When Rolf Gölz won the Fleche Wallonne: "I was always afraid someone would come up behind me"
Daniel Brickwedde
· 15.04.2024
Being the only German winner of the Fleche Wallonne so far? Yes, says Rolf Gölz, that fills him with a little pride. But something else also lifts his spirits: in the history of winners of the race, he is surrounded exclusively by prominent names, such as Bernard Hinault, Kim Andersen, Claude Criquielion, Laurent Fignon and Moreno Argentin. Behind the year 1988 is Rolf Gölz. "They're all great racing drivers and you're in between them - it's nice," he says.
Fleche Wallonne: Hardly any random winners
As can be seen from the winners, the Fleche Wallonne rarely produces random winners. The Ardennes classic usually ends in a battle between the toughest riders. The ups and downs through the Belgian hilly landscape go on for hours until the infamous ramp to the Mur de Huy awaits in the finale - around 1.3 kilometres long, with an average gradient of 9.6 per cent and a peak gradient of over 20 per cent. "We had a lot of respect for it. It was a struggle. I rode up there with a 41-23 gear ratio back then, that was standard - you have to really push it," says Gölz.
In modern times, a large field usually reaches the Mur de Huy before a long uphill sprint determines the winner - Tadej Pogacar prevailed in 2023, Dylan Teuns a year earlier. In Gölz's professional days, the race was more selective, with rarely more than a dozen riders coming together on the crisp final climb. Gölz was often there, finishing 15th on his debut in 1985, eleventh a year later and third on the podium in 1987 - when Jean-Claude Leclerq had pulled away early as the winner.
The field also fell apart early in 1988, but Gölz's memories are somewhat hazy 36 years later. The 61-year-old is no longer sure where, when and who brought about a selection. What he does remember, however, is that the group of five was first-class with Claude Criquielion, Moreno Argentin and Jean-Claude Leclerq. And what he already knew back then was that he would never be able to reach the Mur de Huy together with these riders. So he started on the penultimate climb, Ben Ahin, and broke away - around 15 kilometres before the finish.
Gölz saw his best chance of winning the Fleche Wallonne as a soloist
"With the attack, I saw a much better chance for myself and thought I'd give it a go - also in the hope that the other riders might not be so united in the chase. I was quite good friends with Moreno Argentin at the time and knew that he might not chase with the same consistency," said Gölz, who also speculated that the rest of the group would not work with Argentin up to the Mur anyway. The Italian was the clear favourite in the uphill sprint. Later, in 1990, 1991 and 1994, Argentin won the race three times.
With his early attack, Gölz quickly opened up a gap of around a minute. Normally enough for victory. But not when there is a ramp like the Mur de Huy in the finale. "I really struggled up that climb. I was always afraid that someone would come from behind, be faster than me and overtake me," says Gölz, adding: "There were only top riders behind me, so you're never safe."
Especially as the Mur can only be tackled at an agonisingly slow pace, with a hundred metres of distance sometimes feeling like a kilometre on a 15 per cent gradient. "But you also realise whether you still have a good rhythm and good legs. But I was afraid that I was going in too fast at the bottom. With this steepness, when your legs over-acidify - then you stand still and everyone flies past you," says Gölz. But his legs held out: On the last hundred metres, where it flattens out again, Gölz knew: no one will catch him now - he will win the Fleche Wallonne. Argentin followed in second place, 46 seconds behind, with Steven Rooks from the Netherlands in third place.
Difficult relationship between Rolf Gölz and team boss Jan Raas
"I could never have dreamed back then that I would win such a big race," says Gölz today. Despite his third place the year before, he didn't see himself as one of the favourites. "In a classic, the very best riders are at the start, it's a completely different class. You also need a bit of luck. Everything has to go right," he says.
The victory at the Fleche Wallonne came during his successful career phase, which he spent mainly with the Belgian team Superconfex, an illustrious squad led by team boss and former pro Jan Raas as well as top riders such as Edwig van Hooydonck, Jelle Nijdam and Jean-Paul van Poppel. All big names that attracted a lot of public attention - just right for Gölz. "There were several good riders in the team. And when it was the right fit, I was allowed to ride without the huge pressure," says Gölz. He found an ideal environment at Superconfex from 1987 onwards, at least with the sporting director Hilaire van der Schueren, less so with team boss Raas.
"I was more of a sensitive driver. When I was able to ride carefree and there was no pressure on me, I would often crack - then I was a class above. But Jan Raas was tough, he distributed the pressure. We didn't have such a good relationship," says Gölz. Van der Schueren, on the other hand, knew how to deal with him and was more of a fatherly friend - whereas Raas was a strict grinder. Nevertheless, Gölz achieved his greatest successes in his team, including two stage wins in the 1987 Tour de France in Blagnac and 1988 in Nancy, victory in the Zurich championships, two Milan-Turin victories, several stage wins and the Fleche Wallonne. In 1990, he also finished second at Milan-San Remo.
Rolf Gölz is glad to have missed the cycling boom in Germany
"I came off the track, was good in the sprint and got over the hills well. However, I was left behind in the difficult mountains. But the Ardennes were still my terrain, where I could keep up with the best. And when the better sprinters had problems on the hills, it was always good for me," says Gölz. With these skills, he rose to become one of the best German professionals at the end of the 1980s. However, cycling in Germany did not experience its boom until the 1990s, which brought with it increased attention and recognition for sporting success. Gölz missed out on this time. You can regret that - or, like Gölz, be glad about it.
"When the media focused on me a bit more, at Liège-Bastogne-Liège for example, with interviews before the race where I was made one of the favourites, that wasn't ideal for me," says Gölz. Always travelling a little under the public radar was what he felt most comfortable with. In Liège, meanwhile, he never came close to the top places he had achieved just a few days earlier at the Fleche. The Cote de la Redoute climb - often a landmark in the race - was always the sticking point for him, says Gölz, he never "really got over it". In the year of his Fleche victory, he also crashed shortly before the Cote.
However, Gölz later viewed his early career end at the age of just 30 with mixed feelings. In 1992, he lost his desire and motivation for professional cycling at Team Ariostea under team boss Giancarlo Ferretti - and cancelled his contract despite an existing agreement for 1993. "As the years went by and you looked back, you asked yourself: Why didn't you ride longer? It was my world and a privilege to be part of the professional circuit and to be reasonably good."
Rolf Gölz now travels to the races in his motorhome
However, Gölz also adds: "Perhaps I could have achieved more with a little more professionalism. I was a gut driver, when everything was right, a lot was possible. But if the mood and morale weren't so good, then I was also a distant second." However, the times were different in cycling back then: elaborate material tests, scientific and coordinated training control, optimised nutritional planning - none of that existed. Gölz organised everything to his liking, sometimes there were longer, sometimes shorter rides. It was all instinctive. Everything according to the premise: What feels right?
However, Gölz believes that he would have found it difficult to cope with today's well organised professional cycling. "Today, everything is planned. I enjoyed cycling back then - and I don't know if I still enjoy it today. That's why it was the right time for me."
He still follows cycling, mostly on television. He sold his shares in a bike shop, which Gölz ran for a long time, four years ago. "Since then, I've been enjoying life on a modest scale," he says. He then bought a motorhome with his wife. The previous year was then characterised by cycling: Milan-San Remo, Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, Liège-Bastogne-Liège and Fleche Wallonne were just some of the events on his itinerary. He also climbed the Mur de Huy once again on his bike - the site of one of his greatest victories. "Riding up there again was a special feeling," says Gölz.
