Briek Schotte

Alberic "Briek" Schotte (born Kanegem, West Flanders, 7 September 1919 – died Kortrijk, 4 April 2004) was a Belgian professional road racing cyclist, one of the champions of the 1940s and 1950s. His stamina earned him the nickname "Iron Briek" (IJzeren Briek).

Briek Schotte

Briek Schotte after winning the first stage of Dwars door België 1946 (collection: KOERS. Museum of Cycle Racing)
Personal information
Full name	Alberic Schotte
Nickname	Briek
Born	(1919-09-07)7 September 1919 Kanegem, Belgium
Died	4 April 2004(2004-04-04) (aged 84)
Team information
Discipline	Road
Role	Rider
Major wins
World Champion cycling (1948, 1950)
Medal record Representing  Belgium Men's road bicycle racing World Championships 1948 Valkenburg Elite Road Race 1950 Moerslede Elite Road Race

Briek Schotte wins Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen 1941 (collection KOERS. Museum of Cycle Racing)

He was world champion in 1948 and 1950, won the last stage of the 1947 Tour de France and finished second in the epic 1948 Tour, behind Gino Bartali. He twice won the Tour of Flanders (1942, 1948), Paris–Tours (1946, 1947) and Paris–Brussels (1946, 1952). He also won the inaugural Challenge Desgrange-Colombo, a season-long competition to identify the world's best road rider, in 1948.

After retirement in 1959, he was a team coach for 30 years, mostly for Flandria . He died on the day of the 2004 Tour of Flanders. The commentators during the race said "God must have been one of Briek's greatest fans".