Fitchburg Longsjo Classic, also known as the Longsjo Classic, was an annual

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-powered assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A is called a cyclist, or bicyclist. Bic ...

race Race, RACE or "The Race" may refer to: * Race (biology), an informal taxonomic classification within a species, generally within a sub-species * Race (human categorization), classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, and/or s ...

held in Fitchburg,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, United States. The race began in 1960 as the Arthur M. Longsjo Jr Memorial Race, in honor of Art Longsjo.

History

The race was founded in

Fitchburg, Massachusetts Fitchburg is a city in northern Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The third-largest city in the county, its population was 41,946 at the 2020 census. Fitchburg is home to Fitchburg State University as well as 17 public and private e ...

in 1960, as the Arthur M. Longsjo Jr. Memorial Bicycle Race., in memory of Fitchburg native and resident Art Longsjo. In 1956 Longsjo competed in the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

as a

speed skater Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating. ...

and at the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

as a cyclist, making him the first American to compete in Summer and Winter Olympic Games in one year. In 1958, Longsjo Perished in a car crash in Vermont, while driving home after winning the 180-mile long Quebec-Montreal Road Race. In 1960, local civic and business leaders in the city and Art Longsjo's widow Terry Longsjo organized the first race, with input from Longsjo's racing friend Guy Morin. In 1980, a new race organizing committee formed, which renamed the event the Fitchburg Longsjo Classic. The race was one of the leading bicycle competitions in the United States during this time, as evidenced by the well-known riders on the winners' list. In 1991, the race expanded to a four-day stage race format, which continued through 2010. Stages included a time trial, a circuit race on a 3-mile loop in the

Fitchburg State University Fitchburg State University (Fitchburg State) is a public university in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. It has 3,421 undergraduate and 1,238 graduate/continuing education students, for a total student body enrollment of 4,659. The university offers und ...

area, a road race in

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...

and

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

that finished atop

Mount Wachusett Mount Wachusett is a mountain in Massachusetts. It straddles towns of Princeton and Westminster, in Worcester County. It is the highest point in Massachusetts east of the Connecticut River. The mountain is named after a Native American term me ...

, and the traditional downtown Fitchburg criterium. As a stage race, the event was one of the largest pro-am bicycle stage races in the country and part of the various national calendar races of the period. In 2011, the race was planned to be changed from a four-day event to one day, due to financial and organizational difficulties, but was cancelled due to a building fire on the downtown racecourse. The fire occurred on June 13 at the Johnsonia Building; the race was not able to occur due to many of the streets that were in the race's pathway being closed. A 2012 multi-stage event was planned; however, the race was cancelled on June 11. In 2013, the race was revived by the newly-created Art Longsjo Foundation as a two-day event, with a criterium in downtown

Leominster Leominster ( ) is a market town in Herefordshire, England, at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater. The town is north of Hereford and south of Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of 11,700, Leominster is t ...

in addition to the traditional Fitchburg race. A criterium in downtown

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Englan ...

was added to the event from 2014 through 2016. 2017 and 2018 included downtown races in Leominster and Fitchburg. In 2019, only the downtown Fitchburg race was held. On March 18, 2020, the Art Longsjo Foundation announced the end of the event, citing the difficulty of procuring sponsorship money from local businesses, as well as the sharp decline in riders entries over the last 5–10 years, as seen throughout the US.

Past winners

The following gives Fitchburg Criterium winners for 1960–1990, stage race winners for 1991–2010, and day winners for 2013–2019.

Women

* 1977 –

Connie Carpenter Connie Carpenter-Phinney (born February 26, 1957) is an American retired racing cyclist and speed skater who won four medals in World Cycling Championship competitions (both road and track cycling) in the late 1970s and early 1980s. She also won ...

Boulder, CO * 1978 –

Sue Novara-Reber Sue Novara-Reber (born November 22, 1955 in Flint, Michigan) is a retired American track cyclist who has won seven medals in the UCI Track Cycling World Championships. She was inducted into the United States Bicycling Hall of Fame The United Sta ...

Flint, MI * 1979 –

Mary Jane Reoch Mary Jane Reoch (January 2, 1945 – September 11, 1993) was an American cyclist. She won 11 national championships during her cycling career and afterwards worked as a cycling coach. She was killed in a road accident while training a client in ...

Philadelphia, PA * 1980 –

Beth Heiden Beth may refer to: Letter and number *Bet (letter), or beth, the second letter of the Semitic abjads (writing systems) *Hebrew word for "house", often used in the name of synagogues and schools (e.g. Beth Israel) Name *Beth (given name) lists p ...

Madison, WI * 1981 –

Carol Varnier Carol may refer to: People with the name *Carol (given name) *Henri Carol (1910–1984), French composer and organist *Martine Carol (1920–1967), French film actress * Sue Carol (1906–1982), American actress and talent agent, wife of actor Al ...

Montreal, Canada * 1982 – Pam Deem Pomona, CA * 1983 –

Betsy Davis Betsy is an English feminine given name, often a nickname for Elizabeth. People * Betsy, stage name of Welsh singer Elizabeth Humfrey *Betsy Ancker-Johnson (born 1927), American plasma physicist *Betsy Atkins (born 1953), American business exec ...

Elizabeth, NJ * 1984 –

Liz Larsen Liz Larsen (born January 16, 1959 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American actress. She is best known for playing Jessica Reed on ''Law & Order''. Larsen received a Tony Award nomination for ''The Most Happy Fella'' revival (1992) and has al ...

Exeter, NH * 1985 –

Jeanne Golay Jeanne Marie Golay (born April 16, 1962) is an American former road bicycle racing professional from Coral Gables, Florida. She won the 1992, 1994 and 1995 United States National Road Race Championships, and the 1992 world team time-trial champ ...

Gainesville, FL * 1986 –

Barbara Gradley Barbara may refer to: People * Barbara (given name) * Barbara (painter) (1915–2002), pseudonym of Olga Biglieri, Italian futurist painter * Barbara (singer) (1930–1997), French singer * Barbara Popović (born 2000), also known mononymously as ...

Westwood, NJ * 1987 –

Beth Mills Beth may refer to: Letter and number *Bet (letter), or beth, the second letter of the Semitic abjads (writing systems) *Hebrew word for "house", often used in the name of synagogues and schools (e.g. Beth Israel) Name *Beth (given name) lists p ...

Plymouth, MA * 1988 –

Jessica Grieco Jessica may refer to: Given name * Jessica (given name), includes a list of people and fictional characters with this name * Jessica Folcker, a Swedish singer known by the mononym Jessica * Jessica Jung, a Korean-American singer known by the m ...

Emerson, NJ * 1989 – Lucy Tyler Largo, NJ * 1990 –

Susan Elias Susan is a feminine given name, from Persian "Susan" (lily flower), from Egyptian '' sšn'' and Coptic ''shoshen'' meaning "lotus flower", from Hebrew ''Shoshana'' meaning "lily" (in modern Hebrew this also means "rose" and a flower in general), ...

Readfield, ME * 1991 – Stephanie Roussos Amherst, MA * 1992 – Karen Mackin Troy, NY * 1993 –

Rebecca Twigg Rebecca Twigg (born March 26, 1963) is an American former racing cyclist. Cycling career An academic prodigy, she enrolled at the University of Washington in Seattle at the age of 14 and rode for the school's team. US national team coach Eddie ...

Flagstaff, AZ * 1994 –

Jacqui Nelson Jacqueline "Jacqui" Nelson (formerly Morgan; born 26 May 1965) is a cyclist from New Zealand. At the 1992 Summer Olympics at Barcelona she came 10th in the 3000 m pursuit. At the 1994 Commonwealth Games at Victoria, B.C. she came 2nd in th ...

Wellington, New Zealand * 1995 –

Kathy Watt Kathryn ("Kathy") Ann Watt (born 11 September 1964) is an Australian racing cyclist who won two medals at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain (gold in the road race, and silver in the pursuit). She has won 24 national championships i ...

Australia * 1996 – Lynn Nixon Australia * 1997 –

Giana Roberge Giana Roberge (born December 16, 1970, in New Hampshire) is an American female road cycle racer from who, after retiring from professional cycling in 1999 due to a heart condition, began another successful career as a team director, leading the ...

Saratoga Springs, NY * 1998 –

Dede (Demet) Barry DeDe, De De, Dedé or Dédé may refer to: People Nickname or stage name * Dedé (Angolan footballer), born Adérito Waldemar Alves Carvalho * Dedé (footballer, born 1978), Brazilian footballer born Leonardo de Deus Santos * Dedé (footballer, b ...

Boulder, CO * 1999 –

Lyne Bessette Lyne Bessette (born 10 March 1975, Lac Brome, Quebec) is a politician and retired professional bicycle racer from Quebec, Canada. She was elected to represent the riding of Brome—Missisquoi in the 2019 federal election as a member of the ...

Quebec, Canada * 2000 –

(2) Quebec, Canada * 2001 –

(3) Quebec, Canada * 2002 –

(4) Quebec, Canada * 2003 –

Katie Mactier Katie Mactier (born 23 March 1975 in Melbourne) is an Australian professional racing cyclist. She began racing in 1999 at 24 and was an Australian Institute of Sport scholarship holder. She was educated at Wesley College, Melbourne. She is a m ...

* 2004 –

Sue Palmer-Komar Susan Palmer-Komar (born January 27, 1967 in Collingwood, Ontario) is a Canadians, Canadian racing cyclist. She represented Canada at the 1996 Summer Olympics and 2004 Summer Olympics in the women's road race and in 2004 also in the women's time t ...

Ontario, CAN * 2005 –

(2) Ontario CAN * 2006 –

Sarah Ulmer Sarah Elizabeth Ulmer (born 14 March 1976) is a former Olympic cyclist. She is the first New Zealander to win an Olympic cycling gold medal, which she won in the 3km individual pursuit at the 2004 Athens Olympics setting a world record. Afte ...

* 2007 – Genevieve Gauthier Montreal, CAN * 2008 –

Catherine Cheatley Catherine Cheatley (née Sell; born 6 April 1983 in Whanganui) is a retired New Zealand professional road and track cyclist. She won two New Zealand championship titles in both road race and individual track pursuit, and later represented her n ...

* 2009 – Evelyn Stevens * 2010 –

* 2013 – Amy Miner (Leominster) * 2013 –

Ellen Noble Ellen Rose Noble (born December 3, 1995) is an American professional racing cyclist, who currently rides for Trek Factory Racing in cyclo-cross and mountain bike racing. In 2019, Noble was named as part of UCI Women's Team for the women's road ...

(Fitchburg) * 2013 – Amy Miner (Omnium) * 2014 –

Amy Cutler Amy Cutler (born 1974) is an American contemporary artist. Cutler received her BFA degree from The Cooper Union School of Art, New York, New York, in 1997. Her work has been featured in major surveys of contemporary art, most importantly the 200 ...

(Leominster) * 2014 –

(Worcester) * 2014 –

(Fitchburg) * 2014 –

(Omnium) * 2015 – Laura Summers (Leominster) * 2015 – Emily Underwood (Worcester) * 2015 – Emily Underwood (Fitchburg) * 2015 – Leslie Timm (Omnium) * 2016 –

(Leominster) * 2016 –

(Worcester) * 2016 –

(Fitchburg) * 2016 –

(Omnium) * 2017 – Regina Legge (Leominster) * 2017 – Colleen Gulick (Fitchburg) * 2018 –

(Leominster) * 2018 –

(Fitchburg) * 2019 – Emma White (Fitchburg)

Men

* 1960 – Guy Morin * 1961 – Arnie Uhrlass * 1962 –

Richard Centore Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong ...

* 1963 –

Rob Parsons Rob or ROB may refer to: Places * Rob, Velike Lašče, a settlement in Slovenia * Roberts International Airport (IATA code ROB), in Monrovia, Liberia People * Rob (given name), a given name or nickname, e.g., for Robert(o), Robin/Robyn * Rob ( ...

* 1964 – Paul Ziak * 1965 – Franco Poutenzieri * 1966 – Sam Watson * 1967 – Guiseppi Marinoni * 1968 – Robert Simpson * 1969 –

Jocelyn Lovell Jocelyn Charles Bjorn Lovell (19 July 1950 – 3 June 2016) was a Canadian cyclist. He won dozens of Canadian national titles for track and road cycling in the 1970s and early 1980s, as well as gold medals at the Commonwealth Games and Pan Ame ...

* 1970 –

Doug Dale Douglas Dale (born in Barrington, Illinois) is an American actor and comedian, best known for hosting the Comedy Central series ''TV Funhouse'' which was written and Directed by Robert Smigel. He originally met Robert Smigel when they were roommat ...

* 1971 – Bobby Phillips * 1972 – Giuseppi Marinoni (2) * 1973 –

Steve Woznick Steven Woznick (born October 14, 1949) is a former American cyclist. He competed in the 1000m time trial at the 1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Mun ...

* 1974 – Bill Shook * 1975 –

Wayne Stetina Wayne Douglas Stetina (born December 4, 1953) is a former American cycle sport, cyclist. He competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics and 1976 Summer Olympics. He is the brother of Dale Stetina, Dale, Joel and Troy Stetina and the uncle of Peter Stet ...

* 1976 – Tom Doughty * 1977 –

(2) * 1978 –

(3) * 1979 –

Tom Schuler Tom Schuler (born November 28, 1956 in Birmingham, Michigan) is a retired American professional road bicycle racer and founder of Team Sports Inc., a sports management company in cycling, mountain biking, triathlon, and roller blading. Since 2006, ...

* 1980 –

Bruce Donaghy The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been ...

* 1981 –

Steve Pyle Steve Pyle (Steven Ross Pyle) is a former United States Junior and Senior National Team cyclist (1976–1990) who competed at the national and international level and rode to many victories. He was known for his endurance and time trialing ability. ...

* 1982 –

Alan McCormack Alan McCormack (born 10 January 1984) is an Irish football coach and former professional player who played as a right-back or midfielder. He is an academy coach at club Luton Town. He began his career at Preston North End and later played fo ...

* 1983 –

Louis Garneau Louis Garneau (born August 9, 1958 in Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Canada) is a retired competitive cyclist, artist, and businessman of French-Canadian descent. In 1978, Garneau was the Canadian champion in individual pursuit cycling. In 1983, he fo ...

* 1984 – Russ Williams * 1985 – Jeff Slack * 1986 – Patrick Liu * 1987 – Roberto Gaggioli * 1988 – Graeme Miller * 1989 – Jeff Slack (2) * 1990 –

Tom Post Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

* 1991 –

Davis Phinney Davis Phinney (born July 10, 1959) is a retired professional road bicycle racer from the United States. He won 328 races in the 1980s and 1990s, a record for an American, including two Tour de France stages. He has worked in media since retiring ...

* 1992 –

Lance Armstrong Lance Edward Armstrong (''né'' Gunderson; born September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist. Regarded as a sports icon for winning the Tour de France seven consecutive times from 1999 Tour de ...

* 1993 –

(2) * 1994 – Frank McCormack * 1995 –

Mike Engleman Michael Engleman (born May 20, 1958, in Sonoma, California) is a former American cyclist. Palmares ;1987 :1st stage 8 Coors Classic ;1988 :1st stage 14 Coors Classic ;1989 :2nd National Road Race Championships ;1990 :1st Cascade Classic ::1st st ...

* 1996 –

Tyler Hamilton Tyler Hamilton (born March 1, 1971) is an American former professional road bicycle racer. He is the only American rider to win one of the five Monuments of cycling, taking Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2003. Hamilton became a professional cycli ...

* 1997 – John Peters * 1998 – Frank McCormack (2) * 1999 –

Bart Bowen Bart Bowen (born April 22, 1967 in Austin, Texas) is an American former cyclist. Professional from 1990 to 2000, he was most notably the National Road Champion in 1992 and 1997. He also won the Herald Sun Tour in 1992 and the Tour of Japan in 199 ...

* 2000 –

Henk Vogels Hendricus "Henk" Vogels (born 31 July 1973, in Perth) is an Australian former professional road bicycle racer who retired from competition at the end of the 2008 season, riding with the Toyota-United Pro Cycling Team. He won the Australian na ...

* 2001 –

Eric Wohlberg Eric Wohlberg (born January 8, 1965 in Sudbury, Ontario) is a Canadian former professional racing cyclist. He competed for his native country at three consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1996. Wohlberg won two medals at the 1998 Commonwealth ...

* 2002 –

Chris Horner Christopher Brandon Horner (born October 23, 1971) is an American retired professional road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 1996 and 2019, and is the most recent American rider to win a Grand Tour. A current resident of Bend, ...

* 2003 –

Viktor Rapinski Viktor Rapinski (born June 17, 1981) is a former Belarusian cyclist. Palmares ;1999 : National Time Trial Champion ;2000 : National Time Trial Champion ;2001 : National Time Trial Champion ;2002 :1st International Cycling Classic ::1st stages 1, ...

* 2004 –

Mark McCormack Mark Hume McCormack (November 6, 1930 – May 16, 2003) was an American lawyer, sports agent and writer. He was the founder and chairman of International Management Group, now IMG, an international management organization serving sports ...

* 2005 – Jonathan Page * 2006 –

Shawn Milne Shawn Milne (born November 9, 1981) is a professional road bicycle racer from Gloucester, Massachusetts, United States. In 2009, he rode in events on the USA Cycling National Racing Calendar and UCI Continental Circuits for . On May 31, 2009, he ...

* 2007 – Jake Rytlewski * 2008 –

Kyle Wamsley Kyle Wamsley (born March 1, 1980) is an American former professional road cyclist. Major results ;2004 : 1st Stage 6 Vuelta a Cuba ;2005 : 1st Tour of Somerville : 2nd Rochester Twilight Criterium : 3rd Criterium, National Road Championships ;2 ...

* 2009 –

Zachary Bell Zachary "Zach" Bell (born November 14, 1982) is a Canadian former professional racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2005 and 2015 for the Jet Fuel Coffee–Sympatico, Rite Aid Pro Cycling, , , , , and teams. Born in Whitehorse, Yu ...

* 2010 – David Veilleux * 2013 –

Allan Rego Allan may refer to: People * Allan (name), a given name and surname, including list of people and characters with this name * Allan (footballer, born 1984) (Allan Barreto da Silva), Brazilian football striker * Allan (footballer, born 1989) (Al ...

(Leominster) * 2013 – Peter Goguen (Fitchburg) * 2013 – Bobby Bailey (Omnium) * 2014 – Cole Archambault (Leominster) * 2014 –

Isaac Howe Isaac; grc, Ἰσαάκ, Isaák; ar, إسحٰق/إسحاق, Isḥāq; am, ይስሐቅ is one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He was the ...

(Worcester) * 2014 –

(Fitchburg) * 2014 – Cole Archambault (Omnium) * 2015 – Sam Rosenholtz (Leominster) * 2015 – Marloe Rodman (Worcester) * 2015 – Kai Wiggins (Fitchburg) * 2015 – Kai Wiggins (Omnium) * 2016 – Curtis White (Leominster) * 2016 – Bobby Bailey (Worcester) * 2016 – Charles Huff (Fitchburg) * 2016 – Curtis White (Omnium) * 2017 – J. C. Brookshire (Leominster) * 2017 – Joshua Anderson (Fitchburg) * 2018 – Ryan Dewald (Leominster) * 2018 – Curtis White (Fitchburg) * 2019 – Curtis White (Fitchburg)

References

{{Reflist 1960 establishments in Massachusetts 2020 disestablishments in Massachusetts Cycle races in the United States Cycling in Massachusetts Sports in Fitchburg, Massachusetts Leominster, Massachusetts Men's road bicycle races Princeton, Massachusetts Recurring sporting events established in 1960 Recurring sporting events disestablished in 2020 Sports in Worcester, Massachusetts Sports in Worcester County, Massachusetts Tourist attractions in Worcester, Massachusetts Tourist attractions in Worcester County, Massachusetts Westminster, Massachusetts Women's road bicycle races