Joseph Magnani

Joseph Magnani (July 15, 1911 – November 30, 1975) was an American road cyclist, who competed as a professional from 1935 to 1948.

Early life Joseph Magnani was born in LaSalle, Illinois, to John and Gonda Magnani, who were Italian immigrants. His father was a coal miner. Shortly after his birth, the family moved to Mount Clare, Illinois, where his father continued to work as a miner.

Career In 1928 at the age of 16, he and his sister Angeline moved to France to live with relatives, where he began to take an interest in cycling competitions. After winning the Grand Prix Urago in 1935, Magnani was offered a contract with a team sponsored by Urago Cycles. His first major win came the same year in the 1935 Marseille–Nice, when he attacked the peloton near the end of the race and held the chasers off to the line. Magnani continued to have success in the next few seasons, having finished 9th overall in the 1938 Paris–Nice, after moving into the top 10 overall due to finishing ahead of the peloton in a breakaway on the penultimate stage. He also gained additional attention in the press for being the only American professional cyclist in Europe, earning him the nickname "L'Américain".

In 1948, he returned to the United States for a family reunion, and decided to return to living there after receiving a contract with the Schwinn Bicycle Company to compete in six-day races.

He died from Parkinson's disease in Oak Park in the suburbs of Chicago on November 30, 1975. He was inducted into the United States Bicycling Hall of Fame in 1998.

Major results

1935 1st Marseille–Nice 1st Grand Prix d'Urago 1936 1st Grand Prix d'Urago 2nd Nice–Annot–Nice 1937 1st Nice–Annot–Nice 1938 1st 1st Marseille–Toulon–Marseille 1st Circuit des cols pyrénéens 2nd Overall Tour de l'Est Central 1st Stages 4 & 5 2nd Nice–Annot–Nice 9th Overall Paris–Nice 1939 1st Lyon–Saint-Étienne–Lyon 1st Stage 1 Tour du Sud-Est 1st Stage 1 Circuit du Provence 1st Stage 2 Circuit des Alpes 1940 1st 1st Grand Prix de la Côte d'Azur 1st Tour de Porto Alegre 1941 1st Stage 1 Circuit du Mont Ventoux 10th Grand Prix des Nations 1942 2nd Circuit de la Haute-Savoie 1946 2nd Grand Prix des Alpes 1947 3rd Tour du Lac Léman 3rd Circuit des cols pyrénéens 7th Road race, UCI Road World Championships