Fresh off equaling the record for Paris-Roubaix finishes, Milram’s Servais Knaven has decided to announce his retirement from the sport. The 39-year-old said that his last race will be the Etten-Leur on August 15th, at home in The Netherlands. Knaven won the race in 2007, which is also represents his most recent victory.
The Dutchman’s retirement means that he won’t try to surpass the Paris-Roubaix record he now holds with Belgian Raymond Impanis. Both riders won the race once in their career, Impanis in 1954 for the Mercier-Hutchinson team, and Knaven with Patrick Lefevere’s Domo-Farm Frites team which is now Quick Step. Knaven does have one record that will likely stand, which is 16 finishes in Paris-Roubaix in 16 attempts.
“For me, it was always important that I could decide myself when the end should be. Our manager Gerry van Gerwen left it entirely up to me. I want to thank him for that, it gives me a lot of respect for him. But I didn’t want to stop right after my last appearance in Paris-Roubaix,” Knaven explained of his decision. “As my last race I will ride the criterium in Etten-Leur. That is not far away from my home and many of my fans and friends live in this area. That will be a great way to say good-bye after 17 years as a pro cyclist.”
Knaven started his career with TVM in 1994 and moved over to Domo-Farm Frites in 2000, which then changed to Quick Step. Following his years with Patrick Lefevere’s team he rode for the American Team Columbia and will now finish off his career riding for the German Milram team.
He has had more than 20 wins as a professional, his biggest being the 2001 Paris-Roubaix. His other notable wins are a stage in the 2003 Tour de France, the Scheldeprijs in 1998 and a stage in Tirreno-Adriatico in 2005.