The Peace Race. The Tour de France of the Eastern Bloc
Poster of the Peace Race in 1989. (KOERS Collection)
On May 1, 1948, the first edition of the Peace Race takes place. The dove of peace on the leader's jersey, a symbol of hope for the future, represents the reason for the Peace Race's creation: healing the deep wounds inflicted by the Second World War behind the Iron Curtain.
In Poland and the then Czechoslovakia, the idea for an amateur race emerged. After all, the Eastern Bloc did not have professional cyclists, only so-called 'state amateurs', who admittedly trained and lived like pros. To avoid any discussion – the war was still fresh in people's minds – two races were even held in that first edition: one from Prague to Warsaw and one from Warsaw to Prague.
From the second edition onwards, a more convenient compromise was reached: one year the race would finish in Warsaw (1949), the following year in Prague (1950), and so on. Incidentally, in 1950, cyclists from the communist German Democratic Republic (GDR) participated for the first time. Two years later, the GDR proposed to support the Peace Race.
The annual alternation between the two finish locations, Warsaw and Prague, remains, but from 1952 onwards, the stage race will also cross East Germany each time, passing through (East) Berlin. For that fifth edition of the Peace Race, a Belgian selection stands at the start for the first time. In 1954, the UCI takes – the Union Cyclist Internationale - adds the amateur race to its sports calendar. From then on, international interest increases, and the race also welcomes participants from Africa, America, Australia, and Asia.
From left to right: Participant pin of Belgian cyclist Stan Goossens, dating from the 1959 Peace Race. (Goossens family collection) - Commemorative gift presented to the Belgian Cycling Federation (BWB) following the participation of a Belgian selection in 1962. (KOERS collection) - Leader's jersey of Belgian Noël Vantyghem from the 1968 Peace Race. (KOERS collection)
A first crack in the success appeared in 1969. The Prague Spring had been bloodily suppressed by the occupying Soviets. To deny the 'socialism with a human face' of Czech party leader Alexander Dubček a chance, Dubček was replaced in April 1969 by a pro-Soviet leader. Czechoslovakia withdrew from the organization of the Peace Race for that single year and did not field a team.
With the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the end of the Cold War, the decline of the Peace Race seems to have definitively set in. After all, with the disappearance of the original race format, the interest and financial willingness of the Eastern Bloc for the Tour de France also appear to be ebbing away.
The former state amateurs can compete as professional cyclists in other races with an international reputation, while the competition from the Tour de l'Avenir, which has allowed professional cyclists since 1981, is making itself felt increasingly strongly. To turn the tide, the Peace Race was also opened to professional cyclists in 1996.
With the enlargement of the European Union in May 2004, including new member states Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia, the Peace Race even started in the European capital, Brussels. The following year, in 2005, no Peace Race was organized, for the first time since 1948.
In 2006, there was a relaunch, but it was short-lived: the planned 2007 edition was ultimately cancelled due to financial difficulties. Nevertheless, a Peace Race is organized to this day. However, this is not a race for professionals, but a multi-day stage race for U23 riders held in the Czech Republic.
Text: Fieke Van der Gucht. This text originally appeared in Etappe, the biennial magazine of KOERS. The full text can here .
Take a closer look at the images
---
KOERS is the Museum of Cycling in Roeselare.
