Roger De Coster

The International Six Days Trial, now known as the International Six Days Enduro, is a form of off-road motorcycle Olympics which is the oldest annual competition sanctioned by the FIM dating back to 1913.

Roger De Coster (born 28 August 1944) is a Belgian former professional motocross racer and current Motorsport Director of KTM and Husqvarna North America.

De Coster lost to Ickx during their first season in the 1963 Belgian 50 cc trials national championship.

1964 would be a break out year for De Coster as he won the 1964 Belgian 50cc Junior Motocross championship and, won a gold medal in the 1964 International Six Days Trial.

He also defeated Ickx for the 1964 Belgian 50 cc trials national championship.

His trials experience improved his riding ability in wet, slippery conditions which, would later become an asset during his motocross career.

He began to work for ČZ motorcycles in their warranty department but, continued to race on his own time.

He competed in the Motocross World Championships from 1966 to 1980, most prominently as a member of the Suzuki factory racing team where he won five FIM 500cc Motocross World Championships.

He won the 1966 500cc Belgian Motocross National Championship competing on a ČZ but, his first foray into Grand Prix World Championships that same year was limited due to injuries suffered in a crash.

De Coster was impressed by the meticulous bike preparation and efficient riding styles of Swedish riders such as world champion Torsten Hallman, observing how Hallman absorbed jumps with his body so that his motorcycle flew at half the height of his competitors which, allowed the rear tire to begin applying power to the ground sooner.

De Coster was known for his smooth, controlled riding style and a commitment to physical training.

His training regime gave him the stamina that allowed him to circulate for most of the race in mid-pack before putting in a late charge through the field to victory when other racers had begun to tire.

De Coster's performances earned him full sponsorship from the ČZ factory for the 1967 season in which, he ended year ranked fifth in the 500cc world championship.

After the 1967 World Championship season, De Coster joined his ČZ factory teammates Joël Robert and Dave Bickers, along with Husqvarna teammates, Torsten Hallman, Arne Kring and Åke Jonsson, in a series of exhibition races in the United States that had been organized by Edison Dye, the American importer for Husqvarna motorcycles.

The exhibition races served as a means to introduce the sport of motocross to an American audience, and eventually led to the formation of the Inter-AM and Trans-AMA motocross series that helped to popularize the sport of motocross in the United States.

In 1968 De Coster won his first overall victory with a win at the 500cc Italian Grand Prix and, once again ended the season ranked fifth in the world championship.

De Coster ended the 1969 season ranked fifth in the world for a third consecutive season and, was a member of the Belgian team that won the 1969 Motocross des Nations for 500cc motorcycles and the Trophée des Nations for 250cc motorcycles, marking the first Belgian victory in eighteen years at the event.

Despite his results, De Coster felt neglected by the lack of support from the ČZ factory.

De Coster scored a record 36 500cc Grand Prix victories during his racing career, making his name is almost synonymous with the sport of motocross during the 1970s.

His stature in the sport of motocross is such that, he is often simply referred to as "The Man."

The 1970 250cc motocross world championship would mark the beginning of De Coster's career-long battle with his arch-rival Heikki Mikkola.

Suzuki teammates Joël Robert and Sylvain Geboers finished first and second in the 250cc world championship with De Coster coming in third place, just 1 point ahead of Mikkola.

After the 1970 season, De Coster made the decision to leave the ČZ team due to their continued lack of support.

He then joined the Suzuki factory racing team alongside his former ČZ teammate, Joël Robert.

It was with the Suzuki team that De Coster would attain his greatest success.

Whereas the ČZ motorcycle was already a proven winner, De Coster made the move to the Suzuki team knowing that he would have to help them develop their first 500cc motocross bike however, he was impressed with their willingness and ability to make requested changes to the motorcycle.

De Coster's victory at the season opening Italian Grand Prix gave Suzuki the first ever victory for a Japanese factory in an FIM 500cc motocross Grand Prix.

His main competition in 1971 came from Paul Friedrichs riding for ČZ and Bengt Åberg on a Husqvarna and the Maico team of Åke Jonsson and Adolf Weil.

Going into the final race of the season, Jonsson held a slight points lead over De Coster.

While leading the race, the spark plug on Jonnson's motorcycle came loose, allowing DeCoster to pass him for the victory and the 1971 World Championship.

In 1973, De Coster was named the recipient of the Belgian National Sports Merit Award.

As a team manager, he captained the first American team to win the Motocross des Nations in 1981.

De Coster was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999.

The motorcycling publication Cycle News named him Motocrosser of the Century in 2000.

In 2010, he was named an FIM Legend for his motorcycling achievements.

De Coster was born in Uccle, Belgium as the son of a steel mill worker.

With four brothers, his family couldn not afford to fund De Coster's motorcycle racing ambitions but, by working six days a week while still going to school, he was finally able to purchase a motorcycle when he was 17 years old.

He began competing on a 50 cc Flandria motorcycle before replacing it with an Itom.

After his first racing season, he started to compete in motorcycle trials to fill the winter lull.

His main competitor in trials events was future Formula One driver, Jacky Ickx.