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Le Samyn is an annual single-day
road bicycle race
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 ...
in Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
, held usually in late February or early March. The event was created in 1968 as ''Grand Prix de Fayt-le-Franc'', named after the former municipality where it started and finished. In 1970 it was renamed ''Grand Prix José Samyn'' as a tribute to José Samyn
José Samyn (11 May 1946 – 28 August 1969) was a French professional road bicycle racer who died during a race in Zingem, Belgium.
Samyn was born in Quiévrain, Belgium to a Belgian mother and French father, he took French nationality in ...
, the race's first winner who died in a race accident in 1969. Johan Capiot
Johan Capiot (born 12 April 1964 in Rijkhoven, Belgium) is a former professional road racing cyclist. He was a professional rider from 1986 to 2000.
Major results
;1986
:1st, Stage 3, Danmark Rundt
;1987
:1st, Veenendaal–Veenendaal
:1st, S ...
holds the record with three wins.
History
Since 2005, the race is included in theUCI Europe Tour
The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) to expand cycling around the world. The five circuits (representing the continents of Africa, the ...
as a 1.1 event. It is the first race of the season in Wallonia
Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...
, held on the Tuesday after its Flemish counterpart, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, previously Omloop Het Volk, is a one-day road cycling race in Belgium, held annually in late February. It is the opening event of the Belgian cycling season, as well as the first race of the year in Northwestern Europe, and ...
. The race is run entirely in the province of Hainaut, starting in Quaregnon
Quaregnon (; pcd, Couargnon; wa, Cargnon) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium.
On 1 January 2018 Quaregnon had a total population of 19,006. The total area is 11.08 km² which gives a population densi ...
and finishing in Dour
Dour (; pcd, Doû) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium.
On 1 January 2006 the municipality had 16,810 inhabitants. The total area is 33.32 km2, giving a population density of 505 inhabitants per km2. ...
. During the course, 16 sectors of cobbled roads are traversed, prompting Belgian media to call it ''The Little Paris–Roubaix
Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the ' Monuments' or classics of th ...
''.
The 2005 edition was cancelled because snow had made the roads too dangerous.
Since 2012, a women's edition of the race, named ''Le Samyn des Dames'', is held on the same day as the men's race.
Winners
Men's race
Multiple winners
Wins by country
Women's race
SourceReferences
External links
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Samyn UCI Europe Tour races Recurring sporting events established in 1968 1968 establishments in Belgium Cycle races in Belgium Le Samyn des Dames Women's road bicycle races