Sylvère Maes Photo Gallery
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Belgian rider Sylvère Maes (August 27, 1909 - December 5, 1966) is justly famed for two reasons. First, he won both the 1936 and 1939 Tours de France.
In the 1937 Tour, the race officials departed from their usual fair and unbiased race management to help Frenchman Roger Lapébie win the race. Slowly the unfair penalties and course decisions nibbled away at Maes' lead. Rather than be cheated out of the race, Maes and his Belgian team quit the Tour during the 16th stage. That let Lapébie win the 1937 Tour.
Maes was very talented. His first big win was the 1933 Paris-Roubaix. But it was the Tour de France that captured his love and interest. He was the last Belgian Tour winner until Eddy Merckx.
Maes retired from racing in 1948. He became the director of the Belgian Tour de France team until 1957.
Cancer took Maes in 1966, when he was just 57.
Major victories & high placings:
1933:
- Paris-Roubaix
1934:
- Tour de France 8th place, winner of stage 23
1935:
- Tour de France 4th place, winner stage 15
1936:
- Winner Tour de France, also winning stages 13B, 14B, 16 & 18B
1937:
- Tour de France stage 5B
1939:
- Tour de France, Tour de France mountains classification & stages 15, 16B
1947:
- Giro d'Italia 5th pace
Professional Teams:
1933 - 1941: Alcyon-Dunlop
1946 - 1948: Mercier-Hutchinson
1947 - 1948: Olmo
Nicknames: Lepe Peer (Smart Guy)
Photos:
A thirsty Sylvère Maes on the Portet d'Aspet in stage 15 of the 1935 Tour de France.
Sylvère Maes & Félicien Vervaecke climb the Col des Ares in the 1936 Tour de France.
Sylvère Maes, 1935 Tour winner Romain Maes (unrelated) and American expatriate (the next year she would become a French citizen) singer Joséphine Baker at the start of the 1936 Tour de France
Maes after stage 8 of the 1936 Tour de France (Grenoble-Briançon, July 16). He is now the Tour's GC leader. The rider on the right is Pierre Clémon.
Sylvère Maes with hose during the rest day in Cannes after stage 11 in the 1936 Tour de France. Standing next to him and looking at the camera is teammate 1937 World Champion Eloi Meulenberg
Sylvère Maes Climbing the Tourmalet in stage 16 of the 1936 Tour
1936 Tour, stage 16: Maes wins alone in Pau, 8min 36sec ahead of second-place Léon Level. He was good.
Maes after winning stage 16 of the 1936 Tour
1936 Tour de France: Sylvère Maes and René Vietto
Maes has just won the Tour de France. I'm guessing 1936 beacuse there is no gear changer on his bike.
August 2, 1936. The final stage of the 1936 Tour (Caen-Paris) is finished and Maes is the Tour winner.
Maes (center, no hat) after 1937 Tour stage 10 in the city of Nice. Derailleurs were allowed in 1937, but they were very different from today.
This is said to be of 1937 Tour de France stage 12B: Maes, wearing a black Belgian team jersey, rushes across a level crossing. He became the GC leader after the first half-stage.
Sylvère Maes (right) & Roger Lapébie in stage 15 of the 1937 Tour (Luchon-Pau).
Maes' picture from a 1937 Super Champion derailleur (which Maes used) brochure
French racer René Vietto and Sylvère Maes racing in a Tour de France (1939?). Robert Capa photo.
Undated tradng card
Tour de France stage 15, 1939: Maes ascends the Izoard
Also 1939 Tour stage 15.
Sylvère Maes and Maurice Archambaud in the final stage of the 1939 Tour.
Maes in 1939. Given his jersey, the picture was taken during the time he led the Tour de France.
Paris, Sunday, July 30. Sylvère Maes (in yellow jersey, behind racer Marcel Kint in front) has just won the Tour de France.