Grote Prijs Rik Van Looy
| Race details | |
|---|---|
| Date | September |
| Region | Herentals, Antwerp (Belgium) |
| English name | Grand Prize Rik Van Looy |
| Discipline | Road |
| Competition | 1.2 |
| Type | One-day race |
| Web site | gprikvanlooy |
| History | |
| First edition | 2018 |
| Editions | 6 |
| First winner | Brent Van Moer (BEL) |
| Most recent | Simon Dehairs (BEL) |
The Grand Prix Rik Van Looy (Dutch: Grote Prijs Rik Van Looy) is a men's cycle race held between Westerlo and Herentals, in the province of Antwerp, Belgium.[1]
It is organized in tribute to the Hall of Fame cycling champion Rik Van Looy, born in 1933 and nicknamed the Emperor of Herentals.[2] Its first edition took place in 2018 and was reserved for riders under 23 years old.[3] Since 2022, it has been run by professionals and is part of the UCI Europe Tour, in category 1.2.[4] In 2023, the starting place was changed from Grobbendonk (Van Looy's birth place) to Westerlo and the race distance was 176.8 km. The finish is on the Grote Markt (Grand Place) in Herentals, close to the statue of Van Looy.[5]
Rik Van Looy himself always gave the starting signal for the race until 2024. He died about three months after that edition.[6]
Winners
| Year | Winner | Second | Third |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Brent Van Moer | Niels Boele | Jelle Schuermans |
| 2019 | Viktor Verschaeve | Lennert Teugels | Thomas Vereecken |
| 2020 | No race due to the COVID-19 pandemic | ||
| 2021 | Louis Blouwe | Cériel Desal | Luca De Meester |
| 2022 | Coen Vermeltfoort | Rasmus Bøgh Wallin | Sebastian Kirkedam Larsen |
| 2023 | Rasmus Bøgh Wallin | Gianluca Pollefliet | Pieter Van Laer |
| 2024 | Simon Dehairs | Davide Bomboi | Tim Torn Teutenberg |
References
- ^ "Grote Prijs Rik Van Looy kiest opnieuw voor Westerlo". Het Nieuwsblad (in Dutch). 1 March 2024.
- ^ "Palmares de Rik Van Looy". Memoire-du-cyclisme.eu (in French). 26 August 2024.
- ^ "GP Rik van Looy". ProcyclingStats. 23 August 2024.
- ^ "GP Rik Van Looy". FirstCycling.com. 2024.
- ^ "Grote Prijs Rik Van Looy start voor het eerst in Westerlo: wielrenners passeren alle zeven deeldorpen". Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). 12 September 2023.
- ^ "Organisator Grote Prijs Rik Van Looy verrast door het nieuws: "Vorige week bespraken we nog de volgende editie"" [Organizer Grand Prix Rik Van Looy surprised by the news: “Last week we were still discussing the next edition.”]. Sporza (in Dutch). 18 December 2024.