# Karel Kaers

Karel Kaers (3 June 1914 – 20 December 1972) was a Belgian professional cyclist with 30 wins.
Kaers was born in Vosselaar. In 1934 he became the youngest world road champion, winning in Leipzig at 20. It was the first time he had ridden the race. He also won the Tour of Flanders in 1939, and the Belgian national championship in 1937.
His last race was on the track at Ordrup, near Copenhagen, Denmark, on 9 May 1948. He finished fourth in an omnium competition.

## Youngest world champion

Lance Armstrong is frequently described as the youngest world champion. In fact, he was only the third youngest road champion when he took the rainbow jersey in Oslo in 1993. Armstrong was two weeks short of 22; Kaers had just turned 20. Jean-Pierre Monseré was three weeks short of 22 when he became champion in Leicester on 16 August 1970.

## History

Karel Kaers started racing at 14 and won 37 events in his first two years, including the Belgian boys' championship on the road. He became a junior in 1931 and won the national sprint championship. He became an independent, or semi-professional, and then a full professional in 1932, riding mainly on the track until 1934.
In 1934 he began riding more on the road, winning the world championship at Leipzig. That winter he rode 1m 9.6s for a standing-start kilometre and, another track record, 1m 48s for the flying-start kilometre, both on the Vélodrome d'Hiver in Paris. He won the 320 km Circuit of Paris road race in 1937, then rode the track again in the winter and equalled Jef Scherens' record of 29.6s for 500 metres. He then broke the world one-mile record at Wembley, during the six-day race, by riding 1m 49.6s.
His weight, 85 kg, made him a poor climber and he never succeeded in hilly races.

## Retirement

Karel Kaers ran a bar inside the entrance to the Sportpaleis track in Antwerp after he stopped racing. He died in Antwerp, aged 58 after an intracranial hemorrhage.

## Career
### Road
#### 1930

    1st Road race, U17 National Road Championships

#### 1932

    1st Etoile des Juniors

#### 1933

    1st Omloop Groot Oostende
    1st Vosselaar

#### 1934

    1st Road race, UCI World Championships
    1st Antwerp
    1st Blankenberge
    1st Sombreffe
    1st Kontich
    1st Ossendrecht
    1st Sombreffe
    1st Critérium de Zürich
    7th Giro della Provincia di Milano

#### 1935 – Francis Pélissier

    1st Acht van Chaam
    1st Grote 1-MeiPrijs
    10th Circuit de Paris (fr)

#### 1936 – Colin

    1st Acht van Chaam
    1st Antwerp
    1st Bar-le-Duc
    1st Muizen
    1st Schaarbeek
    7th Circuit de Paris (fr)

#### 1937 – Alcyon, Bury

    1st Road race, National Road Championships
    1st Circuit de Paris (fr)
    1st Grote 1-MeiPrijs
    1st Nationale Sluitingsprijs
    1st Critérium de Zürich
    1st Antwerp
    1st Brasschaat
    1st Bar-le-Duc

#### 1938 – Alcyon, Bury

    1st Acht van Chaam
    1st Stage 1 Paris-Saint-Étienne (fr)
    1st Critérium de Bruxelles
    1st Wouw

#### 1939 – Alcyon

    1st Tour of Flanders
    1st Prix Torpédo in Schweinfurt
    1st Critérium de Liège

#### 1940 – Alcyon

    1st Critérium de Bruxelles
    1st Mechelen

#### 1941

    1st Omloop der Vlaamse Gewesten
    1st Critérium de Namur

#### 1942

    1st Kortrijk
    1st Wakken
    1st Hoboken
    1st Herentals
    1st Namur
    3rd Gullegem Koerse

#### 1943

    1st Antwerp
    1st Ougrée
    1st Herentals

#### 1946

    1st Critérium de Zürich

#### 1947 – Magali
### Track
#### 1931

    1st Sprint, Junior National Track Championships

#### 1932

    1st Sprint, Junior National Track Championships

#### 1934

    3rd Sprint National Track Championships

#### 1935

    3rd Sprint National Track Championships

#### 1936

    1st Six Days of Paris (with Albert Billiet)
    3rd Sprint National Track Championships

#### 1937

    3rd Sprint National Track Championships

#### 1938

    1st Six Days of Paris (with Albert Billiet)

#### 1939

    National Track Championships
       1st Individual pursuit
       3rd Sprint
    1st Six Days of London (with Omer De Bruycker)
    1st Six Days of Copenhagen (with Omer De Bruycker)
    3rd Six Days of Antwerp (with Omer De Bruycker)
    3rd Six Days of Brussels (with Omer De Bruycker)

#### 1940

    1st Six Days of Brussels (with Omer De Bruycker)
    2nd National motor-paced championship

#### 1941

    2nd Sprint National Track Championships

#### 1941

    2nd Omnium National Track Championships

#### 1944

    2nd Omnium National Track Championships