1987 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race

Men's Individual Road Race Rad-WM Wien-Villach 1987.jpg Rainbow jersey 1987 UCI Road World Championships September 6, 1987 1 269.1 km 6h 50' 02" medals Stephen Roche IRL Ireland Moreno Argentin ITA Italy Juan Fernández ESP Spain 1986 1988 The Men's Individual Road Race of the 1987 UCI Road World Championships cycling event took place on September 6 in Villach, Austria. The route consisted of twenty-three laps totaling to a length of 276 km mi on. Irishman Stephen Roche won the race, while Italian Moreno Argentin and Spaniard Juan Fernández finished second and third, respectively. By winning the race, Roche also completed the Triple Crown of Cycling, which consists of winning two Grand Tour races and the men's road race at the UCI Road World Championships in a calendar year.https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1987/09/06/page_026.pdf Tanto azzurro nella verde Austria Gino Sala it September 6, 1987 26 l'Unità PCI 27 May 2012 PDF So much blue in Austria Green https://web.archive.org/web/20200429160650/https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1987/09/06/page_026.pdf 29 April 2020 https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1987/09/06/page_026.pdf La task force del generale Martini Dario Ceccarelli it September 6, 1987 26 l'Unità PCI 27 May 2012 PDF The Task Force of the General Martini https://web.archive.org/web/20200429160650/https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1987/09/06/page_026.pdf 29 April 2020 http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,17/articleid,0981_02_1987_0240_0041_19043150/ Argentin s'inchina a Roche Argentin bows to Roche it September 7, 1987 17 Stampa Sera Editrice La Stampa July 3, 2015http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,17/articleid,0981_02_1987_0240_0041_19043150/ Martini sereno: <<Niente rimproveri>> Gian Paolo Ormezzano Martini weather: <<reproaches Nothing>> it September 7, 1987 17 Stampa Sera Editrice La Stampa July 3, 2015http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,14/articleid,0981_02_1987_0240_0014_19043017/ Roche mondiale grande come Merckx Gian Paolo Ormezzano Roche mondiale grande come Merckx it September 7, 1987 14 Stampa Sera Editrice La Stampa July 3, 2015 Race route and details The race route contained 23 laps of 11.7 km mi on, equaling a total 269.1 km mi on of racing in all.http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,27/articleid,0981_01_1987_0209_0027_23861577/ I Numeri di Gara Degli Azzurri The Race Numbers of Blue it September 6, 1987 27 La Stampa Editrice La Stampa July 3, 2015 Each lap featured two climbs that were 100 m ft on and 90 m ft on, respectively, with some portions having a ten percent gradient.https://www.newspapers.com/clip/49812003/the-guardian/ The Guardian 13 September 5, 1987 Roche prepares to battle for cycling's triple crown October 27, 2019 Newspapers.com The race started at 10:30 AM local time.http://streaming.ajgirona.org/pandora-NEW/cgi-bin/Pandora.exe?xslt=show_pdf;publication=Avui;sort_publication=avui;day=06;month=09;year=1987;page=038;id=0002859100;filename=19870906;collection=pages;url_high=pages/Avui/1987/198709/19870906/19870906038.pdf Molts favorits en un Mundial de ciclisme apte per a velocistes es September 6, 1987 38 F. Recuero Avui Hermes Comunicacions S.A. May 6, 2016 PDF Many favorites in World Cup cycling suitable for sprintersMay 2020 InternetArchiveBot yes Sportswriters found the course to be suited for sprinters, believing that the race would likely result in a sprint finish.http://doc.rero.ch/record/110219/files/1987-09-05.pdf Des favoris à la pelle Favorites in spades fr Michel Deruns L'Impartial 5 September 1987 15 https://web.archive.org/web/20200609181150/http://doc.rero.ch/record/110219/files/1987-09-05.pdf 9 June 2020 live RERO Swiss rider Bernard Gavillet stated that it favored the sprinters and the pure climbers chances "are almost zero." The race featured a 500,000 Swiss francs prize for the first place rider, to split among his fellow countrymen.http://doc.rero.ch/record/197422/files/1987-09-05.pdf L'élu de la dernière heure The chosen one of the last hour fr Christian Rappaz Nouvelliste et Feuille d'Avis du Valais 5 September 1987 13 https://web.archive.org/web/20200609181417/http://doc.rero.ch/record/197422/files/1987-09-05.pdf 9 June 2020 live RERO The Italian Cycling Federation had an additional bonus that they'd award each team member 120,000 Swiss francs if an Italian won the race. Participants and race favorites The race began with 168 riders from 26 different countries,http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,27/articleid,0981_01_1987_0209_0027_23861577/ Non c'è piu Hinault, manca un faro Gian Paolo Ormezzano There's more Hinault, missing a beacon it September 6, 1987 27 La Stampa Editrice La Stampa July 3, 2015 of which 71 finished.http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1987/09/07/MD19870907-049.pdf Clasificacion September 7, 1987 49 es Classification El Mundo Deportivo El Mundo Deportivo S.A. March 27, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160327220526/http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1987/09/07/MD19870907-049.pdf March 27, 2016 live L'Impartial writer Michel Deruns felt the race was open to 40 or so riders to win the event as he felt it would likely end in a bunch sprint. The starting field featured the previous year's winner Moreno Argentin, who was seen as the race favorite by many journalists and the Austrian bookmakers.https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1987/09/07/page_017.pdf Roche grande come Merckx Gino Sala it September 7, 1987 17 l'Unità PCI 27 May 2012 PDF Grande Roche come Merckx https://web.archive.org/web/20200429161112/https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1987/09/07/page_017.pdf 29 April 2020 http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1987/09/06/MD19870906-045.pdf A ritmo de vals Javier Delmases September 6, 1987 March 31, 2012 45 es El Mundo Deportivo A Waltz https://web.archive.org/web/20160327221307/http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1987/09/06/MD19870906-045.pdf March 27, 2016 live Guido Bontempi (Italy), Sean Kelly (Ireland), Teun van Vliet (Dutch), and Eric Vanderaerden (Belgium) as other riders capable of winning the race. Swiss rider Erich Maechler who won Milan–San Remo that season was viewed as Switzerland's best hope to win the race. A writer for Amigoe believed the Dutch and Italian teams to be the best teams competing in the race.http://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ddd:010642503:mpeg21:p006 Stephen Roche bekroont een uiterst succesvol seizoen met het wereldkampioenschap bij de profs Stephen Roche finished off a highly successful season in the World Championship with the pros nl September 9, 1987 6 Amigoe Amigoe July 3, 2015 La Stampa writer Gian Paolo Ormezzano believed an Italian rider would win the race, specifically Argentin or Bontempi, but stated the Dutch riders were a team to "fear." Cees Olsthoorn of Het vrije volk believed that Steven Rooks and van Vliet were the Dutch riders with the best chances of winning.http://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ddd:010962473:mpeg21:p011 Roche in de voetsporen van Merckx Roche in the footsteps of Merckx nl September 7, 1987 11 Het vrije volk De Arbeiderspers July 3, 2015 Cees Olsthoorn El Mundo Deportivo'''s Javier Delmases wrote that after seeing the slightly uphill finish to the route that Spain's best chance came with uphill sprint specialist Juan Fernández would have a good chance to earn another medal at the World Championships. He had won bronze in the world championships road race.http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1987/09/07/MD19870907-048.pdf "De Roche" De Facultades September 7, 1987 March 31, 2012 48 es El Mundo Deportivo "De Roche" of Schools https://web.archive.org/web/20141223235725/http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1987/09/07/MD19870907-048.pdf December 23, 2014 live El Mundo Deportivo reported specifically that Argentin was a 5:1 favorite, while Roche was 12:1. Giro d'Italia and Tour de France winner Stephen Roche was viewed as a contender due to his great form throughout the season. There was significant media coverage around Roche because if he won the race, he would win cycling's Triple Crown, where one wins the Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and the men's road race at the UCI Road World Championships in one calendar year. Only five cyclists had won the two Grand Tours in a single season by that point. A writer for The Guardian stated that if the climbs were higher, Roche's chances would be better. There were concerns over Roche's fitness at the time because he took a break from racing following his Tour success and in his first race back Tre Valli Varesine, he did not perform well. Race summary thumb|Stephen Roche, pictured earlier in the season at the Giro d'Italia, won the race and became the second rider to achieve the Triple Crown of Cycling. After speculation of the start being delayed due to severe thunderstorms, the race began on time, during heavy rain.https://www.newspapers.com/clip/47985316/the-guardian/ The Guardian 29 September 7, 1987 Roche matches Merckx triple Robert Zeller October 27, 2019 Newspapers.com The rain on course caused the earlier portion of the race to be slower, what De Telegraaf described as "dull."http://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ddd:011207599:mpeg21:p022 Roche voltooit trilogie Roche completes trilogy nl September 7, 1987 T 17 De Telegraaf Dagblad De Telegraaf July 3, 2015 Bert Dijkstra The rain lasted for approximately the first three hours of racing. Portugal's Orlando Neves attacked off the front of the peloton early and established a lead of nearly two minutes, but was caught by the main field 75 km mi on later. On the eighteenth lap, Jan Nevens (Belgium), Argentin (Italy), van Vliet (Dutch), and Juan Fernández (Spain) formed a breakaway.https://www.newspapers.com/clip/49812521/johnson-city-press/ Johnson City Press 15 September 7, 1987 Roche captures World title Associated Press October 27, 2019 Newspapers.com The quartet stretched a lead of one minute over chasing riders. As the riders chased the leaders, Roche (Ireland) and Steve Bauer (Canada) led a group of fifteen to join the leading four during the twenty-first lap. Roche had been principally working to help teammate Sean Kelly get to a final sprint. Shortly after joining the lead bunch, Erik Breukink made a move off the front, only to be caught by Belgian Jozef Lieckens.http://doc.rero.ch/record/69979/files/1987-09-07.pdf Roche à la Merckx Roche at Merckx fr L'Express Feuille d'avis de Neuchâtel 7 September 1987 13 https://web.archive.org/web/20200609181454/http://doc.rero.ch/record/69979/files/1987-09-07.pdf 9 June 2020 live RERO Van Vliet made another move between three kilometers and one and a half kilometers to go, which Roche, Rolf Sørensen (Denmark), Guido Winterberg and Rolf Gölz (Germany) followed.http://doc.rero.ch/record/110220/files/1987-09-07.pdf Stephen Roche: absolument fabuleux Stephen Roche: Absolutely Fabulous fr Michel Deruns L'Impartial 7 September 1987 11 https://web.archive.org/web/20200609181046/http://doc.rero.ch/record/110220/files/1987-09-07.pdf 9 June 2020 live RERO These attacks by the Dutch riders split the group of thirteen on the road, which left Kelly in the group behind.http://doc.rero.ch/record/286415/files/1987-09-07.pdf Stephen Roche imite Eddy Merckx Stephen Roche imitates Eddy Merckx fr La Liberté 7 September 1987 23 https://web.archive.org/web/20200613123756/http://doc.rero.ch/record/286415/files/1987-09-07.pdf 13 June 2020 live RERO Sørensen feigned a move with close to 400 m ft on remaining, which promoted Roche to react and overtake him as the finish approached. As Roche made his move, Fernández pursued and Argentin followed in his slipstream. Roche beat Argentin, who had overtaken Fernández, to the line by four bike lengths, as the trailing group bridged the gap. Result +Final placings (1–71)http://bikeraceinfo.com/worlds/worlds-1987.html 1987 World Pro Road Cycling Championships Bike Race Info Dog Ear Publishing McGann Bill McGann Carol May 7, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160507124220/http://bikeraceinfo.com/worlds/worlds-1987.html May 7, 2016 live Rank Rider Country Time 1Stephen Roche 6h 50' 02" 1Moreno ArgentinItaly + 1" 1Juan FernándezSpain s.t.4Rolf GölzGermany s.t.5Sean Kelly s.t.6Steven RooksNetherlands s.t.7Teun van VlietNetherlands s.t.8Rolf Sørensen s.t.9Erik BreukinkNetherlands s.t.10Claude CriquielionBelgium s.t. 11Guido WinterbergSwitzerland s.t. 12Jörg MüllerSwitzerland s.t. 13Steve BauerCanada s.t. 14Eric VanderaerdenBelgium + 40" 15Martial GayantFrance s.t. 16Paul Popp s.t. 17Andreas KappesGermany s.t. 18Adri Van der PoelNetherlands s.t. 19Marc SergeantBelgium s.t. 20Jeff PierceUnited States s.t. 21Phil AndersonAustralia s.t. 22Peter StevenhaagenNetherlands s.t. 23Ferdi Van Den HauteBelgium s.t. 24Czesław LangPoland s.t. 25Ron KiefelUnited States s.t. 26Guido BontempiItaly s.t. 27Alfonso GutiérrezSpain s.t. 28Lars WahlqvistSweden s.t. 29Gerhard Zadrobilek s.t. 30Kim Andersen s.t. 31Gilbert GlausSwitzerland s.t. 32Fabian FuchsSwitzerland s.t. 33Jan NevensBelgium s.t. 34Lech PiaseckiPoland s.t. 35Thomas WegmüllerSwitzerland s.t. 36Celestino PrietoSpain s.t. 37Federico EchaveSpain s.t. 38Marino LejarretaSpain s.t. 39Jørgen Marcussen s.t. 40Álvaro PinoSpain s.t. 41Maurizio FondriestItaly s.t. 42Gilbert Duclos-LassalleFrance s.t. 43Masatoshi Ichikawa s.t. 44Paul Kimmage s.t. 45Andrew HampstenUnited States s.t. 46Peter HilseGermany s.t. 47Erich MächlerSwitzerland s.t. 48Giuseppe SaronniItaly s.t. 49Jean-François BernardFrance s.t. 50Kurt SteinmannSwitzerland s.t. 51Joop ZoetemelkNetherlands s.t. 52Robert MillarUnited Kingdom s.t. 53Bruno LealiItaly s.t. 54Emanuele BombiniItaly s.t. 55Luciano LoroItaly s.t. 56Massimo GhirottoItaly s.t. 57Gerrie KnetemannNetherlands s.t. 58Acácio da Silva s.t. 59Marc MadiotFrance s.t. 60Guy NulensBelgium s.t. 61Johan Van der VeldeNetherlands s.t. 62Gianni BugnoItaly s.t. 63Othmar HäfligerSwitzerland s.t. 64Miguel InduráinSpain s.t. 65Roberto PagninItaly s.t. 66Francesco MoserItaly s.t. 67Jonathan BoyerUnited States + 1' 45" 68Etienne De WildeBelgium s.t. 69Frédéric BrunFrance s.t. 70Sean YatesUnited Kingdom s.t. 71Jozef LieckensBelgium s.t. Aftermath Roche became the first ever Irishman to win the men's road race at the UCI Road World Championships. In addition, he became the second rider – after Eddy Merckx in 1974 – to complete the Triple Crown of Cycling, which consists of winning two Grand Tour races and the men's road race at the UCI Road World Championships in a calendar year. Upon finishing the race, Roche stated that was like "a fairy tale" and that he "came to Austria to help [Sean] Kelly" going on to mention how the course did not suit him and he was not well prepared for the race. Roche commented on his day's performance saying: "Normally, I never do that kind of move – sprinting from the front for so long – but I realized that If I didn't do something, I'd finish fourth or fifth." For his achievements during the 1987 cycling season, Roche was named Freedom of the City of Dublin and became the first athlete to be given this honor.https://www.newspapers.com/clip/49812664/the-guardian/ The Guardian 38 September 9, 1987 Cycling October 27, 2019 Newspapers.com Michel Deruns of L'Impartial felt that the race was one of the best in the past twenty years in the event, with Roche being the only rider deserving of winning. He stated that Roche did a great job at trying to support Kelly and the two quelled any attacks from the field as the race wound down. Dutchman Teun van Vliet stated that Germany's Rolf Gölz was on his wheel as Roche launched the final attack. Van Vliet stated "I was still fresh", but he elected not to chase hard after Roche as Gölz would benefit from his slipstream and have a great chance to win the race, to which van Vliet commented "I didn't like that thought." Fellow countryman, Adri Van der Poel felt the Dutch team had a strong showing and commented: "If we can continue to build with this group, there will be more in the future. Then success cannot be inevitable." De Telegraaf'' felt the Dutch team performed very well, citing three riders finished in the top nine placings. Jean-Paul van Poppel was regarded as the worst Dutch performer as his legs' "blocked" during the first lap and did not finish the race. Durens felt the Swiss riders collectively raced an aggressive race, with two riders, Guido Winterberg and Jörg Müller, finishing in the lead bunch. He felt that if the two riders worked together in the final sprint, Winterberg could have finished in the top five or placed on the podium. References Category:UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race UCI Road World Championships - Men's road race Category:1987 UCI Road World Championships Category:1987 Super Prestige Pernod International