1976 Tour of Flanders

Race details
Dates	4 April 1976
Stages	1
Distance	261 km (162.2 mi)
Winning time	6h 10' 00"
Results
Winner  Walter Planckaert (BEL) (Maes–Rokado)   Second  Francesco Moser (ITA) (Sanson)   Third  Marc Demeyer (BEL) (Flandria–Velda)

The 60th running of the Tour of Flanders cycling race in Belgium was held on Sunday 4 April 1976. Belgian Walter Planckaert won before Francesco Moser and Marc Demeyer.^[1][2] It was the last time the race started in its original starting place, Ghent. The finish was in Meerbeke (Ninove).

Course

The Koppenberg climb, stirring much controversy for its steep and unevenly cobbled surface, was included in the route for the first time. Only the first five riders managed to make it all the way riding, the rest had to shoulder their bikes to the top. Cycling legend Eddy Merckx was seen strolling helplessly through a tangle of riders and spectators.^[3]

In the final kilometers a group of five headed to the finish. Freddy Maertens and Roger De Vlaeminck, two of Belgium's star riders, were favourites to win the sprint, but the two did not get on and let themselves jointly be dropped 4 km before the finish. Walter Planckaert won in a three-man sprint before Italian Francesco Moser and Marc Demeyer. De Vlaeminck beat Maertens for fourth place, recognizing his mistake, but stated "he did not want Maertens to win".^[4][5]

Climbs

There were nine categorized climbs in this edition:

Oude Kwaremont Nieuwe Kruisberg Koppenberg Taaienberg Eikenberg

Volkegemberg Varent Muur van Geraardsbergen Bosberg

Results

	Cyclist	Team	Time
1	Walter Planckaert (BEL)	Maes–Rokado	6h 10' 00"
2	Francesco Moser (ITA)	Sanson	s.t.
3	Marc Demeyer (BEL)	Flandria–Velda	s.t.
4	Roger De Vlaeminck (BEL)	Brooklyn	+ 16"
5	Freddy Maertens (BEL)	Flandria–Velda	s.t.
6	Willy Teirlinck (BEL)	Gitane–Campagnolo	+ 22"
7	Eric Leman (BEL)	Zoppas–Splendor	s.t.
8	Walter Godefroot (BEL)	IJsboerke–Colnago	s.t.
9	Frans Verbeeck (BEL)	IJsboerke–Colnago	s.t.
10	André Dierickx (BEL)	Maes–Rokado	s.t.

References

1. Vanwalleghem, Rik (1991), De Ronde van Vlaanderen, Pinguin, Belgium, ISBN 90-73322-02-2, p174
2. McGann, Bill; McGann, Carol. "1976 Ronde van Vlaanderen results". BikeRaceInfo. Cherokee Village, Arkansas: McGann Publishing. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
3. Vanwalleghem, Rik (2003), De Ronde van Vlaanderen, Lannoo, Belgium, ISBN 90-20951-37-8, p27
4. Vanwalleghem, Rik (2003), De Ronde van Vlaanderen, Lannoo, Belgium, ISBN 90-20951-37-8, p78
5. Vanwalleghem, Rik (1991), De Ronde van Vlaanderen, Pinguin, Belgium, ISBN 90-73322-02-2, p183-184