Rudolph Ludewyk "Okey" Lewis (12 July 1887 – 29 October 1933) was a South African

road racing cyclist 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 won the gold medal in the road race at the

1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics ( sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1912), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad ( sv, Den V olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, be ...

. Lewis was born on a farm near Pretoria and grew up in Germiston. He worked full-time underground at a gold mine, and in spare time trained in cycling, boxing and skating. After the 1912 Olympics he raced professionally in Germany in 1913–14, and won the classic race Rund um Dresden in 1914.Rund um Dresden 1914

Cycling Ranking Cycling Ranking is an online database that offers insight into the yearly and overall career performances of professional road racing cyclists. The database contains race data going back to year 1869. Its aim is to provide historical context to ri ...

During World War I, he served in the German Army and was awarded the Iron Cross. His health deteriorated as a result of war injuries and time spent in a prison camp, which resulted in his early death at age 46.

Major results

;1912 : Summer Olympics Time Trial – gold medal ;1913 : Rund um Dresden, – 2nd placeRudolph Ludewyk Lewis
Results ;1914 : Rund um Dresden – 1st place : Großer Sachsenpreis – 2nd place

References

External links

1887 births 1933 deaths Sportspeople from Pretoria South African Republic people South African male cyclists Cyclists at the 1912 Summer Olympics Olympic cyclists for South Africa Olympic gold medalists for South Africa Olympic medalists in cycling Medalists at the 1912 Summer Olympics Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914) {{SouthAfrica-Olympic-medalist-stub