Born: 4th May 1934, Poperinge, Belgium
Died: 22nd May 2007, Otegem, Belgium
Number of professional victories: 60
Flandria 1960 - 1964
Jef Planckaert was an all-rounder and was one of the greatest cyclists of the 1960s. He was a valued member of Flandria’s 1962 “Red Guard”, led by Rik Van Looy, and a perfect example the strength in depth of the Flandria team. Although he was one of Van Looy’s faithful servants, Planckaert was good enough to win races himself - when Van Looy allowed him to. As was often the case with Flandria, the competition within the team was tougher than that of the opposition.
Planckaert’s best season was in 1962 when, despite having to ride for Van Looy (who himself had a stellar season in 1962), he was still able to win the Belgian National Road Race Championship, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Paris-Nice and the Tour of Luxembourg. He also finished an impressive second in the Tour de France to five-time champion Jacques Anquetil, wearing the yellow jersey for 7 consecutive days, taking it from Englishman Tom Simpson and only losing it to Anquetil’s time trialling dominance on stage 20; 2 days before Paris.
He finished in the top 20 six times in the Tour de France
Major placings whilst riding for Flandria:
1960 Flandria - Weil’s
1st Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne
1st 4 Days Dunkirk
3rd Liège-Bastogne-Liège
3rd Gent-Wevelgem
1961 Flandria - Weil’s
1st Stage 6 - Tour de France
3rd Paris-Nice
1962 Faema - Flandria
1st Belgian Road Race Championship
1st Liège-Bastogne-Liège
1st Paris-Nice
1st Tour of Luxembourg (also, 1st Stage 3)
2nd Tour de France
1963 Flandria - Faema
1st 4 Days Dunkirk (also, 1st Stage 5B)
