Bold and energetic, this original 1949 poster captures the excitement of European track racing at the famed Sportpaleis in Antwerp. Featuring vivid red, blue, and black typography, the design advertises the second round of the “Europees Kriterium,” a 100 km Madison (Ploegkoers) event held on Saturday, November 26. At the bottom right, two muscular racers are shown mid-race in kinetic detail, reinforcing the raw intensity of this classic velodrome event.

The roster reads like a who’s who of post-war cycling, featuring legends such as Rik Van Steenbergen, Marcel Kint, Patrick Sercu, Stan Ockers, Gerrit Schulte, and Roger Lapebie, among other big stars, as competitors. The Art Deco-influenced layout includes the venue façade and ticket pricing details, preserving the texture of Belgian cycling history at a moment when the velodrome was central to European sport culture.

This poster has been archivally and professionally linen-backed. Virtually all original vintage posters of this era were viewed as temporary advertising and were printed on fragile, thin paper. While expensive, linen backing is a conservation method used to mount, stabilize, preserve, and protect vintage posters so they can be displayed or framed without compromising value.