Women on bicycles in philately

This title is the result of a reaction from Dolores to an earlier bicycle-philatelic article of mine (November 17, 2010) on Postzegelblog. She asked me whether it is primarily men and men's events that appear on bicycle stamps. That day, she found Leontien van Moorsel's site and wondered if there was any philately involved there as well. In this article, I show that there is, truly, philately in: Women and the bicycle. Even on a tricycle with a sidecar! And... believe it or not, our Princess Maxima on a bicycle.

Leontien van Moorsel

Leontien is the most successful Dutch female cyclist of all time, winning the Women's Tour twice in 1992 and 93. On the track and on the road, the Brabant native became world champion a total of nine times and Olympic champion four times. She was chosen as Sportswoman of the Year six times. This stamp appeared in the booklet *Dutch Cycling Successes Tour de France 1985 – 2010*, on the occasion of the start of the Tour de France in Rotterdam this year.

Monique Knol

Monique was the first Dutch gold medalist at the Olympic Games in 1988. With twelve stage victories, she has also been very successful in the Women's Tour de France, which was organized for women for the first time in 1984. Officially called “La Grande Boucle Féminine Internationale”. On the occasion of the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, ​​Nevis issued a stamp featuring “our” Monique. Nevis just didn't know that Monique is Dutch instead of French.

Connie Carpenter Phinney

Connie is a former cyclist. She won four medals at the World Championships in the road and track categories in the 1970s and 1980s. At the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, she also won the gold medal in the road race. She also won the US National Championships twelve times. During the winter months, she excelled as a speed skater. Naturally, she did her warm-up on the bike.

Jutta Niehaus

Judith (“Jutta”) is a former cyclist from West Germany who represented her native country at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea. There she won the silver medal in the women's individual road race, but lost to Dutch Monique Knol in the sprint.

Olympic Games 1984 and 1992

Germany draws attention to the women's road race. Grenada calls attention to the women's 1000-meter sprint on the cycling stamp.

Princess Maxima

Princess Maxima and Prince Willem Alexander also visited Wijk bij Duurstede during their national tour. Here they are cycling along the Havenweg, past the windmill. The stamp was issued by Regio-post Noord-Oost Friesland. The bicycles ridden by the princely couple were provided by Fietsdomein on Veldpoortstraat.

Princess Diana

Princess Diana was also a sporty woman and enjoyed cycling with her children, the little princes.

The Cycling on Low Power Foundation

The foundation was established in 1960 to promote bicycle use and the cycling environment in the Netherlands through collective promotional campaigns. On August 6, 2004 .. after 44 years, the activities of the Fiets! Foundation Put on the back burner, but the foundation is not being dissolved. The activities have been taken over by the market and trade associations. The Fiets! Foundation is also the driving force behind the Bicycle of the Year competition and will continue to organize it as usual.

Girl on a tricycle and a girl on her bike without training wheels

Early learning lasts a lifetime. That applies to cycling too. I remember walking beside our little daughter to be nearby in case she fell.

Women's road races at the World Championship

Women and men together on bikes

I assure you that cycling together is more fun than alone. A wonderful way to clear your head, young and old. Fresh air and healthy exercise. Make easy use of the cycling junction network in our country. A great invention. You can decide at home in advance how long you want the trip to be. You will visit places you would otherwise, for sure, never have been.

A visual bicycle-latelist representation of the evolution of cycling together.

Women and men cycle together. The bicycles have changed significantly over the years. Have you noticed that the clothing has also changed significantly? From formal wear to casual wear, you could say.

Cycling together can also be done in another way. On a tandem. Woman in front or man in front.

. . . with the Three-wheeler with Sidecar !! . . . or even with the Four-wheeler

. . . or comfortably side by side on the tricycle.

… or just on the front of the bar …

100 years of cycling together

Here is a nice cover beautifully illustrating the development of bicycles and cycling apparel.

Mail delivery by bicycle by the woman

In the previous images, we see the bicycle for recreational use, also by a woman. Next, we examine a few more bicycle-themed images of women using the bicycle for work, namely, delivering the mail.

Cycling for your health

New Zealand shows here that women and men use the bicycle as a means to improve and/or maintain their health and fitness. Belgium is issuing a nice summer stamp featuring the whole family on a pleasant bike ride.

Finally, research, analysis, and conclusion

Dolores’s question, as to whether it is primarily men and men’s events that appear on stamps, can be answered here for a portion of philately. Specifically, the portion I call “bicycle philately.” Assuming that there are an estimated 2300 “bicycle stamps,” it can simultaneously be concluded that I have been able to find fifty-four bicycle stamps depicting a woman. That is approximately 2,3% of the estimated number. In this article, 1,4% of the 2300 “bicycle stamps” has been used to paint a picture of “Women and the bicycle in philately.” I think this percentage is perceived as disappointing. However, a positive conclusion that can be drawn from this article is that there is, truly, philately in: Women and the bicycle. Even on a tricycle with a sidecar! And... you have seen it yourselves, our Princess Maxima on a bicycle. Dolores, you sparked my interest, it was fun to do... and thanks for your contribution as well. Do you have a personalized bicycle stamp yet? If so, I can include it in a future article. The bicycle on Personal Stamps . . an article including the painting depicted here on a PowerPoint entitled “The Rumor”. (with thanks to Linda).

On the website “oogvoornaakt”, people could cast their vote for one of nearly seventy nude paintings. Johannes Moesman (1909-1988) landed in third place with 'Het Gerucht', an image of a naked woman on a bicycle with a violin under the bungee cord.

.. with this cheerful little lady on a bike from China, I conclude this article about: Women on bikes. Warm cycling greetings from Jan the “Bike List”