Frans Slaats

Frans Slaats (born Waalwijk, Netherlands, 11 June 1912, died Waalwijk, 6 April 1993) was a Dutch professional cyclist who broke the world hour record.

Slaats was a prominent velodrome rider in the 1930s, especially in Six-day racing. In September 1937 he set the world hour record at 45.558 km on the Vigorelli track in Milan, Italy. It was bettered the same year by the French rider, Maurice Archambaud.

Slaats was at the Buenos Aires six-day in Argentina when the second world war began in 1939. On returning to the Netherlands when peace came in 1945, he found his four brothers had been killed by the Germans.

Palmarès

1934: 2nd Berlin six-day
1936: 3rd Ronde van Valkenburg; 1st Amsterdam six-day; 2nd Ghent six-day; 1st Copenhagen six-day
1937: 1st Antwerp six-day; World hour record; 1st Copenhagen six-day
1938: 1st Ghent six-day; 2nd Antwerp six-day
1939: 1st Brussels six-day; 3rd Copenhagen six-day
1944: 1st Buenos Aires six-day

Records
Preceded by Maurice Richard	UCI hour record (45.325 km) 29 September 1937-3 November 1937	Succeeded by Maurice Archambaud

References

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