Although his only Olympic appearance in 1960 was undistinguished, Jan Janssen is known as one of the great road sprinters of all time. This helped him win a lot of races. However, he was only an average climber and this prevented him from winning more major tours. His victory in the 1968 Tour de France came by only 38 seconds over Herman van Springel (BEL), at the time the closest finish in Tour history. Three times he won the green jersey at the Tour – 1964-65, and 1967, and twice won the points jersey at the Vuelta à España. Janssen’s other major victories included the 1967 Vuelta à España, the 1964 World Professional Road Race Championship, 1967 Paris-Roubaix, and 1966 Bordeaux-Paris. Janssen turned professional in 1962 and raced thru the 1972 season. He later started a frame-building business in southwest Holland.
Netherlands