Rini Wagtmans |
Marinus ("Rini") Wagtmans (born December 26, 1946 in Sint Willebrord) is a
former Dutch professional road bicycle racer. He was the nephew of Wout Wagtmans, a former
professional who had won the Tour de Romandie stage race in 1952. His
father was a masseur while Tour de France stage winner Wim van Est was his
neighbour. In 1968 Rini
turned professional. The following year he finished third overall in the 1969 Vuelta a Espana.
He rode four editions of the Tour de France and won three stages, one in
1970, one in 1971 and one in 1972. In the 1970 Tour de France he finished fifth
overall. In 1971
Tour de France while riding for Molteni, he wore the maillot jaune for one day
but teammate and team leader Eddy Merckx took the jersey the following day. He
also won two stages in the 1970 Vuelta a Espana. Wagtmans was known as one
of the best descenders in the peloton and earned him the nickname "witte bles"
which is translated as "white blaze". Wagtmans ended his career early due to
heart problems.
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