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Rudolph Lewis, South African road racing cyclist is born

Rudolph Lewis, South African road racing cyclist Image source

Rudolph Ludewyk “Okey” Lewis was born on 12 July 1887 in Pretoria.[i] Rudolph was South Africa’s second world class athlete after Laurens S Meintjes.[ii] He represented South Africa at the 1912 Olympics, held in Stockholm, Sweden.[iii] Despite competing against more experienced road riders, Rudolph outperformed the other competitors to claim gold in the inpidual 320 km race.[iv] He competed professionally in road racing in Germany in 1913-1914.[v] He also served in World War One, for which he was awarded the Iron Cross.[vi] Rudolph passed away on 29 October 1933 in Pretoria.[vii] End Notes [i] Rudolf Ludewyk Lewis, http://www.cyclingarchives.com/coureurfiche.php?coureurid=11863 (20 April 2017). ↵ [ii] David van Lill, Van Lill’s South African Sports Trivia (Cape Town: Zebra Press, 2005), p. 233. ↵ [iii] David van Lill, Van Lill’s South African Sports Trivia (Cape Town: Zebra Press, 2005), p. 233. ↵ [iv] David van Lill, Van Lill’s South African Sports Trivia (Cape Town: Zebra Press, 2005), p. 139. ↵ [v] Rudolph Lewis, http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/le/rudolph-lewis-1.html (20 April 2017). ↵ [vi] Rudolph Lewis, http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/le/rudolph-lewis-1.html (20 April 2017). ↵ [vii] Rudolf Ludewyk Lewis, http://www.cyclingarchives.com/coureurfiche.php?coureurid=11863 (20 April 2017). ↵