Mathieu Cordang was a Dutch professional cyclist. Cordang's specialties were track racing

Track racing

Track racing is a form of motorcycle racing where teams or individuals race opponents around an oval track. There are differing variants, with each variant racing on a different surface type....

 and endurance racing

Endurance racing

Endurance racing is a form of motorsport racing which is meant to test the durability of equipment and endurance of participants. Teams of multiple drivers attempt to cover a large distance in a single event, with participants given a break with the ability to change during the race...

.

Biography

Cordang started racing in 1893, after he left a boat in Vlissingen were a cycling race was being held. Cordang borrowed a bicycle and won the race, and decided to become a cyclist.

In 1894, Cordang set a world record for the mile on a tandem

Tandem

Tandem is an arrangement where a team of machines, animals or people are lined up one behind another, all facing in the same direction....

, and finished second in the Dutch National Road Race Championships behind Jaap Eden

Jaap Eden

Jacobus Johannes "Jaap" Eden was a Dutch athlete. He is the only male athlete to has won world championships in both speed skating and bicycle racing .- Early life :Jaap Eden was born in Groningen to Johannes Eden and Maria Baale...

. One year later, he raced against the train between Maastricht

Maastricht

Maastricht is situated on both sides of the Meuse river in the south-eastern part of the Netherlands, on the Belgian border and near the German border...

 and Roermond

Roermond

Roermond is a city, a municipality, and a diocese in the southeastern part of the Netherlands.The city of Roermond is a historically important town, on the lower Roer at the east bank of the Meuse river. It received city rights in 1231...

, and won. Cordang won the amateur 100 km motor-paced world championship

UCI Motor-paced World Championships

UCI Track Cycling World Championships in motor-paced racing were conducted between 1893-1992 for amateurs and 1895-1994 for professionals. These are the results:-Amateurs :* In 1988 Vincenzo Colamartino and Roland Renn were disqualified for doping....

 in 1895 in Köln.

From 1896 to 1900, Cordang was a professional cyclist. In 1897 he finished second in Paris-Roubaix

Paris-Roubaix

Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France near the Belgian frontier. Since its beginning in 1896 until 1967 it started in Paris and ended in Roubaix ; since 1968 the start city is Compiègne , whilst the finish is still in Roubaix...

, after he fell in the velodrome in Roubaix, and later winner Maurice Garin

Maurice Garin

Maurice-Francois Garin was a road bicycle racer best known for winning the inaugural Tour de France in 1903, and for being stripped of his title in the second Tour in 1904 along with eight others, for cheating.-Origins:Garin was born the son of Maurice Clément Garin and Maria Teresa...

 did not wait for him, and won the race by thirty meters. Also in 1897, he rode Bordeaux-Paris

Bordeaux-Paris

The Bordeaux–Paris professional cycle race was one of Europe's Classic cycle races, and one of the longest in the professional calendar, covering approximately - more than twice most single-day races...

, sponsored by Gladiator; a team was built around him, and 25 bicycles were available to him during this race. He finished in second place, behind Gaston Rivierre who had extra help in the form of a car.
In the same year, Cordang broke five world records on the track of The Crystal Palace

The Crystal Palace

The Crystal Palace was a cast-iron and glass building originally erected in Hyde Park, London, England, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. More than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world gathered in the Palace's of exhibition space to display examples of the latest technology developed in...

 in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

.

During the Bol d'Or

Bol d'Or cycle race

The Bol d'Or was a bicycle track race that ran in France between 1894 and 1950. It was a paced, 24 hour endurance event. It has been won by several notable cyclists including Constant Huret , the Australian Hubert Opperman and three time hour record breaker Oscar Egg...

 in 1900, Cordang set a 24-hour record of 999.651 km. After that, Cordang won the 3 km race during the 1900 Summer Olympics

1900 Summer Olympics

The 1900 Summer Olympics, today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1900 in Paris, France. No opening or closing ceremonies were held; competitions began on May 14 and ended on October 28. The Games were held as part of...

 in Paris. This event included professional cyclists, so it is not considered official by the International Olympic Committee

International Olympic Committee

The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...

.

Cordang ended his career after this. According to his grandson, he stopped because he was cheated upon too many times. Cordang became the owner of a garage company.
Cordang died in 1942, but this went by largely unnoticed. When a namesake died in 1962, the Dutch press printed obituaries for Cordang.

Palmares

1894

• Amsterdam-Arnhem-Amsterdam
• Maastricht-Nijmegen-Maastricht
• Rotterdam-Utrecht-Rotterdam
• World record 1000 km

1895

• Amsterdam-Arnhem-Amsterdam
• Leiden-Utrecht-Leiden
• Maastricht-Roermond against train
• World champion pace racing

1896

• 5th place Bordeaux-Paris
  Bordeaux-Paris
  The Bordeaux–Paris professional cycle race was one of Europe's Classic cycle races, and one of the longest in the professional calendar, covering approximately - more than twice most single-day races...
  
  

1897

• 24 hours of Crystal Palace (991,651 km)
• 2nd Bordeaux-Paris
  Bordeaux-Paris
  The Bordeaux–Paris professional cycle race was one of Europe's Classic cycle races, and one of the longest in the professional calendar, covering approximately - more than twice most single-day races...
  
  
• 2nd Paris-Roubaix
  Paris-Roubaix
  Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France near the Belgian frontier. Since its beginning in 1896 until 1967 it started in Paris and ended in Roubaix ; since 1968 the start city is Compiègne , whilst the finish is still in Roubaix...
  
  
• 3rd 1000 km Défi Routier

1898

• 100 km GP Roubaix
• 100 km GP Amsterdam
• 200 km GP Berlijn

1899

• 100 km GP Den Haag
• World record 24 hours (1000,110 km)

1900

• Olympic Games
  Cycling at the 1900 Summer Olympics
  The 1900 Summer Olympics were held as part of the 1900 World's Fair, during which several cycling events were contested. Two of those cycling events are nowadays considered Olympic events by the International Olympic Committee. These two competitions were held between 9 September and 16 September...
  
  :
  • Bol d'Or
    Bol d'Or cycle race
    The Bol d'Or was a bicycle track race that ran in France between 1894 and 1950. It was a paced, 24 hour endurance event. It has been won by several notable cyclists including Constant Huret , the Australian Hubert Opperman and three time hour record breaker Oscar Egg...
    
    (unofficial event)
  • 3 km (unofficial event)

External links

• "Vergeten sportheld" Mathieu Cordang, Sportgeschiedenis.nl