Niko Eeckhout

Niko Eeckhout
Personal information
Full name Niko Eeckhout
Nickname Rambo
Born 16 December 1970 (1970-12-16) (age 41)
 Belgium
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Weight 73 kg (160 lb)
Team information
Current team An Post–M Donnelly–Grant Thornton–Sean Kelly Team
Discipline Road
Rider type Classics specialist, sprinter
Professional team(s)
1992–1993
1994
1995–1996
1997–1998
1999–2000
2001–2004
2005–2008;
2009–		 Collstrop
Varta
Collstrop
Lotto
Palmans
Lotto
Topsport Vlaanderen
An Post–M Donnelly–Grant Thornton–Sean Kelly Team
Major wins
UCI Europe Tour (2005-2006)
 Belgium Road Race Champion (2006)
Dwars door Vlaanderen (2001,2005)
Championship of Flanders (1996,1998,2000,2006)
GP Isbergues
Infobox last updated on
29 December 2007

Niko Eeckhout (born 16 December 1970 in Izegem) is a professional road racing cyclist from Belgium. He was the 2005-2006 UCI Europe Tour series champion, and currently rides for the An Post-Sean Kelly Team.

Career

Eeckhout started his career in 1993 riding for the small Collstrop-team. He immediately started winning minor Belgian races like the Championship of Flanders and the Omloop Mandel-Leie-Schelde. In 1997 and 1998 he rode for Lotto, and then rode two years for Palmans. Eeckhout had a breakthrough season when he transferred to Lotto-Adecco in 2001, winning 11 races, including Dwars door Vlaanderen and the GP van Steenbergen.

Eeckhout struggled through the next two seasons and at the end of 2004 his contract with Lotto-Adecco ended and he needed to find a new team. He signed with the Beglian squad Chocolade Jacques and found his second youth. He started the 2005 season by winning Dwars door Vlaanderen, and went on to win major races including the GP d'Isbergues and a stage of the Three Days of De Panne. In 2006 he continued his winning form, taking the Three Days of West-Flanders. In June 2006 he won the biggest race in his career, the Belgian National Road Championship in Antwerp by beating Tom Boonen and Philippe Gilbert. Eeckhout had another great season in 2006, winning 12 races, including the 2005-2006 UCI Europe Tour. In the peloton he earned the nickname "Rambo" for being particularly tough during hard races in severe conditions.

Major achievements

1992 – Collstrop
1993 – Collstrop
Omloop der Vlaamse Ardennen Ichtegem
Omloop van de Vlaamse Scheldeboorden
1994 – Varta
1995 – Collstrop
1996 – Collstrop
Championship of Flanders
1997 – Lotto
1998 – Lotto
Championship of Flanders
1999 – Palmans
2000 – Palmans
GP Rudy Dhaenens
2001 – Lotto
Ronde van Midden-Zeeland
Étoile de Bessèges
Stage win, Danmark Rundt
Memorial Rik Van Steenbergen
GP Jef Scherens
2002 – Lotto
2003 – Lotto
Memorial Rik Van Steenbergen
Dwars door Vlaanderen
2004 – Lotto
Stage win, Ster Elektrotoer
Ronde van Midden-Zeeland
2005 – Chocolade Jacques-T Interim
Stage win, Three Days of De Panne
Dwars door Vlaanderen
Grand Prix d'Isbergues
Omloop van de Vlaamse Scheldeboorden
2006 – Chocolade Jacques-Topsport Vlaanderen
UCI Europe Tour
Omloop van het Waasland - Kemzeke
1st Overall and stage win, Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen
 Belgium National Cycling Championship Road Race
Memorial Rik Van Steenbergen
Championship Of Flanders
2007 – Chocolade Jacques-Topsport Vlaanderen
Omloop van het Waasland-Kemzeke
2009 – An Post–M Donnelly–Grant Thornton–Sean Kelly Team
1st, Stage 4, Vuelta Ciclista Internacional a Extremadura (2.2)
1st, Stage 5, Vuelta Ciclista Internacional a Extremadura (2.2)
1st Stage 1, FBD Insurance Ras (2.2)
1st, GP Stad Zottegem, (1.1)
1st, Memorial Briek Schotte-Desselgem
1st, Memorial Rik Van Steenbergen
Points class winner, FBD Insurance Ras (2.2)
2nd, Dwars door Vlaanderen (1.1)
2010 – An Post–M Donnelly–Grant Thornton–Sean Kelly Team
1st, Stage 5, Étoile de Bessèges (2.1)
1st, Stage 3, Ronde de l'Oise (2.2)
2011 – An Post–Sean Kelly
1st, Stage 2, Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen

External links