Before Lance Armstrong: Joseph Magnani -- The Unknown American

[HuckleB]

Pioneers in the Peloton: The unknown American

Illinois' Joseph Magnani challenged Coppi and Bartali in Giro
http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/7566.0.html

"From the era of snub-nosed cars and dirt roads, of cyclists wearing goggles over their eyes to keep out the ubiquitous dust from the roads and racers wrapping spare tires over their shoulders and across their backs in a figure-eight, a lone U.S. rider enjoyed success as a professional on the roads of Europe.

Joseph Magnani of Illinois raced professionally from 1935 to 1948 on French and Italian teams. He was so ahead of his time that few in his homeland knew of him. In the 1947 world championship professional road race in Reims, northeast of Paris and famed for its champagne vineyards, Magnani finished seventh. He raced 171 miles through torrid heat that forced most of the starters, including legendary Fausto Coppi, to abandon.

When results reached the United States where his performance should have been celebrated, however, Magnani's name only piqued confusion. "If anyone knows who he is or where he came from to represent America, we would like to hear about it," wrote Otto Eisele, secretary of the Amateur Bicycle League of America (predecessor to the U.S. Cycling Federation and USA Cycling, Inc.), in American Bicyclist, then the only national cycling publication.

Ironically, some of Magnani's triumphs had been reported previously in the magazine during the 1930s. His victory in the 1935 Marseille-Nice road race classic had astonished everyone when it catapulted him to world-class stature. He won other races and performed well in one-day classics such as Milan-San Remo. In the post-World War II years, however, the earlier reporting was forgotten and confidence in American cycling sagged so badly that a U.S. rider holding his own against the Europeans apparently seemed to stretch credibility.

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WHAT AN INCREDIBLE STORY...

[keith the dem]

1. Great Post

I've followed cycling for 30+ years and I never heard this story.

Don't forget that before the NBA was big, before the NHL, the big winter sporting event was the 6 day bike race at Madison Square Garden and any other big arena across the country. A rider could make more in one evening that the big pro ball players could make a whole season. Greed killed it, and few people remember it.

Also the first black world champion in any sport except boxing was an African American sprinter named Major Taylor. Would recommend his biography for anyone interested in cycling or racism in the USA

[HuckleB]

2. Thanks for the context and the great recs.

I read "Iron Riders" a few years ago, and had checked out a bio of Taylor, but never got to it, as I was swamped with grad school at the time. But with your reminder, I just put Andrew Ritchie's book about Taylor on hold at the library.

Salud!

[keith the dem]

3. John "Jacque" Boyer got 12th in the TDF

back in the seventies I think. At the time, we hardly realized what an amazing accomplishment that was. Unfortunately I've heard the retired Boyer had some ugly run ins with the Law since then.

[HuckleB]

5. Heck, most Americans didn't understand the level of accomplishment...

when Lemond won the thing. And, even after Lemond brought attention to the sport in the US, how many followed Andy Hampsten (or even know the name) when he won the Giro in '88? Blah. Blah. Blah.

It's odd. If I hadn't come across a trading card of Eddy Merckx when I was nine years old, I wonder if I would have ever followed cycling. I just thought he looked so cool in the picture, so I sought out more about cycling. It certainly had to be odd for the likes of Boyer (who first competed in the TDF in '81, if memory serves me right), watching cyclists with less talent getting accolades in their home countries but being a virtual unknown himself in the States.

[keith the dem]

6. I rode with Eddy in 1977

It was a "recreational" out of T-town, though it did end in a sprint. Many of the top US riders were there. Eddy, with hairy legs and chain smoking camels, creamed everybody. I also partied with Lemond in Wildwood, NJ when he was still a Junior, He lapped the Junior field twice earlier that day, Got second in the Senior race the next day.
Been there for lots of stuff since, ask me anything.

[joeybee12]

4. Another unsung hero....

...sounds like a great idea for a movie.

[Maestro]

7. I've followed cycling for years

Those guys are some of the best athletes around. The effort it takes to do what these guys do is phenomenal. It's good to see this forgotten hero of the peloton getting some recognition.