Circuit des Ardennes Flamandes]] 1948
;1947
* 2nd [[Grand Prix Martini]] 1955, 1956
: 3rd Overall [[1947 Tour de Suisse|Tour de Suisse]]
: 4th [[1947 La Flèche Wallonne|La Flèche Wallonne]]
: 5th [[1947 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|Liège–Bastogne–Liège]]
: 6th Overall [[Tour de Luxembourg]]
;1948
: 1st {{cjersey|gold}} Overall [[Tour of Belgium]]
: 2nd [[Omloop der Vlaamse Ardennen]]
: 2nd [[Dwars door West-Vlaanderen]]
: 3rd [[Gullegem Koerse]]
;1949
: 7th Overall [[1949 Tour de France|Tour de France]]
;1950
: 2nd Overall [[1950 Tour de France|Tour de France]]
::1st Stage 4
: 2nd [[Critérium des As]]
: 7th [[1950 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|Road race]], [[1950 UCI Road World Championships|UCI World Road Championships]]
: 8th Overall [[1950 Challenge Desgrange-Colombo|Challenge Desgrange-Colombo]]
: 8th [[Belgian National Road Race Championships|Road race]], National Road Championships
;1951
: 5th Overall [[1951 Tour de France|Tour de France]]
: 6th [[Bordeaux–Paris]]
;1952
: 2nd Overall [[1952 Tour de France|Tour de France]]
: 2nd Overall [[Roma–Napoli–Roma]]
::1st Stage 4a
: 2nd Overall [[Vuelta a Argentina]]
::1st Stage 3
: 2nd [[1952 La Flèche Wallonne|La Flèche Wallonne]]
: 3rd Overall [[1952 Challenge Desgrange-Colombo|Challenge Desgrange-Colombo]]
: 6th Overall [[1952 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]]
: 10th [[1952 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|Road race]], [[1950 UCI Road World Championships|UCI World Road Championships]]
: 10th [[Belgian National Road Race Championships|Road race]], National Road Championships
;1953
: 1st [[1953 La Flèche Wallonne|La Flèche Wallonne]]
: 2nd Overall [[Roma–Napoli–Roma]]
::1st Stage 4
: 2nd [[Critérium des As]]
: 2nd Overall [[Week-end ardennais]]
: 2nd [[Gran Premio di Lugano]]
: 3rd [[File:Bronze medal uci.svg|15px]] [[1953 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|Road race]], [[1950 UCI Road World Championships|UCI World Road Championships]]
: 3rd [[File:Bronze medal blank.svg|15px]] [[Belgian National Road Race Championships|Road race]], National Road Championships
: 3rd Overall [[1953 Challenge Desgrange-Colombo|Challenge Desgrange-Colombo]]
: 4th [[1953 Giro di Lombardia|Giro di Lombardia]]
: 4th [[Bordeaux–Paris]]
: 6th Overall [[1953 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]]
;1954
: 1st [[Schaal Sels]]
: 2nd [[1954 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]]
: 5th [[Bordeaux–Paris]]
: 6th Overall [[1954 Tour de France|Tour de France]]
::1st Stage 11
: 6th [[1954 Milan–San Remo|Milan–San Remo]]
;1955
: 1st {{cjersey|rainbow}} [[1955 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|Road race]], [[1955 UCI Road World Championships|UCI World Road Championships]]
: 1st Overall [[1955 Challenge Desgrange-Colombo|Challenge Desgrange-Colombo]]
: 1st Overall [[Week-end ardennais]]
: 1st [[1955 La Flèche Wallonne|La Flèche Wallonne]]
: 1st [[1955 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|Liège–Bastogne–Liège]]
: 1st [[Trophée Gentil]]
: 1st Stage 1b ([[team time trial|TTT]]) [[Driedaagse van Antwerpen]]
: 2nd Overall [[1955 Tour de Suisse|Tour de Suisse]]
: 2nd [[Grand Prix Martini]]
: 2nd [[De Drie Zustersteden]]
: 2nd [[Bruxelles–Couvin]]
: 3rd [[Critérium des As]]
: 5th [[Paris–Brussels]]
: 8th Overall [[1955 Tour de France|Tour de France]]
::1st {{cjersey|green}} [[Points classification in the Tour de France|Points classification]]
: 9th [[1955 Paris–Tours|Paris–Tours]]
;1956
: 1st {{cjersey|gold}} Overall [[Roma–Napoli–Roma]]
::1st Stages 1b, 3b, 4b, 5a & 5b
: 2nd [[1956 Tour of Flanders|Tour of Flanders]]
: 2nd [[Bordeaux–Paris]]
: 2nd [[Grand Prix Martini]]
: 3rd Overall [[1956 Challenge Desgrange-Colombo|Challenge Desgrange-Colombo]]
: 4th [[1956 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|Road race]], [[1956 UCI Road World Championships|UCI World Road Championships]]
: 4th [[1956 La Flèche Wallonne|La Flèche Wallonne]]
:5th [[Classica Sarda]]
: 6th [[1956 Gent–Wevelgem|Gent–Wevelgem]]
: 8th Overall [[1956 Tour de France|Tour de France]]
::1st {{cjersey|green}} [[Points classification in the Tour de France|Points classification]]
::1st Stage 19
: 9th Overall [[1956 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré|Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré]]
::1st Stages 5 & 9
: 10th [[1956 Milan–San Remo|Milan–San Remo]]
{{div col end}}
{{div col end}}
=== Track ===
{{div col}}
;1948
:3rd [[Six Days of Antwerp]] (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
;1951
:1st [[Six Days of Brussels]] (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
;1953
:1st Prix de Salon (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
:3rd [[Six Days of Brussels]] (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
;1954
:1st [[Six Days of Ghent]] (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
:2nd [[Six Days of Brussels]] (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
:2nd [[Six Days of Berlin]] (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
:3rd [[Six Days of Antwerp]] (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
;1955
:[[Belgian National Track Championships|National Championships]]
::1st [[File:MaillotBélgica.PNG|20px]] Madison (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
:1st [[Six Days of Antwerp]] (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
:2nd [[Six Days of Ghent]] II (with [[Ferdinando Terruzzi]])
:2nd [[Six Days of Brussels]] (with [[Jean Brankart]])
:3rd [[Six Days of Ghent]] I (with [[Rik Van Steenbergen]])
;1956
:1st [[Six Days of Antwerp]] (with [[Reginald Arnold]] and [[Jean Roth]])

{{div col end}}

===Grand Tour general classification results timeline===

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|-
! scope="col" | [[Grand Tour (cycling)|Grand Tour]]
! scope="col" | 1948
! scope="col" | 1949
! scope="col" | 1950
! scope="col" | 1951
! scope="col" | 1952
! scope="col" | 1953
! scope="col" | 1954
! scope="col" | 1955
! scope="col" | 1956
|- style="text-align:center;"
! scope="row" | [[File:Jersey pink.svg|20px|link=|alt=A pink jersey]] [[General classification in the Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]]
|—
|—
|—
|—
| style="background:#ddf;"|[[1952 Giro d'Italia|6]]
| style="background:#ddf;"|[[1953 Giro d'Italia|6]]
|—
|—
|—

|- style="text-align:center;"
! scope="row" | [[File:Jersey yellow.svg|20px|link=|alt=A yellow jersey]] [[General classification in the Tour de France|Tour de France]]
| style="text-align:center;"|[[1948 Tour de France|11]]
| style="background:#ddf;"|[[1949 Tour de France|7]]
| style="background:#D8BFD8;"|[[1950 Tour de France|'''2''']]
| style="background:#ddf;"|[[1951 Tour de France|5]]
| style="background:#D8BFD8;"|[[1952 Tour de France|'''2''']]
|—
| style="background:#ddf;"|[[1954 Tour de France|6]]
| style="background:#ddf;"|[[1955 Tour de France|8]]
| style="background:#ddf;"|[[1956 Tour de France|8]]
|- style="text-align:center;"
! scope="row" | [[File:Jersey red.svg|20px|link=|alt=A red jersey]] [[List of Vuelta a España general classification winners|Vuelta a España]]
|—
|—
|—
|—
|—
|—
|—
|—
|—
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Legend
|-
! scope="row" | —
| Did not compete
|-
! scope="row" | [[Did not finish|DNF]]
| Did not finish
|}

== Awards and honours ==
{{multiple image
| align = right
| total_width = 400
| image1 = Côte des Forges - monument Stan Ockers 5.jpg
| alt1 = Monument in [[Liege]], 1957
| image2 = Stan Ockers Borgerhout2.JPG
| alt2 = Memorial placque in [[Borgerhout]], 2006
| footer = Monument in [[Liège]] (1957) and memorial plaque in [[Borgerhout]] (2006)
}}
* [[:fr:Alcyon_(entreprise)|Trophée Edmond Gentil]]: 1955
* ''Grote Prijs Stan Ockers'', a [[derny]] race in Antwerp: from 1956<ref name=":0" />
* [[File:BEL_Order_of_Leopold_II_-_Officer_BAR.png|40x40px]] Officer in the Belgian [[Order of Leopold II]]: 1957<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 September 2021 |title=De 'vergeten' Belgische wereldkampioenen: Stan Ockers, een ware mythe (1955) |url=https://www.proximus.be/pickx/nl/2172508/de-vergeten-belgische-wereldkampioenen-stan-ockers-een-ware-mythe-1955 |website=www.proximus.be |language=nl}}</ref>
* Memorial monument in [[Sprimont]], [[Liège]] (la Côte des Forges): 1957
* ''[[Grand Prix Stan Ockers]]'', a cycle race in France: 1957-1963
* ''Stan Ockers Classic'', a criterium in Antwerp: from 1963<ref>{{Cite web |date=31 August 2023 |title=Stan Ockers Classic |url=https://stanockersclassic.be/index.htm |website=stanockersclassic.be |language=nl}}</ref>
* A street, ''Stan Ockersstraat'' in Borgerhout, Antwerp
* ''Stanneke'' a song by [[Hugo Matthysen]]: 1990
* ''Mémorial Stan Ockers'', a race organized by Cyclo-Club de Beaufays from 1996<ref>{{Cite web |date= |title=OCKERS Stan Sprimont |url=https://connaitrelawallonie.wallonie.be/fr/lieux-de-memoire/ockers-stan |website=connaitrelawallonie.wallonie.be |language=fr}}</ref>
* Introduced in the [[UCI Hall of Fame]]: 2002
* Mémoire du Cyclisme - Ranking of the Greatest Cyclists (44th place): 2002<ref name="eurosport19">{{cite web |title=Les meilleurs coureurs de tous les temps (1892-2002) |url=http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.eu/dossiers/dos_marszalek2.php}}</ref>
* Commemorative plaque in Borgerhout, Antwerp: 2006<ref name="eurosport2322">{{cite web |title=Wielerlegende Stan Ockers krijgt gedenkplaat in Borgerhout |date=30 August 2006 |url=https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf31082006_076 |publisher=Het Nieuwsblad |language=nl}}</ref>
* CyclingRanking - Overall all time ranking (43rd place): 2022<ref name="eurosport7">{{cite web |title=Historic Overview Stan Ockers |url=https://www.cyclingranking.com/rider/2029/stan-ockers |publisher=Cycling Ranking |language=en}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}


==External links==
==External links==
Line 85: Line 296:
{{Tour de France Green Jersey}}
{{Tour de France Green Jersey}}
{{Liège–Bastogne–Liège winners}}
{{Liège–Bastogne–Liège winners}}
{{Challenge Desgrange-Colombo winners}}
{{use dmy dates|date=November 2010}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Ockers, Stan}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ockers, Stan}}
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[[Category:Belgian Tour de France stage winners]]
[[Category:Belgian Tour de France stage winners]]
[[Category:UCI Road World Champions (elite men)]]
[[Category:UCI Road World Champions (elite men)]]
[[Category:Cyclists killed while racing]]
[[Category:Cyclists who died while racing]]
[[Category:Sport deaths in Belgium]]
[[Category:Sport deaths in Belgium]]
[[Category:People from Borgerhout]]
[[Category:People from Borgerhout]]
[[Category:Tour de France cyclists]]
[[Category:Cyclists from Antwerp]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Antwerp]]
[[Category:Challenge Desgrange-Colombo winners]]

Latest revision as of 18:21, 31 October 2024

Stan Ockers
Stan Ockers at the 1951 Tour de France
Personal information
Full nameConstant Ockers
Born(1920-02-03)3 February 1920
Borgerhout, Belgium
Died1 October 1956(1956-10-01) (aged 36)
Antwerp, Belgium
Team information
Discipline
RoleRider
Rider typeSprinter
Professional teams
1941Individual
1942Helyett–Hutchinson
1943–1945Métropole
1946Metropole–Dunlop
1947Groene Leeuw
1947–1949Mondia and Garin–Wolber
1950Metropole–Dunlop and Terrot–Wolber
1951Girardengo and Terrot–Wolber
1952–1954Peugeot–Dunlop and Girardengo–Clement
1955–1956Elvé–Peugeot
1956Girardengo–Icep
Major wins
Grand Tours
Tour de France
Points classification (1955, 1956)
4 individual stages (1950, 1954, 1956)

Other stage races

Roma–Napoli–Roma (1956)

One-day races and Classics

World Road Race Championships (1955)
La Flèche Wallonne (1953, 1955)
Liège–Bastogne–Liège (1955)
Scheldeprijs (1941, 1946)

Track Championships

National Championships
Madison (1955)

Other

Challenge Desgrange-Colombo (1955)
Medal record
Representing  Belgium
Men's road bicycle racing
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1955 Frascati Professional road race
Bronze medal – third place 1953 Lugano Professional road race

Constant ("Stan") Ockers (3 February 1920 – 1 October 1956) was a Belgian professional racing cyclist.

He was runner-up in the Tour de France in 1950 and 1952, and the best sprinter in that Grand Tour in 1955 and 1956. In 1955 he won the Classic "Ardennes double" by winning La Flèche Wallonne and the Liège–Bastogne–Liège in the same year. At this time, the races were run on successive days as "Le Weekend Ardennais". He also won the World Cycling Championship that year.

Ockers and family at the start of the 1954 Tour de France

Ockers did not have the most congenial riding style - he was known as a crafty cyclist who often took advantage of other people's work - but he more than made up for this through his contact with the public. Stan Ockers always remained himself, had time for everyone and thus became one of the most popular riders of his generation, together with Rik Van Steenbergen and the young Rik Van Looy.

At the opening of the 1956 Antwerp track season, Ockers crashed heavily. He didn't see how Ernest Sterckx had returned to the track after a mechanical failure, looked back and drove full into his opponent. Ockers suffered a fractured skull and four broken ribs. The Antwerp folk hero fell into a coma, regained consciousness twice more but died of his injuries two days later on 1 October. Antwerp was in mourning, even 11-year-old Eddy Merckx was in shock at the death of his great idol. Tens of thousands of Antwerp people saluted the corpse of their Stanneke whose body was laid to rest in Antwerp Sportpaleis.[1]

A year later, a monument was built in Les Forges, Sprimont, in the south of Belgium.

Career achievements

[edit]

Major results

[edit]

Road

[edit]
1941
1st Scheldeprijs
1st Antwerp Province championship
1943
3rd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
3rd Schaal Sels
1944
1st Bruxelles-Everbeek
4th Overall Omloop van België
1946
1st Scheldeprijs
1st Heist-op-den-Berg
1st Bruxelles–Sint-Truiden
1st Antwerp Province championship
5th Gent–Wevelgem
1947
3rd Overall Tour de Suisse
4th La Flèche Wallonne
5th Liège–Bastogne–Liège
6th Overall Tour de Luxembourg
1948
1st Overall Tour of Belgium
2nd Omloop der Vlaamse Ardennen
2nd Dwars door West-Vlaanderen
3rd Gullegem Koerse
1949
7th Overall Tour de France
1950
2nd Overall Tour de France
1st Stage 4
2nd Critérium des As
7th Road race, UCI World Road Championships
8th Overall Challenge Desgrange-Colombo
8th Road race, National Road Championships
1951
5th Overall Tour de France
6th Bordeaux–Paris
1952
2nd Overall Tour de France
2nd Overall Roma–Napoli–Roma
1st Stage 4a
2nd Overall Vuelta a Argentina
1st Stage 3
2nd La Flèche Wallonne
3rd Overall Challenge Desgrange-Colombo
6th Overall Giro d'Italia
10th Road race, UCI World Road Championships
10th Road race, National Road Championships
1953
1st La Flèche Wallonne
2nd Overall Roma–Napoli–Roma
1st Stage 4
2nd Critérium des As
2nd Overall Week-end ardennais
2nd Gran Premio di Lugano
3rd Road race, UCI World Road Championships
3rd Road race, National Road Championships
3rd Overall Challenge Desgrange-Colombo
4th Giro di Lombardia
4th Bordeaux–Paris
6th Overall Giro d'Italia
1954
1st Schaal Sels
2nd Paris–Roubaix
5th Bordeaux–Paris
6th Overall Tour de France
1st Stage 11
6th Milan–San Remo
1955
1st Road race, UCI World Road Championships
1st Overall Challenge Desgrange-Colombo
1st Overall Week-end ardennais
1st La Flèche Wallonne
1st Liège–Bastogne–Liège
1st Trophée Gentil
1st Stage 1b (TTT) Driedaagse van Antwerpen
2nd Overall Tour de Suisse
2nd Grand Prix Martini
2nd De Drie Zustersteden
2nd Bruxelles–Couvin
3rd Critérium des As
5th Paris–Brussels
8th Overall Tour de France
1st Points classification
9th Paris–Tours
1956
1st Overall Roma–Napoli–Roma
1st Stages 1b, 3b, 4b, 5a & 5b
2nd Tour of Flanders
2nd Bordeaux–Paris
2nd Grand Prix Martini
3rd Overall Challenge Desgrange-Colombo
4th Road race, UCI World Road Championships
4th La Flèche Wallonne
5th Classica Sarda
6th Gent–Wevelgem
8th Overall Tour de France
1st Points classification
1st Stage 19
9th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré
1st Stages 5 & 9
10th Milan–San Remo

Track

[edit]
1948
3rd Six Days of Antwerp (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
1951
1st Six Days of Brussels (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
1953
1st Prix de Salon (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
3rd Six Days of Brussels (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
1954
1st Six Days of Ghent (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
2nd Six Days of Brussels (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
2nd Six Days of Berlin (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
3rd Six Days of Antwerp (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
1955
National Championships
1st Madison (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
1st Six Days of Antwerp (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
2nd Six Days of Ghent II (with Ferdinando Terruzzi)
2nd Six Days of Brussels (with Jean Brankart)
3rd Six Days of Ghent I (with Rik Van Steenbergen)
1956
1st Six Days of Antwerp (with Reginald Arnold and Jean Roth)

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

[edit]
Grand Tour 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956
A pink jersey Giro d'Italia — — — — 6 6 — — —
A yellow jersey Tour de France 11 7 2 5 2 — 6 8 8
A red jersey Vuelta a España — — — — — — — — —
Legend
— Did not compete
DNF Did not finish

Awards and honours

[edit]
Monument in Liege, 1957
Memorial placque in Borgerhout, 2006
Monument in Liège (1957) and memorial plaque in Borgerhout (2006)
  • Trophée Edmond Gentil: 1955
  • Grote Prijs Stan Ockers, a derny race in Antwerp: from 1956[1]
  • Officer in the Belgian Order of Leopold II: 1957[2]
  • Memorial monument in Sprimont, Liège (la Côte des Forges): 1957
  • Grand Prix Stan Ockers, a cycle race in France: 1957-1963
  • Stan Ockers Classic, a criterium in Antwerp: from 1963[3]
  • A street, Stan Ockersstraat in Borgerhout, Antwerp
  • Stanneke a song by Hugo Matthysen: 1990
  • Mémorial Stan Ockers, a race organized by Cyclo-Club de Beaufays from 1996[4]
  • Introduced in the UCI Hall of Fame: 2002
  • Mémoire du Cyclisme - Ranking of the Greatest Cyclists (44th place): 2002[5]
  • Commemorative plaque in Borgerhout, Antwerp: 2006[6]
  • CyclingRanking - Overall all time ranking (43rd place): 2022[7]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "De Giro komt vandaag aan in Frascati: wat weet u nog van Stan Ockers en welke is de link met Victor Campenaerts?" [The Giro arrives in Frascati today: what do you remember about Stan Ockers and what is the link with Victor Campenaerts?]. Het Nieuwsblad (in Dutch). 14 May 2019.
  2. ^ "De 'vergeten' Belgische wereldkampioenen: Stan Ockers, een ware mythe (1955)". www.proximus.be (in Dutch). 23 September 2021.
  3. ^ "Stan Ockers Classic". stanockersclassic.be (in Dutch). 31 August 2023.
  4. ^ "OCKERS Stan Sprimont". connaitrelawallonie.wallonie.be (in French).
  5. ^ "Les meilleurs coureurs de tous les temps (1892-2002)".
  6. ^ "Wielerlegende Stan Ockers krijgt gedenkplaat in Borgerhout" (in Dutch). Het Nieuwsblad. 30 August 2006.
  7. ^ "Historic Overview Stan Ockers". Cycling Ranking.
[edit]

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