Michael Boogerd

Michael Boogerd (born May 28, 1972 in The Hague) is a Dutch former professional road bicycle racer. He was one of the leaders of a generation of Dutch cyclists in the late 1990s and early 2000s, together with teammate Erik Dekker, even inspiring Dutch authors to write a book called "Michael & Erik" about this generation, and the two of them in particular. He began his professional career in 1994, joining WordPerfect. In 1995 the team changed name... more

Michael Boogerd (born May 28, 1972 in The Hague) is a Dutch former professional road bicycle racer. He was one of the leaders of a generation of Dutch cyclists in the late 1990s and early 2000s, together with teammate Erik Dekker, even inspiring Dutch authors to write a book called "Michael & Erik" about this generation, and the two of them in particular. He began his professional career in 1994, joining WordPerfect. In 1995 the team changed name to Novell, before Rabobank in 1996 became main sponsor and name for the team. Boogerd stayed with the team his entire career. His speciality were hilly classics like Liège-Bastogne-Liège, La Fleche Wallonne and the Amstel Gold Race in the Ardennes week and the Lombardian races in the Fall, as well as mountain-stages. He has won two stages in Tour de France (1996, 2002) as well as the Amstel Gold Race and Paris-Nice. He has been Dutch Champion three times, in 1997, 1998 and in 2006. In addition to these major victories, Boogerd scored a large... less