1988 UCI Road World Championships

The 1988 UCI Road World Championships took place in Ronse, Belgium. As this was an Olympic year all the Olympic cycling events served as World Championships, leaving just the Professional road race and the Women's Team Time Trial to be contested. The men's road race was decided in a sprint involving three riders, Maurizio Fondriest, Claude Criquielion and Steve Bauer. 200 meters from the uphill finish, Bauer began the sprint and Fondriest was unable to respond. However Criquielion accelerated to the right of Bauer, close to the barriers. Bauer saw him coming with a much greater speed and closed the gap, which resulted in pushing Criquielion into the barriers. Bauer was also hampered by his manoeuvre and lost much speed, making it easy for Fondriest to ride past and claim the world title. Criquelion's bike was damaged too much to cycle again and he was passed by the pursuing group while walking to the finish line. Bauer finished second but was immediately disqualified after the race.