1965 World Championships, RARE Official Race Poster -Road Race Winner, Tom Simpson

Campeonatos Mundiales de Ciclismo – Septiembre 1965, España

1965 UCI Cycling World Championships in San Sebastián, Spain

This very rare and striking original poster was created for the 1965 UCI Cycling World Championships, held in and around San Sebastián, Spain, during September 1965. Its design centers on a magnificent aerial photograph of the city and the sweeping Bahía de la Concha. Santa Clara Island sits prominently in the blue waters of the bay, with La Concha and Ondarreta beaches curving along the shoreline, Monte Urgull and its hilltop monument rising at left, and Monte Igueldo occupying the foreground. Superimposed at lower right is Spanish cycling hero Guillermo Timoner, smiling and waving while dressed in the rainbow jersey and a period leather “hairnet” helmet.

The beautifully balanced typography reads “Septiembre 1965—Campeonatos Mundiales de Ciclismo—San Sebastián—España,” translating as “September 1965—Cycling World Championships—San Sebastián, Spain.”  The combination of large-format color photography, crisp modern lettering, and the carefully cut-out image of Timoner gives the poster a distinctly mid-1960s appearance while presenting San Sebastián itself as one of the great attractions of the championships.

The 1965 World Championships were historically important as the first Cycling World Championships staged in Spain. The road events were held from 2 to 5 September, followed by the track championships from 6 to 12 September at the newly constructed Anoeta Velodrome.

Britain’s Tom Simpson won the 267.4-kilometer professional road race on 5 September, defeating Germany’s Rudi Altig in a two-man sprint after the pair escaped together late in the race; Belgium’s Roger Swerts finished third. Simpson thereby became the first British rider to win the professional men’s road World Championship. Jacques Botherel of France won the amateur road race, Elisabeth Eichholz of East Germany captured the women’s road title, and Italy won the amateur team time trial.

Guillermo Timoner was already one of Spain’s greatest sporting figures when he appeared on this poster. A specialist in motor-paced track racing, he had become Spain’s first cycling world champion in 1955 and arrived in San Sebastián as the defending champion following his victory in Paris in 1964. Competing before a home crowd, he won again at Anoeta, securing the sixth and final world title of his extraordinary career. He won in 1955, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1964 and 1965. The poster therefore captures not simply the promotion of a major international sporting event, but the reigning Spanish champion who would go on to provide one of its defining home victories.

Nine world titles were decided on the track at Anoeta. In the professional men’s events, Italy’s Giuseppe Beghetto won the sprint, fellow Italian Leandro Faggin captured the individual pursuit, and Spain’s Guillermo Timoner won the motor-paced championship. The amateur titles went to the Soviet Union’s Omar Pkhakadze in the sprint, the Netherlands’ Tiemen Groen in the individual pursuit, the Soviet Union in the team pursuit, and Spain’s Miquel Mas in the motor-paced event. In the two women’s competitions, Valentina Savina of the Soviet Union won the sprint and Belgium’s Yvonne Reynders won the individual pursuit.

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 very thin paper. While expensive, linen backing is a conservation method used to mount, stabilize, preserve, and protect vintage posters, allowing them to be displayed or framed without compromising their value.