Viatcheslav Ekimov

Viatcheslav Vladimirovich Ekimov (Russian Вячеслав Владимирович Екимов; born 4 February 1966), nicknamed Eki, is a Russian former professional racing cyclist. A triple Olympic gold medalist, he was awarded the title of Russian Cyclist of the Century in 2001.

Biography
Ekimov was born in Vyborg, and started training as a cyclist at age 12 with a bicycle school affiliated with the famous centre of Aleksandr Kuznetsov. He trained in Leningrad at Lokomotiv and later Armed Forces sports society during the Soviet era.

Ekimov won three Olympic gold medals: in the track team pursuit in Seoul (1988) for the USSR, and in an upset, in the road time trial in Sydney (2000) for Russia. At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Ekimov won the silver medal for Russia in the men's road individual time trial, losing to American Tyler Hamilton. Hamilton later admitted to doping and Ekimov, who had raced for many more years than Tyler with the infamous Lance Armstrong and Johan Bruyneel partnership, was promoted to gold.

Ekimov joined the USPS team in 1997 as its first key international signing, briefly retiring in 2001 before rejoining the team the following year. In the 2003 Tour de France Ekimov placed 10th in the prologue. He was a key force in the winning team time trial effort in stage four and was important to Lance Armstrong's fifth Tour victory both on the flats and in the mountains. He missed the 2005 Tour de France due to injuries received in a training ride with Armstrong in Texas. During the final stage of the 2006 Tour de France, now racing for the Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team, he announced that the 2006 Tour would be his last. He was honored by the peloton on the final stage, who allowed him to lead them over the line on the first of the eight laps of the Champs-Élysées. Ekimov started and finished 15 Tours de France, tying him with Lucien Van Impe for the second most Tour finishes, behind Joop Zoetemelk and Sylvain Chavanel.

In September 2006 he finished riding for Discovery, but stayed with the team as Assistant Directeur Sportif to Johan Bruyneel. He helped guide the Discovery riders during the U.S. Pro Cycling Championships in 2006 as well as the Tour of California and the Tour de Georgia.

On 9 September 2009, it was announced he would join as Directeur Sportif.

In October 2012, he was announced as the general manager of the Russian. The UCI, in a letter written to Katusha Team, denied them entrance into the 2013 World Tour. Among the many ethical violations the UCI cited, the appointment of Ekimov was among them for reasons unspecified. After the end of 2016 season Ekimov stepped down from the role.

Major results

 * 1988
 * 1st Gold medal olympic.svg Team pursuit, Olympic Games
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Regio-Tour
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Vuelta al Táchira
 * 1st Prologue (ITT) & Stages 7 & 8 (ITT)
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Tour de Normandie
 * 2nd Overall Circuit Cycliste Sarthe
 * 1st Stage 1 (ITT)


 * 1989
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Circuit Franco-Belge
 * 1st Stage 5b
 * 1st Stage 1 Tour de Trump
 * 2nd Overall Tour of Sweden
 * 2nd Overall Circuit Cycliste Sarthe
 * 3rd Overall Tour de Normandie
 * 3rd Overall Vuelta al Táchira
 * 1st Prologue (ITT) & Stage 1


 * 1990
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg Individual pursuit, UCI Track World Championships
 * 1st Stage 4 (TTT) Tour de France
 * 1st Stage 3 (ITT) Critérium International
 * 1st Stage 5 Vuelta Asturias
 * 1st Stage 5 Tour du Vaucluse
 * 3rd Overall Tour Méditerranéen
 * 1st Stage 5 (ITT)
 * 4th Overall Tour of Ireland
 * 5th Overall Tour de Trump
 * 9th Overall Tour de l'Avenir


 * 1991
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg Points race, UCI Track World Championships
 * 1st Stage 20 Tour de France
 * 1st Stage 3 (ITT) Critérium International
 * 4th Overall Vuelta a Murcia
 * 5th Overall Tour Méditerranéen
 * 7th Overall Four Days of Dunkirk
 * 9th Overall Tour of Ireland
 * 9th Overall Three Days of De Panne
 * 9th Milano–Torino
 * 9th Rund um den Henninger Turm
 * 10th Overall Euskal Bizikleta


 * 1992
 * 1st Züri-Metzgete
 * 1st Druivenkoers-Overijse
 * 1st Stage 4 (TTT) Tour de France
 * 1st Stage 4 Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme
 * 2nd Overall Three Days of De Panne
 * 3rd Overall Four Days of Dunkirk
 * 1st Stage 5
 * 3rd Overall GP du Midi Libre
 * 1st Stage 6 (ITT)
 * 3rd Grand Prix des Nations
 * 3rd Trofeo Melinda
 * 3rd GP Rik Van Steenbergen
 * 3rd Baden–Baden
 * 4th La Flèche Wallonne
 * 4th Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
 * 6th Overall Tour Méditerranéen
 * 6th GP du canton d'Argovie
 * 6th Rund um den Henninger Turm
 * 9th Giro di Campania


 * 1993
 * 1st Clásica de Almería
 * 1st Stage 5 Tour de Suisse
 * 1st Stage 5 Vuelta Asturias
 * 2nd Overall Four Days of Dunkirk
 * 1st Stage 2
 * 2nd Grand Prix Impanis-Van Petegem
 * 3rd Road race, National Road Championships
 * 5th Overall Ronde van Nederland
 * 5th Japan Cup Cycle Road Race
 * 5th Rund um den Henninger Turm
 * 6th Overall Three Days of De Panne
 * 8th Liège–Bastogne–Liège
 * 9th Overall Vuelta a Murcia
 * 1st Stage 2
 * 9th GP de Fourmies
 * 10th Giro di Lombardia


 * 1994
 * 1st Jersey gold.svg Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
 * 1st Stage 2
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Tour DuPont
 * 1st Stages 5 (ITT) & 11 (ITT)
 * 1st Veenendaal–Veenendaal
 * 1st Stage 2 Tour de Luxembourg
 * 2nd Wincanton Classic
 * 2nd E3 Harelbeke
 * 2nd Overall Kellogg's Tour
 * 3rd Overall Paris–Nice
 * 4th Overall Ronde van Nederland
 * 5th Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
 * 5th Overall Three Days of De Panne


 * 1995
 * 1st Stage 5 Tour de Suisse
 * 2nd Overall Ronde van Nederland
 * 1st Stage 3b
 * 2nd Overall Tour DuPont
 * 1st Stage 11 (ITT)
 * 4th Paris–Roubaix
 * 4th Overall Vuelta a Burgos
 * 7th Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
 * 7th Overall Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme
 * 8th Overall Paris–Nice
 * 8th Tour of Flanders


 * 1996
 * 1st Jersey white.svg Overall Three Days of De Panne
 * 4th Tour of Flanders
 * 4th E3 Harelbeke
 * 5th Grand Prix des Nations
 * 5th Grand Prix Eddy Merckx
 * 6th Overall Vuelta a Murcia
 * 1st Stage 2
 * 7th Overall Tirreno–Adriatico
 * 8th Paris–Roubaix
 * 8th Overall Tour de Luxembourg
 * 8th Japan Cup Cycle Road Race
 * 8th Josef Voegeli Memorial
 * 9th Time trial, UCI Road World Championships


 * 1997
 * 1st MaillotRusia.PNG Road race, National Road Championships
 * 1st Stage 5 Vuelta a Castilla y León
 * 2nd Paris–Camembert
 * 3rd Overall Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme
 * 1st Stage 3
 * 4th Overall Paris–Nice
 * 1st Stage 7b (ITT)
 * 4th Overall Ronde van Nederland
 * 5th Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
 * 5th GP du canton d'Argovie
 * 8th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré
 * 1st Stages 2 & 4 (ITT)
 * 9th Overall Tour de Romandie
 * 10th Tour of Flanders
 * 10th Overall Vuelta a Andalucía


 * 1998
 * 1st Stage 6 Prudential Tour
 * 2nd Overall Ronde van Nederland
 * 2nd Trofeo Luis Puig
 * 3rd Grand Prix Eddy Merckx
 * 5th Overall Four Days of Dunkirk
 * 7th Tour of Flanders
 * 7th Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
 * 7th Scheldeprijs
 * 9th Time trial, UCI Road World Championships


 * 1999
 * 1st Stage 15 Vuelta a España
 * 1st Stage 5 (ITT) Tour de Suisse
 * 1st Stage 3 Gran Premio Internacional Telecom
 * 1st Stage 3 Vuelta al Táchira


 * 2000
 * 1st Gold medal olympic.svg Time trial, Olympic Games
 * 1st Jersey white.svg Overall Three Days of De Panne
 * 1st Grand Prix Eddy Merckx (with Lance Armstrong)
 * 4th Overall Tour de Pologne
 * 10th Chrono des Herbiers


 * 2001
 * 1st Stage 5 (ITT) Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
 * 3rd Overall Three Days of De Panne
 * 1st Stage 3b (ITT)
 * 3rd EnBW Grand Prix (with Víctor Hugo Peña)
 * 6th Grand Prix Eddy Merckx
 * 7th Overall Ronde van Nederland
 * 7th Philadelphia International Cycling Classic
 * 10th Overall Volta ao Algarve


 * 2002
 * 4th San Francisco Grand Prix
 * 5th Grand Prix Eddy Merckx
 * 6th Grand Prix des Nations


 * 2003
 * 1st Jersey yellow.svg Overall Ronde van Nederland
 * 1st Stage 4 (ITT)
 * 1st Stage 4 (TTT) Tour de France
 * 3rd Paris–Roubaix
 * 3rd San Francisco Grand Prix
 * 5th Overall Three Days of De Panne
 * 6th Time trial, UCI Road World Championships
 * 6th Trofeo Laigueglia
 * 7th Grand Prix Eddy Merckx
 * 8th Tour of Flanders


 * 2004
 * 1st Gold medal olympic.svg Time trial, Olympic Games
 * 1st Stage 4 (TTT) Tour de France
 * 2nd Overall Ronde van Nederland
 * 1st Stage 4 (ITT)
 * 2nd Overall Tour du Languedoc-Roussillon
 * 5th Overall Tour de Georgia
 * 5th Grand Prix Eddy Merckx


 * 2005
 * 1st Stage 4 (ITT) Three Days of De Panne


 * 2006
 * 2nd Eindhoven Team Time Trial