John Allis 2362234 224033207 2008-07-07T00:43:13Z Lightbot 7178666 Units/dates/other {{Nofootnotes|date=December 2007}} '''John Allis''' (b. [[May 31]], [[1942]]) is an American [[cyclist]] who was a member of the first wave of Americans to enter international [[bicycle racing|cycling competition]] in the 1970s. Together with other great American riders of that period, including [[John Howard]], Allis laid the groundwork for the American champions of the 1980s, including [[Greg Lemond]] and [[Andy Hampsten]], who in turn made possible the careers of [[Lance Armstrong]], [[Levi Leipheimer]], and others. Allis began racing while a student at [[Princeton University]], and had not yet graduated when he led three of his Princeton teammates to compete in the World Road Championships in [[Ronse]], Belgium. The team performed poorly in the road race, but better in the time trial, where they took 20th place. This was the first American presence in international cycling competition since the era of [[Major Taylor]]. When his teammates returned to the United States, Allis stayed to race in Europe, signing on as a category 1 amateur with the large and influential French [[ACBB]] team. He was the first English speaker ever to ride for the team. Despite the skepticism of French cycling enthusiasts, who informed him that Americans were biologically unfit to compete, Allis did achieve victories, including Paris to Cayeux-sur-Mer in 1964. The team was so surprised to see their American rider win that they had to scramble to find him a clean jersey to wear on the podium; he had been given the worst one in the shop. His victory was covered in ''[[L'Équipe]]'' and mentioned in [[the New York Times]]. Allis returned home to complete his Princeton degree. In his senior year, he participated in his first [[Olympic Games]]. He was selected for Men's Individual Road Race, but was under academic probation and the school almost declined to allow him to attend. However, somebody pointed out to the administration that Harvard and Yale each had two Olympians that year and that, without Allis, Princeton would have had only one ([[Bill Bradley]]). He produced the best American result in the event that year, taking 66th place. Allis also raced in the team time trial in the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City and the road race at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, where he took 63rd. After a brief stint in the army, Allis shone in American racing in the early 1970s, organizing along with [[Dave Chauner]] the Raleigh team that dominated American racing, and personally winning an impressive slate of races. These included the [[US National Road Championship]] in 1974, which he won by applying brutal tactics against the newcomer [[Tommy Officer]], the 175-mile Quebec-Montreal race in 1973, and two runnings of the [[Mount Washington Hill Climb]]. He retired from national competition in 1976. Remarkably, Allis achieved all his victories as an amateur. He would have liked to have entered the European professional circuit but was denied the opportunity in 1969 by the management of ACBB, who declared he was already "too old" to make the jump. Today, Allis lives in Massachusetts with his wife Kim, and has two daughters, Paget and Galen. He is co-owner of the [[Belmont Wheelworks]] and [[Ace Wheelworks]] bike stores, and has coached the [[Harvard University]] cycling team since 1980. He was inducted into the [[U.S. Bicycling Hall of Fame]] in 1993. == Sources == * The Ride magazine, issue 103, 2002 * History of the Princeton Cycling Team: http://www.princetoncycling.com/photos/old/mem/history.html * Bicycling Hall of Fame Induction summary: http://www.usbhof.com/inductees/1993.cfm * Outside Magazine September 2004 * conversations with John Allis, 1992 * http://somervillenews.typepad.com/the_somerville_news/2005/01/the_somerville_.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Allis, John}} [[Category:1942 births]] [[Category:American cyclists]] [[Category:Cyclists at the 1964 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Cyclists at the 1968 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Cyclists at the 1972 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Olympic cyclists of the United States]] [[Category:Living people]]