Tom Steels is a former Belgian

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 professional road bicycle racer, specialising in sprint finishes and one-day races. He was one of the top sprinters in the peloton.

Steels competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, in the Men's 1000 metres Time Trial, finishing 19th

Steels began his professional cycling career in 1994 with the Vlaanderen 2002 team , winning eight times in his first two seasons. His breakthrough was after he signed with Mapei in 1996. That year he won Omloop Het Volk, and Gent–Wevelgem. In 1997, he rode in his first Tour de France

Tour de France

The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...

, and looked capable of a stage win after coming second on Stage 2. However, during the sprint for the finish for the sixth stage he found himself blocked and boxed in by other sprinters and in frustration threw his water bottle at another rider, for which he was thrown out of that year's Tour

His best season was 1998 when he won the national championship for the second time and returned to the Tour de France to win four stages. He was also national champion in 2002 and 2004 and won five more stages in the Tour. 2006 was his first year as a professional that he failed to win a race.

Steels retired from racing at the end of the 2008 season, during which he raced for Landbouwkrediet - Tönissteiner. In October 2010 it was announced that he would work as a coach for Quickstep, a Protour team, during 2011.

Victories

1994

• Stage Tour de l'Avenir
• GP Zele

1995

• 1 mei Prijs Hoboken
• Stage West Virginia Mountain Classic
• GP Rik Van Steenbergen
• Dwars door ’t Pajottenland
• Stage Ronde van Nederland
• Grote Sluitingsprijs Putte-Kapellen

1996

• Omloop Het Volk
• Gent–Wevelgem
• Stage, Tour de la Mediterranée
• 2 Stages, Tour of Belgium
• Stage, Volta a la Comunidad Galega
• Kustpijl
• Criterium Aalst

1997 national road championship

• Vuelta a Mallorca
• 4 Stages, Paris–Nice
• Stage, Tour de Luxembourg
• Stage, Tour de Suisse
• 2 Stages, Tour de la Région Wallonne
• Schaals Sels Merksem

1998

• 4 Stages, Tour de France national road championship
• Trofeo Pollensa-Alcudia
• Trofeo Magalluff-Calvia
• 2 Stages, Ruta del Sol
• 2 Stages, Parijs-Nice
• Dwars door België
• Criterium Aalst
• Oostrozebeke
• GP Merelbeke

1999

• 3 Stages, Tour de France
• Gent–Wevelgem
• 2 Stages, Ruta del Sol
• Stage, Paris–Nice
• Stage, Driedaagse van de Panne

2000

• 2 Stages, Tour de France
• Stage, Tour de la Mediterrannée
• Stage, Paris - Nice
• Stage, Driedaagse van De Panne
• 2 Stages, Tour de la Région Wallonne

2001

• Stage, Deutschland Tour
• 2 Stages, Tour de Suède

2002 national road championship

• Stage, 4-jours de Dunkerque
• Stage, Tour de Catalonia

2003

• Stage, Étoile de Bessèges
• Stage, Tour of Belgium
• Stage, Tour de l'Autriche
• GP Heusden

2004 national road championship

• Stage, Étoile de Bessèges
• Stage, Tour de Luxembourg
• 2 Stages, Tour de l'Autriche
• Dernycriterium St Niklaas

2005

• 2 Stages, Étoile de Bessèges
• Stage, Volta ao Algarve
• Stage, Driedaagse van De Panne-Koksijde

External links