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| Event type

Sprint, Men

Date26 – 29 August 1960
StatusOlympic
LocationVelodrome Olimpico, Roma
Participants30 from 18 countries
Format1,000 metres.

For the first time since 1924, a nation could enter more than one rider in this event. This gave the Italians the two favorites in Sante Gaiardoni, 1960 World Champion, and Valentino Gasparella, the World Champion in 1958-59, who defeated Gaiardoni both times in the final. They had also won the last three Grand Prix de Paris, again Gasparella in 1958-59 and Gaiardoni in 1960. A long convoluted series of races determined the eight quarter-finalists, as the first round was followed by a repêchage, then repêchage finals, then a second round and another series of repêchages and repêchage finals. From the quarter-finals onward, the matches were best two of three races. Gaiardoni and Gasparella easily made the semis, where Gaiardoni met Australia’s Ron Baensch, defeating him in two straight races. In the other semi, Gasparella faced Belgian Léo Sterckx, who had lost the 1960 World Championship and Grand Prix de Paris finals to Gaiardoni. Gasparella won the first race, but Sterckx then defeated him in two straight to advance to another final against Gaiardoni. In the first race of the final, Gaiardoni put on a stunning surge on the final banking that gave him a runaway victory. Sterckx put up little opposition in the second race, and Gaiardoni became the only man to win the kilometer and the sprint at the Olympics, winning all eight of his races in the sprint. He would soon turn professional and won the World Sprint title in 1963, defeating sprint legend Antonio Maspes. Gaiardoni had a long sprint career as a professional, also placing second at the Worlds in 1962, 1969-70, and third in 1966. He was a runner-up three times to Maspes in the professional Grand Prix de Paris (1961, 1963-64). Gasparella also turned professional but had less success, his only major podium finish being second to Maspes at the 1962 Grand Prix de Paris.

PosCompetitor(s)NOC
1Sante GaiardoniITAGold
2Leo SterckxBELSilver
3Valentino GasparellaITABronze
4Ron BaenschAUS
=5Anésio ArgentonBRA
=5Lloyd BinchGBR
=5Antoine PellegrinaFRA
=5August RiekeGER
2 h1 r6/9Mario VanegasCOL
2 h2 r6/9Kurt RechsteinerSUI
2 h1 r5/9André GruchetFRA
2 h2 r5/9Clyde RimpleWIF
2 h3 r5/9Günter KaslowskiGER
2 h4 r5/9Piet van der TouwNED
3 h1 r5/9Aad de GraafNED
3 h2 r5/9Boris VasilyevURS
3 h3 r5/9Gilbert De RieckBEL
3 h4 r5/9Imants BodnieksURS
3 h1 r3/9Cenobio RuizMEX
3 h2 r3/9Luis MuciñoMEX
3 h3 r3/9Herbie FrancisUSA
2 h1 r2/9Karl BartonGBR
2 h2 r2/9Martin McKayIRL
2 h3 r2/9José María ErrandoneaESP
2 h4 r2/9Abdul Razzaq BalochPAK
2 h5 r2/9Muhammad AshiqPAK
2 h6 r2/9Mick HorganIRL
2 h7 r2/9Francisco TortelláESP
2 h8 r2/9Jackie SimesUSA
2 h9 r2/9Paul NymanFIN

Round One (26 August 1960)

Winner of each heat advanced to round two.

Heat One

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Sante GaiardoniITA11.7Q
2Clyde RimpleWIF

Heat Two

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Ron BaenschAUS11.7Qwalkover

Heat Three

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Leo SterckxBEL11.4Q=OR
2Anésio ArgentonBRA

Heat Four

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Mario VanegasCOL12.4Q
2Karl BartonGBR

Heat Five

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Valentino GasparellaITA11.7Q
2José María ErrandoneaESP
3Martin McKayIRL

Heat Six

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Günter KaslowskiGER12.0Q
2Gilbert De RieckBEL
3Cenobio RuizMEX

Heat Seven

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1André GruchetFRA11.6Q
2Herbie FrancisUSA
3Muhammad AshiqPAK

Heat Eight

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Kurt RechsteinerSUI11.7Q
2Luis MuciñoMEX
3Abdul Razzaq BalochPAK

Heat Nine

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Lloyd BinchGBR12.0Q
2Imants BodnieksURS
3Piet van der TouwNED

Heat Ten

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Boris VasilyevURS11.8Q
2Francisco TortelláESP
3Mick HorganIRL

Heat Eleven

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Antoine PellegrinaFRA12.4Q
2Aad de GraafNED

Heat Twelve

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1August RiekeGER11.9Q
2Jackie SimesUSA
3Paul NymanFIN

Round One Repêchage (26 August 1960)

Winner of each heat advanced to round one repêchage final.

Heat One

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Anésio ArgentonBRA12.3Q
2Karl BartonGBR

Heat Two

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Cenobio RuizMEX12.4Q
2Martin McKayIRL

Heat Three

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Gilbert De RieckBEL12.4Q
2José María ErrandoneaESP

Heat Four

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Herbie FrancisUSA12.1Q
2Abdul Razzaq BalochPAK

Heat Five

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Luis MuciñoMEX12.8Q
2Muhammad AshiqPAK

Heat Six

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Imants BodnieksURS11.7Q
2Mick HorganIRL

Heat Seven

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Piet van der TouwNED12.1Q
2Francisco TortelláESP

Heat Eight

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Aad de GraafNED11.6Q
2Jackie SimesUSA

Heat Nine

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Clyde RimpleWIF12.5Q
2Paul NymanFIN

Round One Repêchage Final (26 August 1960)

Top two in each heat advanced to round two.

Heat One

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Aad de GraafNED11.8Q
2Gilbert De RieckBELQ
3Cenobio RuizMEX

Heat Two

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Imants BodnieksURS12.5Q
2Anésio ArgentonBRAQ
3Luis MuciñoMEX

Heat Three

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Piet van der TouwNED11.9Q
2Clyde RimpleWIFQ
3Herbie FrancisUSA

Round Two (26 August 1960)

Winner of each heat advanced to the quarter-finals.

Heat One

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1August RiekeGER11.7Q
2Piet van der TouwNED
3Boris VasilyevURS

Heat Two

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Antoine PellegrinaFRA11.6Q
2Kurt RechsteinerSUI
3Gilbert De RieckBEL

Heat Three

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Lloyd BinchGBR11.7Q
2André GruchetFRA
3Clyde RimpleWIF

Heat Four

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Anésio ArgentonBRA11.4Q=OR
2Ron BaenschAUS
3Valentino GasparellaITA1

Heat Five

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Leo SterckxBEL11.3Q
2Aad de GraafNED
3Mario VanegasCOL

Heat Six

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Sante GaiardoniITA12.0Q
2Imants BodnieksURS
3Günter KaslowskiGER

Round Two Repêchage Final (26 August 1960)

Winner of each heat advanced to the quarter-finals.

Heat One

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Valentino GasparellaITA11.4Q
2Mario VanegasCOL

Heat Two

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Ron BaenschAUS11.6Q
2Kurt RechsteinerSUI

Round Two Repêchage (26 August 1960)

Winner of each heat advanced to round two repêchage final.

Heat One

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Mario VanegasCOL11.8Q
2André GruchetFRA
3Aad de GraafNED

Heat Two

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Valentino GasparellaITA11.6Q
2Clyde RimpleWIF
3Boris VasilyevURS

Heat Three

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Kurt RechsteinerSUI11.5Q
2Günter KaslowskiGER
3Gilbert De RieckBEL

Heat Four

PosCompetitor(s)NOCTime
1Ron BaenschAUS12.1Q
2Piet van der TouwNED
3Imants BodnieksURS

Quarter-Finals (27 August 1960)

Best two of three races. Winner of each heat advanced to the semi-finals.

Heat One

PosCompetitor(s)NOCRaces Won
1Valentino GasparellaITA2Q
2Antoine PellegrinaFRA0

Heat Two

PosCompetitor(s)NOCRaces Won
1Ron BaenschAUS2Q
2August RiekeGER0

Heat Three

PosCompetitor(s)NOCRaces Won
1Leo SterckxBEL2Q
2Lloyd BinchGBR0

Heat Four

PosCompetitor(s)NOCRaces Won
1Sante GaiardoniITA2Q
2Anésio ArgentonBRA0

Semi-Finals (29 August 1960)

Best two of three races. Winner of each heat advanced to the final.

Heat One

PosCompetitor(s)NOCRaces Won
1Leo SterckxBEL2Q
2Valentino GasparellaITA1

Heat Two

PosCompetitor(s)NOCRaces Won
1Sante GaiardoniITA2Q
2Ron BaenschAUS0

Final Round (29 August 1960)

Best two of three races.

Match 1/2 ()

PosCompetitor(s)NOCRaces Won
1Sante GaiardoniITA2
2Leo SterckxBEL0

Match 3/4 ()

PosCompetitor(s)NOCRaces Won
1Valentino GasparellaITA2
2Ron BaenschAUS0