European champion H - Miniature cyclist figurines

Peter Sagan

The World Cycling Championship is organized for pro riders, pledges and juniors and this for both women and men. There are also several disciplines: the road race, the individual time trial, the team time trial, ....

An overview of all disciplines:
-Road race elite men
-Road race elite women
-Time trial elite men
-Time trial elite women
-Road race pledges men
-Time trial pledges men
-Road race junior men
-Road race junior women
-Time trial junior men
-Time trial junior women
-Team time trial elite men
-Team time trial elite women

The world championships are organised every year, and each time in a different country. The most recently added discipline is the team time trial. This has only been organised since 1994. The World Championship is one competition in which the winner of that competition can crown himself as world champion.

It's the UCI, the international cycling union that organises these races. The UCI organised the World Championship for the first time in 1921 in Copenhagen, at that time only for amateurs. 1927 was the year in which the very first road race for professional cyclists was held. The race took place in Nürburg in Germany. Alfredo Binda, the Italian was the very first professional cyclist world champion. The women had to wait until 1958. In Reims (France) Elsy Jacobs (Luxembourg) was the first woman to win the World Championship.

Contrary to regular races, the riders don't ride in brand teams, but in country teams. The number of riders that can participate per country is determined by rules. In history that number of riders has often fluctuated. This takes into account the classification of the country on the UCI rankings, the continent, the winner of the previous edition, ...

Although the riders who ride one race for their country together with their compatriots, there is often competition within their own team. This is because those same riders are each other's competitors in their brand team.
The course of the world championship is drawn by the organizer and is usually between 220 and 250km in total. The World Championship consists of a number of laps, allowing the riders to pass several times in the same place. For spectators this is more interesting because they see the riders more often. It's the organizer who decides what the course looks like. This can be a flat course suitable for the sprinters, or a mountainous course where the climbers can enjoy themselves. The time of the World Championship is after the Tour of Spain, in autumn.

The rider who wins the race may put on the rainbow jersey. He or she can wear the rainbow jersey all year long in the peloton, in races in the discipline where he or she became world champion. The rainbow jersey has been awarded since 1927. Riders who once became world champions may wear the rainbow colours on the collar and bottom of the sleeves for the rest of their career. Although becoming world champion is a blissful moment, for many riders there is a so-called curse on the world champion jersey. Very often the world champion has a bad season with few victories. According to many, this is due to the extra pressure that the jersey brings with it.

In the most popular discipline, the road jersey, there are only 5 riders who each became 3 times world champion. These are: Alfredo Binda (Italy), Eddy Merckx (Belgium), Óscar Freire (Spain), Peter Sagan (Slovakia) and Rik Van Steenbergen (Belgium). The country that produced the most world champions, is Belgium with 26 won World Championships. Second is Italy (19) and third France (8).
Among the women is the record holder Jeannie Longo from France. She won the World Championship five times.

The time trial for the male pros has been ridden since 1994. British rider Chris Boardman was the first time time trial world champion. There are 2 riders who won the time trial four times: Tony Martin (Germany) and Fabian Cancellara (Switzerland).

The time trial for the female pro's is ridden just like the men since 1994. It was an American rider who became world champion: Karen Kurreck. The record holder in the discipline is Jeannie Longo. She won the time trial 4 times.

Winners road race elite men:
1927 Alfredo Binda
1928 Georges Ronsse
1929 Georges Ronsse
1930 Alfredo Binda
1931 Learco Guerra
1932 Alfredo Binda
1933 Georges Speicher
1934 Karel Kaers
1935 Jean Aerts
1936 Antonin Magne
1937 Eloi Meulenberg
1938 Marcel Kint
1946 Hans Knecht
1947 Theo Middelkamp
1948 Briek Schotte
1949 Rik Van Steenbergen
1950 Briek Schotte
1951 Ferdi Kübler
1952 Heinz Müller
1953 Fausto Coppi
1954 Louison Bobet
1955 Stan Ockers
1956 Rik Van Steenbergen
1957 Rik Van Steenbergen
1958 Ercole Baldini
1959 André Darrigade
1960 Rik Van Looy
1961 Rik Van Looy
1962 Jean Stablinski
1963 Benoni Beheyt
1964 Jan Janssen
1965 Tom Simpson
1966 Rudi Altig
1967 Eddy Merckx
1968 Vittorio Adorni
1969 Harm Ottenbros
1970 Jean-Pierre Monseré
1971 Eddy Merckx
1972 Marino Basso
1973 Felice Gimondi
1974 Eddy Merckx
1975 Hennie Kuiper
1976 Freddy Maertens
1977 Francesco Moser
1978 Gerrie Knetemann
1979 Jan Raas
1980 Bernard Hinault
1981 Freddy Maertens
1982 Giuseppe Saronni
1983 Greg LeMond
1984 Claude Criquielion
1985 Joop Zoetemelk
1986 Moreno Argentin
1987 Stephen Roche
1988 Maurizio Fondriest
1989 Greg LeMond
1990 Rudy Dhaenens
1991 Gianni Bugno
1992 Gianni Bugno
1993 Lance Armstrong
1994 Luc Leblanc
1995 Abraham Olano
1996 Johan Museeuw
1997 Laurent Brochard
1998 Oscar Camenzind
1999 Óscar Freire
2000 Romāns Vainšteins
2001 Óscar Freire
2002 Mario Cipollini
2003 Igor Astarloa
2004 Óscar Freire
2005 Tom Boonen
2006 Paolo Bettini
2007 Paolo Bettini
2008 Alessandro Ballan
2009 Cadel Evans
2010 Thor Hushovd
2011 Mark Cavendish
2012 Philippe Gilbert
2013 Rui Costa
2014 Michał Kwiatkowski
2015 Peter Sagan
2016 Peter Sagan
2017 Peter Sagan
2018 Alejandro Valverde
2019 Mads Pedersen
2020 Julian Alaphilippe

Winners road race elite women:

1958 Elsy Jacobs
1959 Yvonne Reynders
1960 Beryl Burton
1961 Yvonne Reynders
1962 Marie-Rose Gaillard
1963 Yvonne Reynders
1964 Emma Sonka
1965 Elisabeth Eichholz
1966 Yvonne Reynders
1967 Beryl Burton
1968 Keetie Hage
1969 Audrey McElmury
1970 Anna Konkina
1971 Anna Konkina
1972 Geneviève Gambillon
1973 Nicole Van den Broeck
1974 Geneviève Gambillon
1975 Tineke Fopma
1976 Keetie van Oosten-Hage
1977 Josiane Bost
1978 Beate Habetz
1979 Petra de Bruin
1980 Beth Heiden
1981 Ute Enzenauer
1982 Mandy Jones
1983 Marianne Berglund
1984 not organized because of Summer Olympics
1985 Jeannie Longo
1986 Jeannie Longo
1987 Jeannie Longo
1988 not organized because of Summer Olympics
1989 Jeannie Longo
1990 Catherine Marsal
1991 Leontien van Moorsel
1992 not organized because of Summer Olympics
1993 Leontien van Moorsel
1994 Monica Valvik
1995 Jeannie Longo
1996 Barbara Heeb
1997 Alessandra Cappellotto
1998 Diana Žiliūtė
1999 Edita Pučinskaitė
2000 Zinaida Stahoerskaja
2001 Rasa Polikevičiūtė
2002 Susanne Ljungskog
2003 Susanne Ljungskog
2004 Judith Arndt
2005 Regina Schleicher
2006 Marianne Vos
2007 Marta Bastianelli
2008 Nicole Cooke
2009 Tatiana Guderzo
2010 Giorgia Bronzini
2011 Giorgia Bronzini
2012 Marianne Vos
2013 Marianne Vos
2014 Pauline Ferrand-Prévot
2015 Elizabeth Armitstead
2016 Amalie Dideriksen
2017 Chantal Blaak
2018 Anna van der Breggen
2019 Annemiek van Vleuten
2020 Anna van der Breggen

Winners time trial elite men:
1994 Chris Boardman
1995 Miguel Induráin
1996 Alex Zülle
1997 Laurent Jalabert
1998 Abraham Olano
1999 Jan Ullrich
2000 Serhij Hontsjar
2001 Jan Ullrich
2002 Santiago Botero
2003 Michael Rogers
2004 Michael Rogers
2005 Michael Rogers
2006 Fabian Cancellara
2007 Fabian Cancellara
2008 Bert Grabsch
2009 Fabian Cancellara
2010 Fabian Cancellara
2011 Tony Martin
2012 Tony Martin
2013 Tony Martin
2014 Bradley Wiggins
2015 Vasil Kiryjenka
2016 Tony Martin
2017 Tom Dumoulin
2018 Rohan Dennis
2019 Rohan Dennis
2020 Filippo Ganna

Winners time trial elite women:
1994 Karen Kurreck
1995 Jeannie Longo
1996 Jeannie Longo
1997 Jeannie Longo
1998 Leontien van Moorsel
1999 Leontien van Moorsel
2000 Mari Holden
2001 Jeannie Longo
2002 Zoelfia Zabirova
2003 Joane Somarriba
2004 Karin Thürig
2005 Karin Thürig
2006 Kristin Armstrong
2007 Hanka Kupfernagel
2008 Amber Neben
2009 Kristin Armstrong
2010 Emma Pooley
2011 Judith Arndt
2012 Judith Arndt
2013 Ellen van Dijk
2014 Lisa Brennauer
2015 Linda Villumsen
2016 Amber Neben
2017 Annemiek van Vleuten
2018 Annemiek van Vleuten
2019 Chloé Dygert
2020 Anna van der Breggen

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