Erik De Beck

Last updated
Erik De Beck
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium
IAAF World Cross Country Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1974 Monza Long race
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1973 Waregem Team race
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1974 Monza Team race
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1977 Düsseldorf Team race

Erik De Beck (born 6 June 1951) is a Belgian former long-distance runner who specialised in cross country running. His greatest performance was a gold medal at the 1974 IAAF World Cross Country Championships. He shared in the team title at that event on three occasions: 1973, 1974 and 1977.

Contents

De Beck won three national titles in his career, taking two cross country wins (1974 and 1976) and one 10,000 metres title (1983). He totalled nine appearances at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships as well as three outings at its precursor, the International Cross Country Championships, where he was a junior medallist in 1970. He married Joske Van Santberghe, who was also a medallist at the World Cross Country Championships.

Career

Born in Merelbeke, in his youth he joined K.A.A. Gent – one of the oldest sports clubs in the country. While he was still at high school De Beck entered the 1967 Cross van Le Soir, a major cross country race open to the public, and finished eleventh overall. [1] He continued to improve in the discipline and his first successes came in 1970, when he won the Belgian junior title and took the bronze medal in the junior section of that year's International Cross Country Championships. [2] The following year he managed only eleventh place at the international event, [3] but on his senior debut he placed seventh and helped Belgium to the third in the team rankings, alongside the race winner Gaston Roelants. [4] De Beck married fellow cross country runner Joske Van Santberghe in 1972. [1]

De Beck's career coincided with a strong period of men's long-distance running in Belgium in the 1970s, with Roelants, Willy Polleunis, Emiel Puttemans, Karel Lismont and Ivo Van Damme being the other protagonists. The 1973 IAAF World Cross Country Championships marked the inauguration of the modern world championship event and, held on home turf in Waregem, the Belgian trio of Polleunis, Roelants and De Beck won the first team title (De Beck placed 18th individually). [5] De Beck won his first national title in cross country a year later. [6] He produced an upset at the 1974 IAAF World Cross Country Championships by winning the title just ahead of Mariano Haro (the 1973 runner-up) and leading the Belgian men to the team gold medal. [7]

He missed the 1975 season but returned to action by winning the 1976 Belgian cross country title. [6] He failed to repeat his previous success at the 1976 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, coming 49th, although Belgium took the team silver medals. [8] His teammate Léon Schots won the gold at the 1977 IAAF World Cross Country Championships and De Beck's 18th-place finish saw him share in the team title for a third time in his career. [9] As the 1970s neared to a close, the performance of the Belgian team declined: De Beck was 26th at both the 1978 and 1979 races, with Belgium ranking fifth overall in each competition. After missing the 1980 season, he was only 64th in 1981. He was his country's best performer at the 1982 and 1983 World Cross Country Championships, finishing 17th each time. [10]

De Beck turned to the track in 1983 and won the third (and last) Belgian title of his career by running 29:42.56 minutes for the 10,000 metres. [6] His last year of major competition came in 1987: he finished 73rd at the 1987 IAAF World Cross Country Championships and won the Zwijndrecht Marathon in a time of 2:21:50 hours. [11]

Related Research Articles

The 2004 IAAF World Cross Country Championships took place on March 20/21, 2004. The races were held at the Ossegem Park in Brussels, the capital of Belgium. Reports of the event were given in The New York Times, and for the IAAF.

The 1991 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Antwerp, Belgium, at the Linkeroever Racecourse on March 24, 1991. A report on the event was given in The New York Times.

The 1990 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Aix-les-Bains, France, at the Hippodrome de Marlioz on March 25, 1990. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1989 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Stavanger, Norway, at the Scanvest Ring on March 19, 1989. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1985 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Lisbon, Portugal, at the Sports Complex of Jamor on March 24, 1985. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1984 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States, at the Meadowlands Racetrack on March 25, 1984. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1983 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Gateshead, England, at the Riverside Park on March 20, 1983. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald and in the Evening Times.

The 1981 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Madrid, Spain, at the Hipódromo de la Zarzuela on March 28, 1981. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1980 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Paris, France, at the Hippodrome de Longchamp on March 9, 1980. A report on the event was given in the Evening Times.

The 1979 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Limerick, Ireland, at the Greenpark Racecourse on 25 March 1979. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1973 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Waregem, Belgium, at the Hippodroom Waregem on March 17, 1973. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1974 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Monza, Italy, at the Mirabello Racecourse on 16 March 1974. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1975 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Rabat, Morocco, at the Souissi Racecourse on March 16, 1975. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1976 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Chepstow, Wales, at the Chepstow Racecourse on 28 February 1976. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Léon Schots</span> Belgian long-distance runner

Léon Schots is a Belgian former long-distance runner who competed in track and cross country running competitions. His greatest achievement was a gold medal at the 1977 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, where he also led Belgium to the team title.

The 1957 International Cross Country Championships was held in Waregem, Belgium, at the Hippodroom Waregem on 23 March 1957. In addition, an unofficial women's championship was held one week later at Musselburgh, Scotland on 30 March 1957. A report on the men's event as well as the women's event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1962 International Cross Country Championships was held in Sheffield, England, at the Graves Park on 24 March 1962. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The 1969 International Cross Country Championships was held in Clydebank, Scotland, at the Dalmuir Park on 22 March 1969. A report on the men's event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

The Junior men's race at the 1973 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Waregem, Belgium, at the Hippodroom Waregem on March 17, 1973. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.

Joske Van Santberghe is a Belgian middle- and long-distance runner.

References

  1. 1 2 Lemmens, N. (1974). "In de schijnwerper: Erik De Beck" (in Dutch). De Atletiekwereld (no. 8: KNAU).
  2. ↑ International Cross Country Championships. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
  3. ↑ "Athletes File International Cross Country Championships Eric de Beck (1951.06.06)". Archived from the original on April 2, 2005. Retrieved 2013-09-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Athchamps (archived). Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
  4. ↑ "Cambridge Coldham Common Saturday March 18, 1972". Archived from the original on April 20, 2005. Retrieved 2007-08-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Athchamps. Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
  5. ↑ "Waregem Date: Saturday, March 17, 1973". Archived from the original on October 16, 2007. Retrieved 2013-10-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Athchamps. Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
  6. 1 2 3 Belgian Championships. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
  7. ↑ Minshull, Phil (1997). A Brief History Archived 2012-08-19 at the Wayback Machine . IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
  8. ↑ "Chepstow Date: Saturday, February 28, 1976". Archived from the original on October 16, 2007. Retrieved 2013-10-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Athchamps. Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
  9. ↑ "Düsseldorf Graffenberg Date: Sunday, March 20, 1977". Archived from the original on October 16, 2007. Retrieved 2013-10-17.. Athchamps. Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
  10. ↑ Erik De Beck. IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
  11. ↑ Marathon List for 1987. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved on 2013-09-01.
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