1972 Tour of Flanders

The 56th running of the Tour of Flanders cycling race in Belgium was held on Sunday 9 April 1972. Belgian Eric Leman won ahead of André Dierickx and Frans Verbeeck, winning the classic for the second time.[1][2] The race started in Ghent and finished in Gentbrugge. 80 out of 171 riders arrived.

Race details
Dates9 April 1972
Stages1
Distance250 km (155.3 mi)
Winning time6h 05'
Results
  Winner  Eric Leman (BEL) (Bic)
  Second  André Dierickx (BEL) (Flandria–Beaulieu)
  Third  Frans Verbeeck (BEL) (Watneys–Avia)

Course

The race was run in bad weather, leading to a group of 30. Eddy Merckx and Eric Leman broke away from the group, but Felice Gimondi brought the rest back. Merckx, suffering severe back pain, was forced to walk up the Muur van Geraardsbergen, but returned afterwards. At 10 km from the finish, a group of seven was formed, sprinting for the win. Leman narrowly beat André Dierickx. Merckx finished seventh.[3]

Climbs

There were six categorized climbs:

Results
Cyclist Team Time
1  Eric Leman (BEL) Bic 6h 05'
2  André Dierickx (BEL) Flandria–Beaulieu s.t.
3  Frans Verbeeck (BEL) Watneys–Avia s.t.
4  Willy De Geest (BEL) Van Cauter – Magniflex – De Gribaldy s.t.
5  Roger Rosiers (BEL) Bic s.t.
6  Roger Swerts (BEL) Molteni s.t.
7  Eddy Merckx (BEL) Molteni s.t.
8  Alain Santy (FRA) Bic + 20"
9  Herman Van Springel (BEL) Molteni s.t.
10  Willy Planckaert (BEL) Goldor-IJsboerke s.t.

References
  1. Vanwalleghem, Rik (1991), De Ronde van Vlaanderen, Pinguin, Belgium, ISBN 90-73322-02-2, p164
  2. McGann, Bill; McGann, Carol. "1972 Ronde van Vlaanderen results". BikeRaceInfo. Cherokee Village, Arkansas: McGann Publishing. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  3. Vanwalleghem, Rik (1991), De Ronde van Vlaanderen, Pinguin, Belgium, ISBN 90-73322-02-2, p172


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