- Classic cycle races
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For other meanings, see Classics (disambiguation).
The classic cycle races are one-day professional cycling road races in the international calendar. Most of the events, all run in western Europe, have been fixtures on the professional calendar for decades and the oldest ones date back to the 19th Century. They are normally held at roughly the same time each year. In the last few years, the five most revered races are sometimes described as the 'Monuments'.
For the 2005-2007 seasons, the Classics formed part of the UCI ProTour run by 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, and various non-Classic single day events. The ProTour replaced the UCI Road World Cup series which contained only one-day races. Many of the Classics, and all the Grand Tours, were not part of the ProTour for the 2008 season because of disputes between the UCI and the ASO, which organizes the Tour de France and several other major races.
Contents
The Classics
Professional races commonly regarded as Classics:
La Primavera
- Milan – San Remo (Italy) – the first true Classic of the year, its Italian name is La Primavera (the spring), this race is normally held in late March. First run in 1907.
- Ronde van Vlaanderen (Belgium) – the first of the 'Spring Classics', is normally raced in early April. First held in 1913. Known in English as the 'Tour of Flanders'.
- Gent–Wevelgem (Belgium) - First held in 1934.
- Paris–Roubaix (France) – La Reine ("Queen of the Classics") or l'Enfer du Nord ("Hell of the North") is traditionally one week after the Ronde van Vlaanderen, and was first raced in 1896.
- Amstel Gold Race (the Netherlands) – normally held mid-April. First run in 1966, it is one of the three "Ardennes Classics."
- La Flèche Wallonne (Belgium) – First run in 1936, Walloon Arrow is traditionally held mid-week between the Amstel Gold and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Second "Ardennes Classic."
- Liège–Bastogne–Liège (Belgium) – late April. La Doyenne, the oldest Classic, was first held in 1892. It is the third "Ardennes Classic."
Together, the Cobbled classics and the Ardennes classics form the Spring Classics, all held in April.
Fall/autumn classics
- Clásica de San Sebastián (Spain)
- Paris–Tours (France)
- Giro di Lombardia (Italy) – also known as the "Race of the Falling Leaves", is normally held in October. Initially called the Milano-Milano in 1905, it became the Giro di Lombardia in 1907.
Season openers
- Omloop Het Nieuwsblad (Belgium) - opening Belgian cycling season
- GP d'Ouverture La Marseillaise (France) - opening French cycling season
- Gran Premio della Costa Etruschi (Italy) - opening Italian cycling season
- Trofeo Cala Millor-Cala Bona (Spain) - opening Spanish cycling season
Some past Classics are no longer run. These include the gruelling 560 km, partly motor-paced event, Bordeaux–Paris, run from 1891 to 1988. Other former races include the Züri-Metzgete and the very old autumn race Milano-Torino.
The 'Monuments'
The Five Monuments of Cycling are generally considered to be the oldest and most-prestigious one-day races on the calendar.[1][2][3]
- Milan – San Remo (Italy) – the first true Classic of the year, its Italian name is La Primavera (the spring), this race is held in late March. First run in 1907.
- Tour of Flanders (Belgium) – also known as the "Ronde van Vlaanderen", the first of the 'Spring Classics', is raced in early April. First held in 1913.
- Paris–Roubaix (France) – the "Queen of the Classics" or l'Enfer du Nord ("Hell of the North") is traditionally one week after the Ronde van Vlaanderen, and was first raced in 1896.
- Liège–Bastogne–Liège (Belgium) – late April. La Doyenne, the oldest Classic, was first held in 1892 as an amateur event; a professional edition following in 1894.
- Giro di Lombardia (Italy) – also known as the "Race of the Falling Leaves", is held in October. Initially called the Milano–Milano in 1905, it became the Giro di Lombardia in 1907.
Only three riders have won all five 'Monument' one-day races during their careers: Roger De Vlaeminck, Rik Van Looy and Eddy Merckx, all three Belgians. With victories in all the other Monuments, Sean Kelly almost joined this group, finishing second in the Tour of Flanders on three occasions (1984, 1986 and 1987). Dutch rider Hennie Kuiper won each Monument, except Liège–Bastogne–Liège in which he finished second in 1980. Belgian rider Fred De Bruyne also came close, finishing second in the Giro di Lombardia in 1955 and winning the other four races during his career.
See also
References
- ^ Cycling Hall of Fame: Introduction, 2010, http://www.cyclinghalloffame.com/gen_info.asp, retrieved 2010-07-12
- ^ Cycling Monuments, 2010, http://www.trails.com/list_31612_cycling-monuments.html, retrieved 2010-07-12
- ^ "Cancellara dreams of all winning all five of cycling monuments", CyclingNews.com, 2010, http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/cancellara-dreams-of-all-winning-all-five-of-cycling-monuments, retrieved 2010-07-12
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