The first monument winners
Of course, they weren’t called “monuments” those days, but here are some interesting stuff about the winners of the first editions of the five most important one-day races. Léon Houa, Liége -Bastogne-Liége (1892) Belgian cyclist Léon Houa (1867-1918) actually won the first three editions of La Doyenne. The first two of them were amateur events. Considering the first Bordeaux-Paris (1891) as important milestone in the history of road cycling races, it’s quite remarkable, how early the organizers of Liége-Bastogne-Liége (Spa-Bastogne-Spa, according to their original plans) had the idea to create a road cycling race. It’s also remarkable, that Liége-Bastogne-Liége is still on. (Several popular races from the end of the 19th century did not survive… Read More »The first monument winners