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Concept
Wim van Est
Summary
Willem "Wim" van Est (25 March 1923 – 1 May 2003) was a Dutch racing cyclist. He is best known for being the first Dutch cyclist to wear the yellow jersey as leader of the general classification in the Tour de France of 1951, and for falling into a ravine while wearing it.
Van Est was born in the town of Fijnaart, in North Brabant, the 2nd child in a family of 16 children. His family was pushed into poverty in the aftermath of World War One and growing up he lived on a makeshift farm. During this time one of his brothers died at a very young age and his father had to make a coffin for the child, and ride several miles on his bike while carrying the coffin with his son inside to the local church to give the child a proper burial.
During World War 2 the teenage Van Est began riding a considerable distance into Belgium smuggling tobacco and cheese which he would either sell or trade for soap, which he would return home with in order to sell on the Black Market. He was caught doing this during the war and had to serve six months in prison. After this, while the Nazi's occupied his homeland, the teenage Van Est got the idea cycling for sport. When the war was over and races began again he saw a local race and thought he could beat everyone, but it would take him five years to reach the pro level.
He started his cycling career (as an amateur) in 1946, after a professional runner had seen him race in a local competition as part of a wager. His first major victory came in 1950, when he won the 600 km Bordeaux–Paris race.
In 1951, Van Est was part of the Dutch team for the Tour de France. This would be the first time in his entire life he had ever seen mountains of this caliber, let alone tried riding up or descending one. In the 12th stage, from Agen to Dax, he escaped with a small group. He won the stage and gained 19 minutes on the leader, enough to move up to first place in the general classification. As the first Dutchman to wear the accompanying yellow jersey he was praised by the public and media at home.
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