Who is the best Colombian Cyclist of all times?

[rantanplan]

Lucho Herrera, in his debut, winning en Tres Cimas de Lavaredo with a 39x23!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gpzUOS4My4&feature=player_embedded

 

[The Hitch]

Didn't know what thread to put this in, so chose this. Just a point of interest.

1989 survey by Semana magazine assessing the decade known as the 1980' - (that's the one which started in 1980 and ended in 1989, or if you are netserk, started in 1981 and ended in 1990 - which would make the survey 1 year early but alas)

Anyway question - Cual es Para usted el Deportista Colombiano de los 80 (who is for you the Colombian sportsman of the 1980's)

CARLOS "PIBE" VALDERRAMA 10.7% LUCHO HERRERA 10.2%
RENE HIGUITA 16.5% FIDEL BASSA 1.8%
ISOLINA MAJUL 1.0% ALBEIRO USURIAGA 3.4%
ALNOLDO IGUARAN 1.4% MIGUEL "HAPPY" LORA 4.8%
LUZ MERY TRISTAN 1.8% WILLINGTON ORTIZ 3.2%
FRANCISCO MATURANA 3.6% VICTOR MORA 1.3%
LEONEL ALVAREZ 1.2% FABIO PARRA 3.5%

Lucho on the podium, losing just to Valderrama. Maybe could have gotten a few extra % with a better haircut. Parra also got some votes.

 

[Escarabajo]

LOL at Higuita. No love for that drug dealer. The only good thing that I remember of him was his famous scorpion when he played in a friendly game in England.

 

[The Hitch]

LOL at Higuita. No love for that drug dealer. The only good thing that I remember of him was his famous scorpion when he played in a friendly game in England.

Which was in the 90's though. In the 80's he had the copa libertadores final where he saved like 6 penalties and I think scored one himself.

 

[Arredondo]

How is Rafael Antonio Niño scaled? One of the best imo. Dominated the 70's.

Winning 6x La Vuelta is a big thing.

Apart from him, the regular names: Herrera, Cochise, Parra, Botero.

Concerning Cochise, Gazzetta and L'Equipe did say that he could be the best in the world and won many races, if he came earlier to Europa. That says something.

Personally, i loved how Jose Martin Farfan rode in the Vuelta of 1989 (saw it on later images). Of course not a serious contender, but too bad he didn't made a real impact anymore after that.

 

[Echoes]

Cochise was a lot better than Niño was.

In the three years he raced in Europe as a pro, he was very impressive and won a lot but not to the point l'Équipe said he was.

Those who think Herrera was better than Cochise don't know what they are talking about.

 

[ILovecycling]

Soler.


Because he litteraly brought the best colombian generation to europe.I admire him.

 

[Escarabajo]

Botero has no chance at all.

Good that he won the World TT but that's it for domination.

 

[SergeDeM]

Herrera but his reign is about to end. Quintana will inevitably end up as Colombia's greatest cyclist ever. In fact, if he retired right now he should be in the mix. He has Colombia's two greatest triumphs ever: Giro win, Tour runner up.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

the best no doubt for me is alvaro mejia. he was maybe the most talented cyclist of all time. but unfortunately for him he came to age during the darkest epo years in europe and despite that showed in the 1993 tour how monsterously good he was while being 100% clean. I think his wattages spreka for themselves. he was also the biggest coming talent in colombia. at teen age was already a star in the domestic pro scene

 

[Netserk]

the best no doubt for me is alvaro mejia. he was maybe the most talented cyclist of all time. but unfortunately for him he came to age during the darkest epo years in europe and despite that showed in the 1993 tour how monsterously good he was while being 100% clean. I think his wattages spreka for themselves. he was also the biggest coming talent in colombia. at teen age was already a star in the domestic pro scene

 

[kingjr]

the best no doubt for me is alvaro mejia. he was maybe the most talented cyclist of all time. but unfortunately for him he came to age during the darkest epo years in europe and despite that showed in the 1993 tour how monsterously good he was while being 100% clean. I think his wattages spreka for themselves. he was also the biggest coming talent in colombia. at teen age was already a star in the domestic pro scene

His style was beautiful too!

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

His style was beautiful too!

I once heard a story that due to some fysical incapablity he could never change tempo during an effort. he is simialr to quintana in many ways

 

[jens_attacks]

ask lance if he was 100% clean at motorola in 1993. my bet is hell not, full of jet fuel like jaskula and tony

the best will be nairo no doubt, he's absolutely focused on what he's doing and he's more or less a complete rider. but mentally, he's just wow a true champion

 

[proffz]

anyway alvaro mejia was beautiful in that tour , i will always remember his white shoes and classy style.
today he is a doctor and if i am not wrong he works also in colombian cycling (probably with the federation )
in my opinion, the best among the historical was cochise, but lucho herrera was the most important.
in few years there will be no doubt : quintana ,who probably is already the best of all times ( tda, 2nd in tour , giro di italia , he already has a palmares...)

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

ask lance if he was 100% clean at motorola in 1993. my bet is hell not, full of jet fuel like jaskula and tony

the best will be nairo no doubt, he's absolutely focused on what he's doing and he's more or less a complete rider. but mentally, he's just wow a true champion

well did lance ever say he was doped? don't think so. not that his word is to trust. the fact that alvaro mejia was a doctor and turned doctor after his career after having felt screwed by the european and colombian peloton and his own stories I believe him. he was a doctor also at some colombian teams but quit them as soon as he found out riders trying to get away from his radar

 

[Echoes]

This Quintana hype is starting to break my *****. Nothing against the rider but the fans bore me...


Quintana cannot be any better than Cochise because Cochise was an all-rounder and Quintana is specialized. It's easy to understand, no?

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

This Quintana hype is starting to break my *****. Nothing against the rider but the fans bore me...


Quintana cannot be any better than Cochise because Cochise was an all-rounder and Quintana is specialized. It's easy to understand, no?

cochise may've been one of the best cyclists of all time like eddy mercks. he held the world hour record too. however he never went to europe until he was way past his prime in colombia to get some cash in italy. still he rod eincreidble in europe. gimondi for instance was LITERALLY dragged by cochise over all the climbs in cochise's later years(I have a great interview of this) but it's impossible to say because he never made that step to europe until it was too late. quintana will no doubt be the most succesful colombian cyclist ever and maybe also the best. better even than mejia and cochise, but the latter 2 may've had an inch more talent. hard to say

 

[Echoes]

However we may disagree, I'll always thank you for sending that interview to me, Ryo.

 

[SergeDeM]

This Quintana hype is starting to break my *****. Nothing against the rider but the fans bore me...


Quintana cannot be any better than Cochise because Cochise was an all-rounder and Quintana is specialized. It's easy to understand, no?

No.

Obviously it's impossible to compare riders from different eras and thus we must go with palmares as the main source. Quintana already has the best ever for Colombia and it'll only get better.

 

[proffz]

well did lance ever say he was doped? don't think so. not that his word is to trust. the fact that alvaro mejia was a doctor and turned doctor after his career after having felt screwed by the european and colombian peloton and his own stories I believe him. he was a doctor also at some colombian teams but quit them as soon as he found out riders trying to get away from his radar

the source about alvaro mejia being clean in the 1993 tour is andy hampsten.
andy hampsten reported that alvaro was a huge talent and made incredible efforts to reach that result. this effort may be were a factor for his short career.
andy also said that alvaro was always homesick about his family and colombia .
this was probably the reason of his short career in europe.
I am willing to trust andy hampsten, but everything is possible and nobody except alvaro himself knows the truth about that tour

 

[Echoes]

Obviously it's impossible to compare riders from different eras and thus we must go with palmares as the main source.

Absurd! If it's impossible to compare eras, don't say anything.

the source about alvaro mejia being clean in the 1993 tour is andy hampsten.[...]

Thanks Ademai on VCN.

 

[jens_attacks]

the source about alvaro mejia being clean in the 1993 tour is andy hampsten.

ok then lol

my source is the amazing speed they were racing in 1993 mountains, never seen until that year. and it's exactly what laurent fignon wrote in his biography.

i'm curious, what place is epic,myhtical cacaito rodriguez in this classement?

 

[hfer07]

No.

Obviously it's impossible to compare riders from different eras and thus we must go with palmares as the main source. Quintana already has the best ever for Colombia and it'll only get better.

While I agree with your statement on the Palmares bulk of achievements, which Quintana obviously has already surpassed the rest- I perhaps hold strong roots to the heroes of the 80's because- I most confess- I grew up watching them on the TV and what they did back then- with the lack of experience, with the tight resources & most of all- with the ideal of having a "National Team" to gather the best riders to compete in Europe was stupendous- to me-the mayor achievement in Colombian cycling as the anchor & foundation for what happened to the next generations.

I also agree with Ryo on Cochise- he was a monster- but a "rarity", an "anomaly" & a lone pioneer in a sport yet very underdeveloped in Colombia. I do have love and appreciation of those riders more than today's because of the hardships they endured to reach the glory- not saying today's athletes don't go through them(hence Uran for instance) but as far as just the basics -like equipment & training alone -are astronomically different from back then- nowadays money, contracts, sponsorship, traveling, etc make life much more easier for them.

anyways- For me- Cochise & Herrera will always be the best Colombian cyclists ever, regardless the bulk of their palmares, simply because they were the first ones from our country that proved to the world that it was "possible" to beat the best Europeans in their own races- that it was "possible" to aspire and achieve glory through the practice of this beautiful sport-that it was "possible" to work hard on higher ideals for Colombians practicing the sport to reach professional level- that it was "possible" to export this talent abroad & enhance/improve the Country's image around the world......

 

[SergeDeM]

Absurd! If it's impossible to compare eras, don't say anything.

Just as absurd as saying Cochise has to be better just because he was an allrounder. And BTW Quintana is an amazing climber but that's not all he is. He can TT he's always well positioned when it matters. How many other Colombians can you say that about?

Cochise could've been better but palmares says he's not. It's not about what you could've done, it about what you did. Otherwise we could make a case for Schleck Jr. as the best cyclist of his time