Karsten Kroon
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Karsten Kroon (born 29 January 1976) is a Dutch former professional road bicycle racer who most recently rode for Tinkoff, a UCI ProTeam.[1] He retired at the end of the 2014 season.[2]
.JPG) Kroon at the 2012 Tour de France | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Karsten Kroon |
| Born | 29 January 1976 (age 48) Dalen, the Netherlands |
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Weight | 67 kg (148 lb; 10.6 st) |
| Team information | |
| Current team | Retired |
| Discipline | Road |
| Role | Rider |
| Rider type | Classics rider |
| Professional teams | |
| 1997–2005 | Rabobank |
| 2006–2009 | Team CSC |
| 2010–2011 | BMC Racing Team |
| 2012–2014 | Team Saxo Bank |
| Major wins | |
Grand Tours
Single-day races and Classics
| |
Born in Dalen, Kroon showed his talent as an amateur by winning the professional Ronde van Drenthe in 1996. He joined the Rabobank youth squad in 1997 and won a number of amateur races in two years. In 1999, he moved to the senior squad. His few wins included stage 8, on Bastille Day, of the 2002 Tour de France. Kroon and his teammate, Erik Dekker, finished in a seven-man group, and Kroon won a stage in his first Tour de France with the help of the more experienced Dekker.[3] Kroon led the mountains classification in each of the three Grand Tours, though his lead did not last to the end.[4]
On 10 August 2005 he said that, until 2007, he was to ride for Saxo Bank. He wanted more freedom. "I've never said that I want to be leader," he told Cyclingnews.com, "I only want to get chances".[5] In March and April 2006, he was joint team captain in ProTour races. He finished in the top ten of Tirreno–Adriatico and the Tour of Flanders. He helped Fränk Schleck win the Amstel Gold Race by disrupting the chase when Schleck attacked; Kroon finished fourth.[6] Kroon finally finished on the podium, in La Flèche Wallonne, third in front of Schleck. He also came second in the 2009 Amstel Gold Race, just behind Serguei Ivanov.
In 2010, Kroon joined BMC Racing Team,[7] but returned to Team Saxo Bank for the 2012 season.[1]
On 24 April 2018, it was reported that Kroon had confessed to doping for "a short period during my career". He added: "I was a professional cyclist in a very difficult time and I have a lot of respect for my colleagues who resisted the temptation to use doping."[8]
Grand Tour general classification results timeline
| — | Did not compete |
|---|---|
| DNF | Did not finish |
- ^ a b "Kroon returns to Saxo Bank". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. 7 October 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
- ^ "Nuyens set to announce retirement".
- ^ Kroon takes stage victory, BBC Sport, 14 July 2002
- ^ "Kroon tiende Nederlander in bolletjestrui" (in Dutch). Wielcentrum.com. 7 July 2005. Archived from the original on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
- ^ Kroon to CSC, CyclingNews.com, 10 August 2005
- ^ Mixed fortunes for Kroon and Boogerd, Pro Cycling, 17 April 2006
- ^ VeloNews.com (2009-09-01). "Hincapie confirms to BMC with Ballan, Kroon, Burghardt". VeloNews. Archived from the original on 2009-09-03. Retrieved 2009-09-02.
- ^ "Kroon confesses to doping after Dutch newspaper exposure". cyclingnews.com. 24 April 2018. Retrieved 24 April 2018.
- KarstenKroon.com (fansite)
- Team CSC profile
- Karsten Kroon at Cycling Archives