Leontien van Moorsel

Leontien Martha Henrica Petronella Zijlaard-van Moorsel (born 22 March 1970) is a Dutch retired racing cyclist. She was a dominant cyclist in the 1990s and early 2000s, winning four gold medals at the Olympic Games and holding the hour record for women from 2003 until 2015.

Career
Van Moorsel started her career in 1977. She won major races both on the track, and on the road. In the first half of the 1990s, she won the Tour Féminin twice, after fierce competition with Jeannie Longo.

Van Moorsel dropped out of cycling in 1994 with anorexia nervosa but recovered to compete at the World Championships in 1998, winning the time trial and coming second in the road race.

At the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, van Moorsel won gold medals on the road (road race and time trial), and on the track (3 km pursuit). At the 2004 Summer Olympics, she fell in the penultimate lap of the road race and was stretchered off and taken to the hospital by ambulance, but nevertheless successfully defended her time trial title two days later.

She set a new world hour record for women of 46.065 km, in 2003 in Mexico City, which was not improved upon for almost 12 years, when UCI rule changes prompted a new succession of attempts.

Van Moorsel retired from professional cycling after the 2004 Olympics.

In 2017 Van Moorsel became director of the Women's Amstel Gold Race.

In September 2017, Van Moorsel was accused by sports physician Peter Janssen of using EPO in 2000 and 2001.

Major results

 * 1985
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Novice Road Race Championships


 * 1987
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Novice Road Race Championships


 * 1988
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Road Race Championships


 * 1989
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Road Race Championships
 * 1st Stage 1 Tour of Norway


 * 1990
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg UCI Track Cycling World Championships (Individual Pursuit)
 * 1st UCI Road World Championships Team Time Trial
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Road Race Championships
 * 2nd Overall Tour de l'Aude Cycliste Féminin
 * National Track Championship
 * 3rd Points race
 * 3rd Individual sprint
 * 3rd Chrono des Nations


 * 1991
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg UCI Road World Championships Road Race
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Track Championships (Team pursuit)
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Tour de l'Aude Cycliste Féminin
 * 3rd National Road Race Championships


 * 1992
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Road Race Championships
 * National Track Championship
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Individual pursuit
 * 2nd Points race
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Grande Boucle Féminine Internationale


 * 1993
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg UCI Road World Championships Road Race
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Grande Boucle Féminine Internationale
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Road Race Championships
 * 2nd Overall Tour de l'Aude Cycliste Féminin


 * 1997
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Time Trial Championships
 * National Track Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Individual pursuit
 * 2nd Points race
 * 1st Overall Boekel
 * 1st Stages 1 & 3


 * 1998
 * 1st Jersey rainbow chrono.svg UCI Road World Championships Time Trial
 * National Road Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Road Race
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Time Trial
 * National Track Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Individual pursuit
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Points race
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Ster van Zeeland
 * 1st Stages 1 & 3
 * 1st Parel van de Veluwe
 * 1st Omloop der Kempen
 * 2nd Overall Boels Rental Ladies Tour
 * 1st Stage 1
 * 2nd UCI Road World Championships Road Race
 * 2nd UCI Track Cycling World Championships (Individual Pursuit)


 * 1999
 * 1st Jersey rainbow chrono.svg UCI Road World Championships Time Trial
 * National Road Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Road Race
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Time Trial
 * National Track Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Individual pursuit
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Points race
 * 1st Jersey orange.svg Overall Boels Rental Ladies Tour
 * 1st Stages 2 & 7
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Ster van Zeeland
 * 1st Stages 2 & 3
 * 1st Overall Greenery International
 * 1st Stages 1, 2 & 3
 * 1st Overall Boekel
 * 1st Prologue, Stages 1 & 2
 * 1st Damesronde van Drenthe
 * 1st Omloop van Kanaleneiland
 * 1st Omloop der Kempen
 * 2nd Rotterdam Tour


 * 2000
 * Olympic Games
 * 1st Gold medal olympic.svg Road Race
 * 1st Gold medal olympic.svg Time Trial
 * 1st Gold medal olympic.svg Individual pursuit
 * 2nd Silver medal olympic.svg Points race
 * National Road Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Time Trial
 * 2nd Road Race
 * National Track Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Individual pursuit
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Points race
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Emakumeen Bira
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Trophée d'Or Féminin
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Ster van Zeeland
 * 1st Stages 1 & 2
 * 1st Overall Westfriese Dorpenomloop
 * 1st Prologue & Stage 1
 * 1st Overall Boekel
 * 1st Stages 1, 2a & 2b
 * 1st Ronde van het Ronostrand
 * 1st Omloop der Kempen
 * 1st Stages 1, 2 & 4 Giro d'Italia Femminile


 * 2001
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg UCI Track Cycling World Championships (Individual Pursuit)
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Time Trial Championships
 * National Track Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Individual pursuit
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Points race
 * 1st Overall Ster van Zeeland
 * 1st Stages 2 & 3
 * 1st Overall Boekel
 * 1st Stages 2 & 3
 * 1st Acht van Chaam
 * 1st Egmond-Pier-Egmond
 * 1st Souvenir Magali Pache
 * 1st Profronde van Stiphout
 * 1st Profronde van Surhuisterveen
 * 1st Prologue Giro d'Italia Femminile
 * 1st Stage 1 Boels Rental Ladies Tour
 * 3rd Amstel Gold Race


 * 2002
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg UCI Track Cycling World Championships (Individual Pursuit)
 * National Road Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Time Trial
 * 2nd Road Race
 * National Track Championships
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Individual pursuit
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG Points race
 * 1st Overall RaboSter Zeeuwsche Eilanden
 * 1st Stages 1, 2 & 3a
 * 1st Overall Westfriese Dorpenomloop
 * 1st Stages 1 & 2
 * 1st Amstel Gold Race
 * 1st Damesronde van Drenthe
 * 1st Acht van Chaam
 * 1st Egmond-Pier-Egmond
 * 1st Profronde van Stiphout,


 * 2003
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg UCI Track Cycling World Championships (Individual Pursuit)
 * 1st Overall Boekel
 * 1st Stage 3
 * 1st Omloop van Borsele
 * 2nd National Time Trial Championships
 * World Hour record


 * 2004
 * Olympic Games
 * 1st Gold medal olympic.svg Time Trial
 * 3rd Bronze medal olympic.svg Individual pursuit
 * 1st MaillotHolanda.PNG National Road Race Championships
 * 1st Ronde van Gelderland
 * 1st Omloop der Kempen
 * 1st Profronde van Stiphout
 * 1st Acht van Chaam

Personal life
Van Moorsel married former track cyclist Michael Zijlaard in October 1995. They have a daughter.