Theo Middelkamp

Theofiel Middelkamp, known as Theo, was a Dutch road cyclist who lived from 23 February 1914 to 2 May 2005. In 1936 he became the first Dutch cyclist to win a stage of the Tour de France, taking the mountain stage from Aix-les-Bains to Grenoble over the Col du Galibier on 14 July, and he finished that Tour 23rd overall. He won the seventh stage of the 1938 Tour but, because the prize money was far below what he could earn in Flemish races, he stayed away from later Tours. During the Second World War he smuggled goods, was caught and spent several months in prison. In 1947 he became the first Dutch road world champion, in Reims. He ended his career in 1951 and bought a pub in Kieldrecht.