Robert Wancour
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nickname | The Giant of Wervik |
| Born | 11 December 1884 Wervik, Belgium |
| Died | 26 November 1976 (aged 91) Ligny, Belgium |
| Team information | |
| Discipline | Road |
| Role | Rider |
| Professional teams | |
| 1906 | BSA |
| 1907–1908 | Individual |
| 1909 | Depas Cycles |
| 1910–1911 | Individual |
Robert Wancour (11 December 1884 – 26 November 1976) was a Belgian road cyclist.
Biography
Wancour was born in Wervik, Belgium in 1884. He was a professional cyclist from 1906 to 1911. He a was nicknamed "The Giant of Wervik" (De Reus van Wervik) because of his unusual height of 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in). He was particularly successful in regional races.[1] In 1907 he won 31 races, most of them in Wallonia, where he settled in Ligny after his marriage.[2][3]
Wancour also competed in main international cycling classics. He had a podium finish at the 1907 Paris–Brussels and competed at the 1906 Tour de France.[3]
He became the first winner of the Championship of Flanders in Koolskamp in 1908 beating Firmin Lambot who finished second. He successfully defended his title in 1909 winning ahead of Odile Defraye and Marcel Buysse.[4]
Sportwereld wrote in 1933 why he never had a main international breakthrough: "Cyriel always drank water and never stayed up late. Robert never drank water and always stayed up late."[5]
Major results
- 1906
- 3rd Ougrée-Marche-Ougrée
- 1907
Belgian National Road Championships- 1st Ligny
- 1st Moustier
- 1st Monceau-sur-Sambre
- 1st Mons
- 1st Laken
- 1st Beyne-Heusay
- 1st Sombreffe
- 1st Keumiée
- 2nd Saint-Servais
- 2nd Keumiée
- 3rd Paris–Brussels
- 1908
- 1st Charleroi–Beaumont–Charleroi
- 1st Bierwart
Championship of Flanders- 2nd Velaine-sur-Sambre
- 5th overall Tour of Belgium
- 2nd Stage 2
- 1910
- 1st La Louvière
- 1911
- 2nd Liège–Charleroi
Grand Tour and Classic results timeline
| Race | 1906 | 1907 | 1908 | 1909 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tour de France | DNF | — | — | — |
| Paris–Brussels | — | 3 | — | — |
 National Championships (road race) |
— | 3 | — | — |
| Championship of Flanders |
— | — | 1 | 1 |
References
- ↑ Vuye, Hendrik (19 September 2013). "Een wielerkoers met traditie … en toekomst". Doorbraak (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 July 2026.
- 1 2 "Robert Wancour". De Wielersite (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 July 2026.
- 1 2 Joosse, Marco (2020). Wielerpioniers van de Lage Landen, deel 2 (in Dutch). Les Iles.
- ↑ Van Wijnendaele, Karel (1943). Het rijke Vlaamsche wielerleven (in Dutch). Ghent: Snoeck-Ducaju & Zoon – via Digital Library for Dutch Literature.
- ↑ Vos, Wim (18 March 2021). "Van de jongensjaren van Jakobsen tot het verjaardagsfeestje van The Wolfpack: zeven boeken om uw wielerlente nog wat meer vaart te geven". Het Nieuwsblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 July 2026.
External links
- Image of Wancour
- Robert Wancour at ProCyclingStats
