How "Steel Grandfather" Gustav Håkansson put cycling champions to shame (9 photos)

Sometimes ordinary people, accustomed to hard daily work, are able to put titled athletes to shame. This was the case with Ivan Poddubny and many other legendary athletes who came to big-time sports from the street.





But the case of the "Steel Grandfather" Gustav Hakansson is special, since this man began his phenomenal sports career in his declining years.

Swedish farmer Gustav Hakansson was born in 1885 and devoted his entire life to hard farming. Together with his wife Maria, they raised 10 children, and when they grew up and moved away, they opened a small cafe in their home village. In general, an ordinary village family, of which there are many in Sweden, if not for one thing. Gustav was passionate about bicycles.



The man rode his two-wheeled friend everywhere and sometimes covered significant distances. When Gustav turned seventy, everyone thought that he would send his bike to the barn and take a place behind the counter of his cafe, but it was not so. At 66, Håkansson pedaled as briskly as at 30 and still had no intention of trading it for a rocking chair.

Moreover, when Gustav saw an announcement in the morning newspaper about the most prestigious and longest cycling race in the history of Sweden, he definitely decided to take part in it. The elderly farmer signed up for the selection, but, alas, his candidacy was immediately withdrawn.

Only athletes and amateurs under 40 years of age were allowed to compete, and Håkansson would soon turn 67. From several thousand applicants, among whom were winners of major European competitions, only 50 participants, mostly aged 20-30, were selected.





But the official refusal did not affect the determination of the stubborn farmer. Gustav got on his old bike and went to the starting point of the race. Having covered 600 km, the amateur cyclist appeared among the participants, with a headlamp and new mudguards on the bike.

The old man attached a basket with groceries to the trunk, and on his chest he had the number "0" painted on a piece of cloth. This important detail made it clear to everyone that in front of them was an unofficial, but still a participant in the race. However, due to his long gray beard, the number on the farmer's chest was almost invisible.



At the ceremonial moment of the start of the race, the strange old man was pushed away from the starting line and Gustav set off 20 seconds later than the others. But even if he had decided to have lunch and take a nap for a couple of hours, this would not have given his rivals any advantages.

After 5 days and 5 hours, the spectators and jury members gathered at the finish line in a small town 1000 km from the start saw in the distance the lonely figure of the winner, who was slowly approaching them, swinging his bike from side to side. As you may have guessed, this hero was old Håkansson, whose beard proudly fluttered in the wind like a banner.



Those present were puzzled by the fact that a 66-year-old man was the leader. But their surprise reached its limit when it turned out that Gustav was ahead of the next racer by an entire day. This was unbelievable, but an explanation was soon found. It turned out that an unofficial participant in the competition had grossly violated the rules, but this did not devalue his victory at all.

The rules of the race stated that participants must stop the race at night and sleep until morning. Håkansson rode at night, lighting his way with a headlamp and a bicycle light. He stopped to rest for no more than an hour, which allowed him to break away from the other participants so much. After just 300 miles of the race, Gustav broke away from the other athletes by 20 miles, and after three days the gap was as much as 120 miles!



Just a kilometer from the finish line, the old cyclist had an emergency - the front tire went flat. Gustav dismounted and rolled his iron friend for a while, and then got back in the saddle and crossed the line as expected - pedaling. On July 7, 1951, at 2:15 p.m., the elderly farmer Håkansson won an unprecedented victory in a bicycle race to which he was not allowed due to age.

Gustav was showered with flowers and carried into the city, after which the winner was surrounded by journalists. Dozens of reporters wanted to interview him and hundreds of ordinary citizens were eager to take a photo next to the newly born legend. The very next day, Håkansson was sitting in a chair opposite the Swedish King Gustav VI Adolf and telling him about his cycling voyage.



But even after this triumph, the race judges did not recognize Gustav Håkansson as the winner and gave first place and the cash prize to another cyclist. However, this was not important for the winner, because the entire Swedish people considered him to be the champion. Enthusiastic fans sent the old man money and gifts, knowing that he had been deprived of the prize. "Steel Grandfather" - that's what everyone started calling him, and it was hard to argue with that.

Håkansson's triumph eclipsed the glory of Sweden's biggest cycling race, and no one remembered it or its official winners anymore. All of Sweden knew and loved the gray-haired, bearded old man on an old bicycle, which he used to sell geese at the fair, and then beat the champions in expensive sports cars.



Champion Gustav Håkansson advertises soda

The farmer was happy with his victory, but he didn't need the glory. It was enough for Gustav that his doctor, who had urged him to retire and trade his bike for a crutch, had been put to shame. He was also incredibly pleased that he had been able to cross the entire country, see all its beauty and meet so many people.

"I have never felt better in my life than I do now. What wonderful people in our country! And what beautiful girls!.."

This is what Håkansson said in an interview he gave a week after winning the race.



Yes, Håkansson continued to pedal and sent his equipment to rust in the barn only a couple of years before his death. The most amazing cyclist on the planet died in 1987 at the age of 102. His wife Maria, who was 4 years older than her husband, died a year earlier, having lived 105 years. By the way, she did not like bicycles and was always skeptical about her husband's hobby.