Ludo Dierckxsens, the 1999 Belgian road champion and Tour de France stage winner, died Thursday afternoon while riding in a 1,000km cancer charity event. He was 60.
The incident occurred Thursday afternoon in Dendermonde, Belgium. Dierckxsens, who raced in the 1990s and into the early 2000s, collapsed while riding his bike. Despite rapid intervention by emergency responders following the group, resuscitation efforts failed.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Belgian cycling phenomenon Ludo Dierckxsens,” event organizers said. “Our thoughts go out to Ludo’s family and loved ones.”
Police confirmed the cause was medical, not an accident.
The big Belgian rider from the Kempen region was a latecomer to the professional peloton, working in a truck factory into his late 20s before turning pro in the early 1990s. Dierckxsens rode for Lotto and Lampre, among other teams, during his 11-year career before finishing his pro run with Landbouwkrediet-Colnago.
He hit his career peak in the 1999 Tour de France, when he won a stage in the tricolor jersey of Belgian champion in a solo win in Saint-Étienne riding for Lampre-Daikin.
That Tour was also marked by controversy because Dierckxsens admitted to using a cortisone ointment but lacked a proper medical exemption. Lampre sent him home. Though eventually cleared to return, he received a six-month suspension.
The affable Dierckxsens was a bit of a larger-than-life figure in Belgian cycling. With his bulking size, he racked up wins at GP Denain, Paris-Bourges, and GP La Marseillaise, and hit a career-best sixth in Paris-Roubaix.
After retirement in 2005, Dierckxsens remained active in cycling, opened a shop, and launched his own brand.