Jurgen Van den Broeck (born 1 February 1983) is a Belgian former

road bicycle racer Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most common ...

, who competed professionally between 2004 and 2017 for the , , and squads. Van den Broeck specialised in the time trial discipline, having been Junior World Champion against the clock in 2001. The promise he first displayed in minor stage races like the Tour de Romandie and Eneco Tour was later validated and confirmed by top-10 finishes in all three Grand Tours: the Giro d'Italia, the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

and the

Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; en, Tour of Spain) is an annual multi-stage bicycle race primarily held in Spain, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. Inspired by the success of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia, the r ...

Cycling career

Early career

Born in

Herentals Herentals () is a city in the province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the city of Herentals proper and the towns of Morkhoven and . In 2021, Herentals had a total population of 28.194. The total area is . Saint Waltrude is the patron saint ...

, Van den Broeck won the Junior World Time Trial Championship in

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

and made his professional debut in 2003 as a ''stagiaire'' for the Quick-Step–Davitamon–Latexco team.

U.S. Postal Service/Discovery Channel (2004–2006)

Rather than remaining in Belgium, however, Van den Broeck signed with the American team of Lance Armstrong for his first full season as a professional in 2004. His only result of note that year was 6th-place overall in the Tour of Belgium. Van den Broeck remained with

Johan Bruyneel Johan Bruyneel (born 23 August 1964) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer and a former directeur sportif for UCI ProTour team , and (later known as Discovery Channel), a US-based UCI ProTour cycling team. On 25 October 2018, the W ...

's team in 2005 when Discovery Channel took over the title sponsorship, and he continued with the Americans in 2006 after Armstrong retired. During that period he finished on the podium in stages of the Deutschland Tour and the Tour of Belgium (where he also won the mountains classification), and he rode to a top-20 finish overall in the Tour de Romandie. In June, however, Van den Broeck announced his intention to return to Belgium when he agreed to a two-year contract with the then-Davitamon squad, which would be re-branded in 2007 as . The following month Van den Broeck scored his first win as a professional, taking the Schriek, Derny in Belgium ahead of

Erwin Vervecken Erwin Vervecken (born 23 March 1972) is a former Belgian professional cyclist specialising in cyclo-cross. Vervecken was professional cyclists for 16 seasons (1995–2010) and works since his retirement as an external sportive consultant for sp ...

and future cyclo-cross world champion

Niels Albert Niels Albert (born 5 February 1986 in Bonheiden, near Antwerp, Belgium) is a former professional cyclo-cross racing cyclist who currently resides in Tremelo. He became World Champion twice, in 2009 and 2012. Career Similarly to Sven Nys, A ...

Predictor–Lotto (2007–2015)

2007–2008

At the age of 24, Van den Broeck managed to finish in the top-10 on the general classification at the

2007 Eneco Tour The 2007 Eneco Tour road cycling race took place from 22 to 29 August. The third edition of the Eneco Tour covered parts of the Netherlands and Belgium. Instead of 23 teams like before, only 21 teams take part in the race this year. Of the 20 UCI P ...

with his new team, though he also won the bronze medal in the Belgian National Time Trial Championships. After completing his first Grand Tour in an anonymous 74th place at the

2007 Giro d'Italia The 2007 Giro d'Italia was the 90th running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It took place from 12 May to 3 June 2007. The race began in Sardinia and finished in Milan, and featured five mountain top finishes, of which one wa ...

, Van den Broeck finally showed that he had talent as a stage racer when he returned to Italy the following year and came seventh overall in the

2008 Giro d'Italia The 2008 Giro d'Italia was the 91st running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It began in Palermo on 10 May and ended in Milan on 1 June. Twenty-two teams entered the race, which was won by Spaniard Alberto ...

. Merely months later, both

Riccardo Riccò Riccardo Riccò (born 1 September 1983) is an Italian professional road bicycle racer, who is suspended from all competition until 2024. He was previously ejected from the 2008 Tour de France for doping violations and suspended. Riccò returned ...

and

Emanuele Sella Emanuele Sella (born 9 January 1981) is an Italian former road racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2004 and 2015 for the , and teams. Doping In out-of-competition control testing, on 23 July 2008, Vicenza-born Sella was found ...

– respectively finishing 2nd and 6th in the

– were sanctioned for doping.

2009

Showing excellent form in the

2009 Tour de France The 2009 Tour de France was the 96th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started on 4 July in the principality of Monaco with a individual time trial which included a section of the Circuit de Monaco. The race visite ...

, Van den Broeck climbed with the leaders through the Alps, although he had crashed heavily on the fourth stage

team time trial A team time trial (TTT) is a road bicycle race in which teams of cyclists race against the clock (see individual time trial for a more detailed description of ITT events). The winning team in a TTT is determined by the comparing the times of ( ...

, and lost more than seven minutes. His consistency resulted in 15th place in the final general classification ranking, which was later improved to 14th after the disqualification of 11th placed

Mikel Astarloza Mikel Astarloza Chaurreau (born 17 November 1979 in Gipuzkoa, Basque Country) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional between 2002 and 2009, and 2011 to 2013. Career In 2003 he won his first race, ...

for testing positive for EPO; he also placed 9th place in the competition for the

polka dot jersey Polka is a dance and genre of dance music originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though associated with Czech culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the Americas. History Etymology The term ...

. As the performances came at the end of

Cadel Evans Cadel Lee Evans (; born 14 February 1977) is an Australian former professional racing cyclist, who competed professionally in both mountain biking and road bicycle racing. A four-time Olympian, Evans is one of three non-Europeans – along wi ...

' tenure at , the Belgian outfit decided that Van den Broeck was capable and reliable enough to become their general classification leader.

2010–2011

The following season he rode to an important and somewhat surprising 3rd place (5th place prior to

Alberto Contador Alberto Contador Velasco (; born 6 December 1982) is a Spanish former professional cyclist. He is one of the most successful riders of his era, winning the Tour de France twice ( 2007, 2009), the Giro d'Italia twice (2008, 2015), and the Vue ...

and Denis Menchov being disqualified and removed from the results) in the

2010 Tour de France The 2010 Tour de France was the 97th edition of the Tour de France cycle race, one of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It started on with an 8.9 km prologue time trial in Rotterdam, the first start in the Netherlands since 1996 ...

, becoming the first Belgian to finish in the top 5 since Claude Criquielion in

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

. After the Tour Van den Broeck won two criteriums: one in Peer and the other in his hometown of

. In the

2011 Tour de France The 2011 Tour de France was the 98th edition of the race. It started on 2 July at the Passage du Gois and ended on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 24 July. The cyclists competed in 21 stages over 23 days, covering a distance of . The route en ...

, after an encouraging first week and while aiming for a general classification podium spot, Van den Broeck had to abandon the race along with another overall contender,

Alexander Vinokourov Alexander Nikolayevich Vinokourov ( Kazakh and russian: Александр Николаевич Винокуров; born 16 September 1973) is a Kazakhstani former professional road bicycle racer and the current general manager of UCI WorldTeam ...

, after a massive and spectacularly grim downhill crash which left him with a pneumothorax, broken ribs and a fractured shoulder. Not to be deterred, however, Van den Broeck recovered from his injuries in time to compete in the

2011 Vuelta a España The 2011 Vuelta a España was held from 20 August to 11 September. The bicycle race began in Benidorm with a team time trial and ended, as is traditional, in Madrid. The 2011 Vuelta was the 66th edition of the race and was the first Vuelta in 33 ...

, where he finished 8th overall.

2012–2015

In 2012, Van den Broeck finished 3rd in the

Volta a Catalunya The Volta a Catalunya (; en, Tour of Catalonia, es, Vuelta a Cataluña, link=no) is a road bicycle race held annually in Catalonia, Spain. It is one of three World Tour stage races in Spain, together with the Vuelta a España and the Tour of th ...

and then finished 5th in the Criterium du Dauphiné, showing good form for the forthcoming Tour de France. On Stage 7 of the

, a mountain top finish at

La Planche des Belles Filles La Planche des Belles Filles () is a ski station in the Vosges Mountains, in France. It is located in the Haute-Saône département. Since 2012, the climb to the summit has been used several times during the Tour de France cycle race. Etymolog ...

, Van den Broeck lost 1 minute 54 seconds to stage winner

Chris Froome Christopher Clive Froome ɹɪs fɹuːm (born 20 May 1985) is a Kenyan/British Road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He has won seven Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours: four editions of the Tour de ...

after getting a flat tyre just before the final climb. However Van den Broeck then showed his good form in the mountains to move him up to finishing 4th overall. In 2013, Van den Broeck abandoned in the

after he crashed in stage 5. In 2015, he finished twelfth at the Giro d'Italia. In June, he won the National Time Trial Championships for the first time in his career.

Team Katusha (2016)

In September 2015, announced that Van Den Broeck would join them for 2016, after nine seasons with Lotto.

LottoNL–Jumbo (2017)

After one season with , signed Van den Broeck on a two-year contract. In May, it was announced that Van den Broeck would retire at the end of the 2017 season.

Major results

;2000 : 3rd Time trial, National Junior Road Championships ;2001 : 1st Jersey rainbow chrono

Time trial, UCI Junior Road World Championships ;2002 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall Tour of Limburg : 8th Overall

Le Triptyque des Monts et Châteaux Le Triptyque des Monts et Châteaux is a Belgian cycling road race. It was first held in 1996. Since 2005, the race has been organised as a 2.2 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing compe ...

;2003 : 1st

Zellik–Galmaarden Zellik–Galmaarden is a European single day cycle race held in the Belgian region of Flanders. As of 2011, the race is organized as a 1.2 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions ...

: 1st

Clásica Memorial Txuma The Clásica Memorial Txuma was a road bicycle race held annually in Spain. It was organized as a 1.2 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the U ...

: 2nd Time trial, National Under-23 Road Championships : 2nd Overall

::1st Stage 2b : 2nd GP Istria 1 : 2nd

Liège–Bastogne–Liège U23 The U23 Liège–Bastogne–Liège or Liège–Bastogne–Liège Espoirs is a cycling race in Belgium, held eight days before the cycling classic, the Liège–Bastogne–Liège Liège–Bastogne–Liège, also known as ''La Doyenne'' ("The Ol ...

: 2nd GP Krka : 3rd Kattekoers : 4th Road race, UEC European Under-23 Road Championships ;2004 : 5th Overall

Redlands Bicycle Classic The Redlands Bicycle Classic is a cycling stage race located in Redlands, California, United States that has been held since 1985. It consists of three road races, an individual time trial and a criterium A criterium, or crit, is a bike race ...

: 6th Overall Tour of Belgium ;2005 : 8th Overall Eneco Tour ;2006 : 1st Mountains classification Tour of Belgium : 8th Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne ;2007 : 3rd Time trial, National Road Championships : 6th Overall

Danmark Rundt Danmark Rundt is a Danish stage race for professional road bicycle racers organized as a part of the UCI Continental Circuits. It is currently sponsored by the Danish national postal agency, PostNord, and the race is therefore also known as PostN ...

: 10th Overall Eneco Tour ;2008 : 7th Overall Giro d'Italia ;2009 : 1st Natourcriterium Herentals : 4th Overall Eneco Tour ;2010 : 2nd Overall

Vuelta a Andalucía The Vuelta a Andalucía (Tour of Andalusia) or Ruta del Sol (Route of the Sun) is a regional Spanish road bicycle race first held in 1925. Since 2005, it has been a 2.1 category race on the UCI Europe Tour. The race became a part of the new UCI P ...

: 3rd Overall

: 4th Overall

Critérium du Dauphiné The Critérium du Dauphiné, before 2010 known as the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, is an annual cycling road race in the Dauphiné region in the southeast of France. The race is run over eight days during the first half of June. It is part ...

: 10th Overall Tour of the Basque Country ;2011 : 2nd Overall

: 4th Overall

::1st Stage 1 : 7th Overall

;2012 : 3rd Overall

: 4th Overall

Volta ao Algarve The Volta ao Algarve (Portuguese; en, Tour of the Algarve) is a road bicycle racing stage race held annually in the Algarve, Portugal. Since 2017, it has been organised as a 2.HC event on the UCI Europe Tour. The race became part of the new UCI P ...

: 4th Overall

: 5th Overall

: 10th La Flèche Wallonne ;2013 : 2nd Overall

: 5th Overall Tour de San Luis : 7th Overall Tour de Romandie : 9th Overall

;2014 : 3rd Overall

;2015 : 1st MaillotBélgica

Time trial, National Road Championships ;2016 : 8th Overall Tour of California

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

References

External links

*
Profile at Lotto-Belisol official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Van den Broeck, Jurgen 1983 births Living people Belgian male cyclists Cyclists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic cyclists of Belgium People from Herentals Cyclists from Antwerp Province