Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana 1969: modest classic with an impressive list of honors

The Challenge Mallorca, the Ruta del Sol, the Vuelta a Murcia – just a selection of the traditional Spanish spring races. We don’t immediately include the Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana 1969 in that list, because that competition has only been around for a few years, right? Well no. This one-day event certainly has a long history and an impressive list of honors. CyclingFlits delves into this history.

As the name secretly suggests, the first edition of the Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana 1969 took place in – yes – 1969. At that time the race was still called the Gran Premio de Valencia. The win in that opening edition went to Carlos Echeverría, who played for Kas-Kaskol for almost his entire career. In 1970 the victory also went to a Spaniard, seven-time Vuelta stage winner Ramón Saéz, but afterwards Belgian domination began.

From 1971 to 1975, a Belgian stood on the highest step of the podium every year. Frans Verhaegen started the series, followed by Eric Leman, then Gustaaf Van Roosbroeck and finally Eddy Peelman, who won twice in a row. At that time, Peelman was the record holder in terms of the number of victories, but in the early 1980s his compatriot Noël Dejonckheere passed him. The latter won the competition no fewer than three times. Because Peter van Petegem (1996), Andrei Tschmil (1998) and Arnaud De Lie (2023) also triumphed afterwards, the Belgian victory count now stands at eleven.

The number of Dutch victories is limited to two. Mathieu Hermans was at the party in 1988, Tom Cordes in 1989. Last year CyclingFlits with Hermans about his victory in the Trofeo Luis Puig, as the competition was called at the time. “You really wanted to win the Trofeo Luis Puig (…),” said the native of North Brabander. “Luis Puig was a big name. He was the UCI president until his death in 1990, after which Hein Verbruggen succeeded him.”

Hermans is in a nice list thanks to his victory. Before him, Bernard Hinault (1986) won the competition, and many more top athletes followed. Sean Kelly, Laurent Jalabert, Mario Cipollini, Alessandro Petacchi, Óscar Freire, Erik Zabel… The latter sprinted to the flowers three times (1997, 2000, 2001) and thus placed himself on the same level as the aforementioned Dejonckheere. To this day they are joint record holders.

Petacchi, winner in 2003 and 2005, seemed to be able to settle down next to the Belgian and German, but in 2006 the competition suddenly disappeared from the calendar. Dropping sponsors. Fifteen years later, the Club Ciclista La Marina revived the Trofeo Luis Puig, now under the name Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana 1969. In 2021 and 2022 the race still had a 1.2 status, but in 2023 the step was made to 1.1. level. With Arnaud De Lie there was also a winner who in the future may have just as big a name as Petacchi, Zabel and the other top players on the honors list.

Latest winners Classic Valencian Community 1969
2023: Arnaud De Lie
2022: Giovanni Lonardi
2021: Lorenzo Manzin
2006-2020: Not on the calendar
2005: Alessandro Petacchi
2004: Oscar Freire
2003: Alessandro Petacchi
2002: Sergey Ivanov
2001: Erik Zabel
2000: Erik Zabel
1999: Mario Cipollini

In the 2024 cycling season, the Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana 1969 will be held on January 20.