Albert Van Vlierberghe

Albert Van Vlierberghe (18 March 1942 – 20 December 1991) was a Belgian professional road bicycle racer. Van Vlierberghe won three stages in the Tour de France, and three stages in the Giro d'Italia. He also competed in the team time trial and the team pursuit events at the 1964 Summer Olympics.

In his 1999 book, Breaking the Chain: Drugs and Cycling, the True Story, Belgian sports physiotherapist Willy Voet described an incident involving Van Vlierberghe that occurred during the 1979 Deutschland Tour. Voet, then the soigneur with Van Vlierberghe's team, Flandria, claims that Van Vlierberghe, "a decent Belgian racer but with no taste for the hills," asked Voet to drive him ahead of his fellow racers to avoid a six-mile stretch of hill in the course. Voet claims that Van Vlierberghe slipped back into the race without being detected and went on to place sixth on the stage. Voet used the incident to defend his assertion that for many professional riders at the time, cheating was "a way of life."

Major results

1963 National Road Championships

1965 Volta a Portugal 1st stage 17

1st stage 3 1966 1st Tour de France: 1st stage 7 1st Westouter 1st Omloop der Vlaamse Gewesten 1st Belsele – Puivelde Tour de Romandie 1st prologue TTT 1st Strombeek-Bever 2nd Omloop Mandel-Leie-Schelde 3rd GP Stad Vilvoorde 1967 1st Kemzeke 1st Kortrijk 1st Malderen Giro d'Italia: 1st stage 9 1968 1st Belsele – Puivelde 1st De Kustpijl 1st Stekene 1st Zwijnaarde 3rd Omloop van Oost-Vlaanderen 1969 1st GP Hannut 1st Oostakker 1st Sint-Martens-Lierde Giro d'Italia: 1st stage 5 2nd stage 2 1st Giro delle Tre Province Giro di Sardegna 1st stage 4 2nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2nd Overall Tirreno–Adriatico 2nd stage 4 2nd stage 5 2nd Poperinge – Harelbeke 3rd GP Cemab 1970 Tour de France Winner stage 16 1st Flèche Rebecquoise 1st Harelbeke – Poperinge – Harelbeke 3rd De Pinte 1971 Tour de France: 1st stage 1c 1st Alassio 1st GP E5 Heverlee 1st Harelbeke – Poperinge – Harelbeke 1st Houthulst Omloop van de Fruitstreek Alken 1st Sassari – Cagliari 1st Sint-Gillis-Waas 1st Waasmunster 1st GP Hannut 1st Grote Prijs Stad Zottegem 2nd Bruxelles–Meulebeke 1972 1st Bruxelles–Meulebeke 1st De Panne II Giro d'Italia: Winner stage 9 1st GP Hannut 1st Maria-Aalter 1st Ottignies 1st Sinaai 2nd Giro della Provincia di Reggio Calabria 5th Overall Giro di Sardegna 1973 1st Grand Prix de Wallonie Paris-Nice 1st stage 6 TTT 1st Lokeren 1st Omloop Scheldeboorden Tour of Belgium 1st prologue TTT

3rd Omloop Het Volk 1974 1st GP Roeselare 1st Ninove 1st Oostakker 1st Sinaai 1st Zele 1975 1st Belsele – Puivelde 1st Bilzen 3rd Grand Prix Impanis-Van Petegem 1976 2nd Omloop van Oost-Vlaanderen 1st Zwevezele 1977 1st GP Gemeente Kortemark 1st Zele 3rd Grand Prix de Denain 3rd Stekene 1978 1st Baasrode 2nd Grand Prix de Wallonie 2nd Circuit de la Région Linière 1979 1st Sint-Martens-Lierde 1980 1st Baasrode 1st Belsele