Roger Decock (20 April 1927 – 30 May 2020) was a Belgian professional

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 ...

. Decock won

Paris–Nice Paris–Nice is a professional cycling stage race in France, held annually since 1933. Raced over eight days, the race usually starts with a prologue in the Paris region and ends with a final stage either in Nice or on the Col d'Èze overlookin ...

in 1951. During the

1951 Tour de France Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

he was having the best Tour of his career and was 5th place overall when he became the only witness to one of the most infamous moments in cycling history.

Wim Van Est Wim is a masculine given name or a shortened form of Willem and other names and may refer to: * Wim Anderiesen (1903–1944), Dutch footballer * Wim Aantjes (1923–2015), Dutch politician * Wim Arras (born 1964), Belgian cyclist * Wim Blockmans ...

was defending the

Yellow Jersey The general classification is the most important classification, the one by which the winner of the Tour de France is determined. Since 1919, the leader of the general classification wears the yellow jersey (french: maillot jaune ). History Th ...

; he was descending the

Col d'Aubisque The Col d'Aubisque ( oc, Còth d'Aubisca) (elevation ) is a mountain pass in the Pyrenees south of Tarbes and Pau in the department of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques, in the Aquitaine region of France.Chany, Pierre (1988), La Fabuleuse Histoire du T ...

when he lost control of his bike and went off a cliff. Decock was the only person to witness this and he stopped to get help for the fallen rider. It took several minutes to locate Van Est and over two hours to rescue him from 200 feet down the mountain. In total, Decock waited 25 minutes until it was clear the situation was in hand, but the time he waited cost him his high place and he ultimately finished the Tour in 17th. The following year he had the biggest victory of his career when he won the 1952 Tour of Flanders. As the finish line approached, Decock,

Loretto Petrucci Loretto Petrucci (18 August 1929 – 17 June 2016) was an Italian professional road bicycle racer who won Milan–San Remo in 1952 and 1953. Palmarès ; 1950 : 3rd, Coppa Bernocchi : 3rd, Giro del Piemonte ; 1951 : 1st, Giro di Toscana ...

and

Briek Schotte Alberic "Briek" Schotte (born Kanegem, West Flanders, 7 September 1919 – died Kortrijk, 4 April 2004) was a Belgian professional road racing cyclist, one of the champions of the 1940s and 1950s. His stamina earned him the nickname "Iron B ...

, one of the best riders of his generation, were the three lead riders fighting for the win and he defeated them in the sprint. Wim Van Est finished 4th.

Major results

Sources ;1948 :1st

Ronde van Vlaanderen Beloften Ronde Van Vlaanderen Beloften ( en, Tour of Flanders U23) is a Flanders Classics road bicycle race. It is the version of the Tour of Flanders for under-23 riders and is usually contested a week after the Ronde van Vlaanderen. Ludovic Capelle is t ...

:2nd Kattekoers ;1949 :2nd

Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen (Championship of Flanders) or Koolskamp Koerse is a single-day road bicycle race held annually in September in Koolskamp (part-municipality of Ardooie), West Flanders, Belgium. Since 2005, the race is organized as a ...

;1950 :1st Vijfbergenomloop :2nd Grand Prix Jules Lowie :4th

Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne is an annual single-day road cycling race in Belgium. It is held one day after Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, on the last Sunday of February or the first of March, and completes the opening weekend of the Belgian cycling season. ...

:9th Gent-Wevelgem :9th Paris-Brussels ;1951 :1st Overall Paris-Nice :1st

:1st Ronde van West-Vlaanderen :4th Gent-Wevelgem :9th

Grand Prix des Nations The Grand Prix des Nations was an individual time trial An individual time trial (ITT) is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock (in French: ''contre la montre'' – literally "against the watch", in Italian: ''tappa ...

;1952 :1st

Tour of Flanders The Tour of Flanders ( nl, Ronde van Vlaanderen), also known as ''De Ronde'' (''"The Tour"''), is an annual road cycling race held in Belgium every spring. The most important cycling race in Flanders, it is part of the UCI World Tour and organi ...

:2nd Brussel-Ingooigem :2nd GP de Suisse :4th Overall

Dwars door België Dwars door Vlaanderen ''( en, Across Flanders)'' is a semi-classic road bicycle race in Belgium, held annually since 1945. The race starts in Roeselare and finishes in Waregem, both in West Flanders. Since 2017 the event is included in the UCI W ...

:5th Vijfbergenomloop :6th Liège-Bastogne-Liège :7th

La Flèche Wallonne La Flèche Wallonne (, French for "The Walloon Arrow") is a men's professional cycle road race held in April each year in Wallonia, Belgium. The first of two Belgian Ardennes classics, La Flèche Wallonne is today normally held mid-week betw ...

;1953 :1st Stage 11

Tour du Maroc Tour du Maroc is the most important road bicycle race in the African state of Morocco. The editions 1957–1993 were reserved to amateurs. Since 2006, it is organized as a 2.2 event on the UCI Africa Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a ser ...

:5th Roubaix–Huy :6th Paris-Roubaix :6th GP de Suisse :9th Gent-Wevelgem :9th Overall Paris-Nice ;1954 :

Tour of Belgium The Tour of Belgium ( nl, Ronde van België; french: Tour de Belgique) is a five-day bicycle race which is held annually in Belgium, and is part of the UCI ProSeries. It was held annually between 1908 and 1981, except during both world wars. Betw ...

::1st Stages 3, 4a ( ITT) & 5 :1st

Scheldeprijs The Scheldeprijs is a cycling race in Flanders and the Netherlands which starts in Terneuzen, crosses the Scheldt River, and finishes in Schoten. Until 2018 it was held entirely in Belgium. The event, ranked as a 1.HC race on the UCI Europe Tour, ...

:2nd Road race, National Road Championships :2nd Brussel-Ingooigem :2nd Roubaix–Huy :2nd Grand Prix Jules Lowie :2nd Circuit des XI Villes :7th Liège-Bastogne-Liège :7th Paris-Tours :8th

:8th Paris-Brussels :9th

:10th Paris-Roubaix ;1955 :1st Brussel-Ingooigem :4th Paris-Brussels :6th Ronde van Brabant :7th

;1956 :4th

Omloop Het Volk Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, previously Omloop Het Volk, is a one-day Road bicycle racing, 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 Nort ...

:6th

Giro di Lombardia The Giro di Lombardia ( en, Tour of Lombardy), officially ''Il Lombardia'', is a cycling race in Lombardy, Italy. It is traditionally the last of the five 'Monuments' of the season, considered to be one of the most prestigious one-day events in cy ...

:6th

Tre Valli Varesine The Tre Valli Varesine is a semi classic European bicycle race held in Varese, Italy. Since 2005, the race has been organised as a 1.HC event on the UCI Europe Tour. It is usually the first and most important race of Trittico Lombardo, which c ...

:8th

Nationale Sluitingsprijs Nationale Sluitingprijs is a semi classic European bicycle race held annually in Putte (Kapellen), Belgium. Since 2005, the race is organized as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing ...

;1957 :1st

:1st Stage 1

Ronde van Nederland The Tour of the Netherlands ''(Dutch: Ronde van Nederland)'' was a road bicycle racing stage-race in the Netherlands, founded in 1948. It's an annual race since 1975. Because of the start of the UCI ProTour in 2005, it was replaced by the Enec ...

:9th Paris-Brussels ;1958 :10th Milan-San Remo ;1959 :1st Omloop van Oost-Vlaanderen :7th GP Flandria ;1960 :5th

References

External links

* * 1927 births 2020 deaths People from Izegem Belgian male cyclists Cyclists from West Flanders {{Belgium-cycling-bio-1920s-stub