Henk Nijdam

Henk Nijdam was a Dutch cyclist, born in Eelderwolde in Drenthe in 1935 and died in Breda on 30 April 2009. He began as a pursuit specialist on the track and rode the team pursuit for the Netherlands at the 1960 Rome Olympics, finishing fifth equal. He became world champion in the individual pursuit and turned professional in 1962, when he again won the world pursuit title, which earned him the Dutch male athlete of the year award. He then moved towards road racing, where his best results came in the big stage races: two stages of the Tour de France in 1964 and 1966, and four stages of the Vuelta a España in 1966 and 1967. His son Jelle Nijdam also became a successful professional cyclist and won six Tour de France stages between 1987 and 1991.