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Historic Overview Jan Veselý

Rider

Overall Rank4481
NameJan VESELÝ
Country
  Czechoslovakia
Date of birth07-Jun-1923 - Sedlec
Date of death10-Feb-2003 - Praha (Pardubicky Kraj)

Biography

Jan Veselý

Jan Veselý (17 June 1923 – 10 February 2003) was a Czech cyclist. He won the Peace Race individually in 1949 and with the Czechoslovak team in 1950 and 1951. He finished second individually in 1952 and 1955 and won no fewer than sixteen stages. Thus, he became one of the most famous cyclists in the Eastern Bloc, and an iconic figure in his homeland.

Cycling was extremely popular in post-war Europe, and the Peace Race was bigger even than the Tour de France. Veselý's humility, allied to his sporting prowess, made him a genuine national hero. His duels with the great East German rider Gustav-Adolf ("Täve") Schur were amongst the highlights of the sporting year, his popularity comparable to that of the great runner Emil Zátopek in Czechoslovakia.

He competed in the individual and team road race events at the 1952 Summer Olympics. His brother Josef was also a competitive road cyclist and won a national title in 1943.

source - Wikipedia

Badges

8 30

Major Victories

Okolo Slovenska 1955
Wyścig Pokoju / Závod Míru / Friedensfahrt 1949
Praha - Karlovy Vary - Praha 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1954, 1955
Okolo Slovenska - stages 1955 (4)
Závod Míru / Peace Race - stages 1948 (3)
Wyścig Pokoju / Závod Míru / Friedensfahrt - stages 1949 (5), 1950 (2), 1951 (2), 1952 (1), 1954 (1), 1955 (2)
More results

Seasons

Jan Veselý - Scores by Season

Year Team Score Rank
1. 1946 Individual 12 676
2. 1947 Individual 0 1471
3. 1948 Individual 218 237
4. 1949 Individual 228 215
5. 1950 Individual 98 418
6. 1951 Individual 84 370
7. 1952 Individual 110 320
8. 1954 Individual 23 669
9. 1955 Individual 92 408
10. 1956 Individual 0 1720
Overall: 865 4481