Editing Eddy Merckx

{{Short description|Belgian cyclist (born 1945)}}
{{For-multi|the bicycle brand|Eddy Merckx Cycles|the billiards player|Eddy Merckx (billiards player)}}
{{good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2023}}
{{Infobox cyclist
| name = Eddy Merckx
| image = Eddy Merckx en 1971.jpg
| caption = Merckx in 1971
| alt = Merckx holding a bicycle. His shirt says "Molteni Arcore", and his hair is slicked back.
| fullname = Édouard Louis Joseph Merckx
| nickname = {{lang|fr|Le Cannibale}} <br /> {{lang|nl|De Kannibaal}} (The Cannibal)<ref name="G 69 Fland">{{cite news|first=Suze|last=Clemitson|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/100-tours-100-tales/2014/apr/04/cycling-eddy-merckx-1969-tour-flanders|title=Remembering how Eddy Merckx won at home in the 1969 Tour of Flanders |date=4 April 2014|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=10 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150510153401/http://www.theguardian.com/sport/100-tours-100-tales/2014/apr/04/cycling-eddy-merckx-1969-tour-flanders|archive-date=10 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1945|6|17}}
| birth_place = [[Meensel-Kiezegem]], Belgium
| height = {{height|m=1.82}}<ref name="sports-reference" />
| weight = {{convert|74|kg|lb stlb|0|abbr=on}}<ref name="sports-reference" />
| currentteam = Retired
| discipline = Road and track
| role = Rider
| ridertype = All-rounder
| amateuryears1 = 1961–1964
| amateurteam1 = Evere Kerkhoek Sportif
| proyears1 = 1965
| proteam1 = {{UCI team code|Solo|1965}}
| proyears2 = 1966–1967
| proteam2 = {{UCI team code|Peugeot|1966}}
| proyears3 = 1968–1970
| proteam3 = {{UCI team code|Faemino|1968}}
| proyears4 = 1971–1976
| proteam4 = {{UCI team code|Molteni|1971}}
| proyears5 = 1977
| proteam5 = {{UCI team code|Fiat France|1977}}
| proyears6 = 1978
| proteam6 = {{UCI team code|C&A|1978}}
| majorwins = ;Road
'''[[Grand Tour (cycling)|Grand Tours]]'''
:'''[[Tour de France]]'''
::'''[[General classification in the Tour de France|General classification]]'''<br>([[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1970 Tour de France|1970]], [[1971 Tour de France|1971]], [[1972 Tour de France|1972]], [[1974 Tour de France|1974]])
::[[Points classification in the Tour de France|Points classification]] ([[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1971 Tour de France|1971]], [[1972 Tour de France|1972]])
::[[Mountains classification in the Tour de France|Mountains classification]] ([[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1970 Tour de France|1970]])
::[[Combination classification in the Tour de France|Combination classification]] ([[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1970 Tour de France|1970]], [[1971 Tour de France|1971]], [[1972 Tour de France|1972]], [[1974 Tour de France|1974]])
::34 individual stages<br>([[1969 Tour de France|1969]]–[[1972 Tour de France|1972]], [[1974 Tour de France|1974]], [[1975 Tour de France|1975]])
::6 TTT stages<br>([[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1970 Tour de France|1970]], [[1971 Tour de France|1971]], [[1972 Tour de France|1972]], [[1974 Tour de France|1974]], [[1977 Tour de France|1977]])
::[[Combativity award in the Tour de France|Combativity award]] ([[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1970 Tour de France|1970]], [[1974 Tour de France|1974]], [[1975 Tour de France|1975]])
:'''[[Giro d'Italia]]'''
::'''[[General classification in the Giro d'Italia|General classification]]'''<br>([[1968 Giro d'Italia|1968]], [[1970 Giro d'Italia|1970]], [[1972 Giro d'Italia|1972]], [[1973 Giro d'Italia|1973]], [[1974 Giro d'Italia|1974]])
::[[Points classification in the Giro d'Italia|Points classification]] ([[1968 Giro d'Italia|1968]], [[1973 Giro d'Italia|1973]])
::[[Mountains classification in the Giro d'Italia|Mountains classification]] ([[1968 Giro d'Italia|1968]])
::[[Combination classification in the Giro d'Italia|Combination classification]] ([[1972 Giro d'Italia|1972]], [[1973 Giro d'Italia|1973]])
::24 individual stages<br>([[1967 Giro d'Italia|1967]]–[[1970 Giro d'Italia|1970]], [[1972 Giro d'Italia|1972]], [[1973 Giro d'Italia|1973]], [[1974 Giro d'Italia|1974]])
::1 TTT stage ([[1973 Giro d'Italia|1973]])
:'''[[Vuelta a España]]'''
::'''[[General classification in the Vuelta a España|General classification]]''' ([[1973 Vuelta a España|1973]])
::[[Points classification in the Vuelta a España|Points classification]] ([[1973 Vuelta a España|1973]])
::[[Combination classification in the Vuelta a España|Combination classification]] ([[1973 Vuelta a España|1973]])
::6 individual stages ([[1973 Vuelta a España|1973]])
::1 TTT stage ([[1973 Vuelta a España|1973]])
'''[[Race stage|Stage races]]'''
:[[Tour de Romandie]] ([[1968 Tour de Romandie|1968]])
:[[Volta a Catalunya]] ([[1968 Volta a Catalunya|1968]])
:[[Paris–Nice]] ([[1969 Paris–Nice|1969]], [[1970 Paris–Nice|1970]], [[1971 Paris–Nice|1971]])
:[[Critérium du Dauphiné|Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré]] ([[1971 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré|1971]])
:[[Tour de Suisse]] ([[1974 Tour de Suisse|1974]])
'''[[Classic cycle races|One-day races and Classics]]'''
: [[UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|World Road Race Championships]] ([[1967 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|1967]], [[1971 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|1971]], [[1974 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|1974]])
:[[Belgian National Road Race Championships|National Road Race Championships]]<br>(1970)
:[[Milan–San Remo]] ([[1966 Milan–San Remo|1966]], [[1967 Milan–San Remo|1967]], [[1969 Milan–San Remo|1969]], [[1971 Milan–San Remo|1971]], [[1972 Milan–San Remo|1972]], [[1975 Milan–San Remo|1975]], [[1976 Milan–San Remo|1976]])
:[[Paris–Roubaix]] ([[1968 Paris–Roubaix|1968]], [[1970 Paris–Roubaix|1970]], [[1973 Paris–Roubaix|1973]])
:[[Tour of Flanders]] ([[1969 Tour of Flanders|1969]], [[1975 Tour of Flanders|1975]])
:[[Liège–Bastogne–Liège]] ([[1969 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1969]], [[1971 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1971]], [[1972 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1972]], [[1973 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1973]], [[1975 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1975]])
:[[Giro di Lombardia]] ([[1971 Giro di Lombardia|1971]], [[1972 Giro di Lombardia|1972]])
:[[La Flèche Wallonne]] ([[1967 La Flèche Wallonne|1967]], [[1970 La Flèche Wallonne|1970]], [[1972 La Flèche Wallonne|1972]])
:[[Gent–Wevelgem]] ([[1967 Gent–Wevelgem|1967]], [[1970 Gent–Wevelgem|1970]], [[1973 Gent–Wevelgem|1973]])
:[[Omloop Het Nieuwsblad|Omloop Het Volk]] ([[1971 Omloop Het Volk|1971]], [[1973 Omloop Het Volk|1973]])
:[[Amstel Gold Race]] ([[1973 Amstel Gold Race|1973]], [[1975 Amstel Gold Race|1975]])
;Other
:[[Super Prestige Pernod International]] (1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975)
:[[Hour Record]] (1972)
;Track
:[[European Track Championships|European Championships]]
::[[UEC European Track Championships – Men's madison|Madison]] (1970, 1977)
::[[UEC European Track Championships – Men's omnium|Omnium]] (1975)
:[[Belgian National Track Championships|National Championships]]
::Madison (1966, 1967, 1968, 1974, 1975, 1976)
| show-medals = no
| medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{flagu|Belgium}}}}
{{MedalSport|Men's [[road bicycle racing]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[UCI Road World Championships|World Championships]]}}
{{MedalGold |[[1964 UCI Road World Championships|1964 Sallanches]]|Amateurs' road race}}
{{MedalGold |[[1967 UCI Road World Championships|1967 Heerlen]]|[[1967 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|Professional road race]]}}
{{MedalGold |[[1971 UCI Road World Championships|1971 Mendrisio]]|[[1971 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|Professional road race]]}}
{{MedalGold |[[1974 UCI Road World Championships|1974 Montréal]]|[[1974 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|Professional road race]]}}
{{MedalSport|Men's [[track cycling]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[European Track Championships|European Championships]]}}
{{MedalGold|1970 Köln|[[UEC European Track Championships – Men's madison|Madison]]}}
{{MedalGold|1975 Grenoble|[[UEC European Track Championships – Men's omnium|Omnium]]}}
{{MedalGold|1977 Copenhagen|[[UEC European Track Championships – Men's madison|Madison]]}}
{{MedalSilver|1968 Gent|[[UEC European Track Championships – Men's omnium|Omnium]]}}
{{MedalSilver|1970 Gent|[[UEC European Track Championships – Men's omnium|Omnium]]}}
}}

'''Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx''' (born 17 June 1945), known as '''Eddy Merckx''' ({{IPA|nl|ˈɛdi ˈmɛr(ə)ks|lang}}, {{IPA|fr|ɛdi mɛʁks|lang}}), is a Belgian former professional road and track cyclist racer who is the most successful rider in the history of competitive cycling. His victories include an unequalled eleven [[Grand Tour (cycling)|Grand Tours]] (five [[Tour de France|Tours de France]], five [[Giro d'Italia|Giros d'Italia]], and a [[Vuelta a España]]), all five [[Cycling monument|Monuments]], setting the [[hour record]], three [[UCI Road World Championships|World Championships]], every major one-day race other than [[Paris–Tours]], and extensive victories on the track.

Born in [[Meensel-Kiezegem]], [[Province of Brabant|Brabant]], Belgium, he grew up in [[Woluwe-Saint-Pierre]] where his parents ran a grocery store. He played several sports, but found his true passion in cycling. Merckx got his first bicycle at the age of three or four and competed in his first race in 1961. His first victory came at [[Petit-Enghien]] in October 1961.

After winning eighty races as an amateur racer, he turned professional on 29 April 1965 when he signed with {{UCI team code|Solo|1965}}. His first major victory came in the [[Milan–San Remo]] a year later, after switching to {{UCI team code|Peugeot|1966}}. After the 1967 season, Merckx moved to {{UCI team code|Faemino|1968}}, and won the [[1968 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]], his first Grand Tour victory. Four times between 1970 and 1974 Merckx completed a Grand Tour double. His final double also coincided with winning the elite [[1974 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|men's road race]] at the [[1974 UCI Road World Championships|UCI Road World Championships]] to make him the first rider to accomplish cycling's [[Triple Crown of Cycling|Triple Crown]]. Merckx broke the hour record in October 1972, extending the record by almost 800 metres.

He acquired the nickname "'''the Cannibal'''", suggested by the daughter of a teammate upon being told by her father of how Merckx would not let anyone else win. Merckx achieved 525 victories over his eighteen-year career. He is one of only three riders to have won all five '[[Cycling monument|Monuments]]' ([[Milan–San Remo]], [[Tour of Flanders]], [[Paris–Roubaix]], [[Liège–Bastogne–Liège]], and the [[Giro di Lombardia]]) and the only one to have won them all at least twice. Merckx was successful on the road and also on the track, as well as in the large stage races and one-day races. He is almost universally regarded as the greatest and most successful rider in the history of cycling.

Since Merckx's retirement from the sport on 18 May 1978, he has remained active in the cycling world. He began his own bicycle brand, [[Eddy Merckx Cycles]], in 1980 and its bicycles were used by several professional teams in the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s. Merckx coached the Belgian national cycling team for eleven years, stopping in 1996. He helped start and organize the [[Tour of Qatar]] from its start in 2002 until its final edition in 2016. He also assisted in running the [[Tour of Oman]], before a disagreement with the organizers led him to step away in 2017.

== Early life and amateur career ==

Edouard Louis Joseph Merckx was born in [[Meensel-Kiezegem]],<ref name="VN EM 70">{{cite news|url=http://velonews.competitor.com/the-cannibal-eddy-merckx-turns-70|title='Merckx 525:' A tribute to the Cannibal |work=VeloNews|publisher=Competitor Group|access-date=14 May 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150713165610/http://velonews.competitor.com/the-cannibal-eddy-merckx-turns-70|archive-date=13 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Province of Brabant|Brabant]], Belgium on 17 June 1945 to Jules Merckx and Jenny Pittomvils.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=104}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=20}} Merckx was the first-born of the family.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=104}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=20}} In September 1946, the family moved to [[Woluwe-Saint-Pierre|Sint-Pieters-Woluwe]], in [[Brussels]], Belgium in order to take over a grocery store that had been up for lease.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=22}}<ref name="Guard Review">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/mar/16/eddy-merckx-william-fotheringham-review|title=Merckx: Half-Man, Half-Bike by William Fotheringham&nbsp;– review|date=16 March 2012|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=13 April 2013|first=Graham|last=Robb}}</ref> In May 1948, Jenny gave birth to twins: a boy, Michel, and a girl, Micheline.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=23}} As a child Eddy was hyperactive and was always playing outside.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|pp=23–24}}

Eddy was a competitive child and played several sports, including [[basketball]], [[association football|football]], [[table tennis]] and [[boxing]], the latter in which he won some local boxing tournaments.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=24}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=25}} He even played lawn tennis for the local junior team.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=25}} However, Merckx claimed he knew he wanted to be a cyclist at the age of four and that his first memory was a crash on his bike when he was the same age.<ref name="G H">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/jun/29/eddy-merckx-this-much-i-know|title=Eddy Merckx: this much I know |first=Andy|last=Pietrasik|date=29 June 2013|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=10 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150510154935/http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/jun/29/eddy-merckx-this-much-i-know|archive-date=10 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Merckx began riding a bike at the age of three or four and would ride to school every day, beginning at age eight.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=30}} Merckx would imitate his cycling idol [[Stan Ockers]] with his friends when they rode bikes together.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=28–29}}

In summer 1961, Merckx bought his first racing license and competed in his first official race a month after he turned sixteen, coming in sixth place.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=31}} He rode in twelve more races before winning his first, at [[Petit-Enghien]], on 1 October 1961.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=15–16}}{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=108}}<ref name="VN EM 70" /> In the winter following his first victory, he trained with former racer [[Félicien Vervaecke]] at the local [[velodrome]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=32}} Merckx won his second victory on 11 March 1962 in a [[Kermesse (cycling)|kermis]] race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2012|p=32}} Merckx competed in 55 races during the 1962 calendar year; as he devoted more time to cycling, his grades at school began to decline.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|pp=108–109}} After winning the Belgian amateur road race title, Merckx declined an offer from his school's headmaster to have his exams postponed, and dropped out of school.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=109–110}}<ref name="EN H">{{cite news|url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Eddy_Merckx.aspx|title=Eddy Merckx |date=2008|work=Encyclopedia of World Biography |publisher=HighBeam Research|access-date=10 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150510171316/http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Eddy_Merckx.aspx|archive-date=10 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> He finished the season with 23 victories to his name.<ref name="EN H" />

Merckx won the [[UCI Road World Championships – Men's amateur road race|amateur road race]] at the [[1964 UCI Road World Championships]] in [[Sallanches]], France.{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=131}}<ref name="LS WARR">{{cite news|first=Gigi|last=Boccacini|url=http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,avanzata/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,9/articleid,0099_01_1964_0203_0009_10702482/|title=Invano si è sperato nella volata di Armani|language=it|date=6 September 1964|page=9|newspaper=La Stampa|publisher=Editrice La Stampa|access-date=27 May 2012|trans-title=It is hoped in vain sprint Armani}}</ref> The following month, he came twelfth in [[Cycling at the 1964 Summer Olympics – Men's individual road race|the individual road race]] at the [[1964 Summer Olympics|Tokyo Olympics]].<ref name="CDS 64 ORR">{{cite web|url=http://dlib.coninet.it/bookreader.php?&c=1&f=12744&p=1#page/5/mode/1up|title=Prova su strada|newspaper=Corriere dello Sport|date=23 October 1964|page=4|access-date=7 July 2013|language=it|trans-title=Road test|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150510172852/http://dlib.coninet.it/bookreader.php?&c=1&f=12744&p=1|archive-date=10 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="sports-reference">{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/me/eddy-merckx-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418111636/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/me/eddy-merckx-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 April 2020 |title=Eddy Merckx |access-date=22 August 2014}}</ref>  Merckx remained an amateur until April 1965, and finished his amateur career with eighty wins to his credit.<ref name="VN 60">{{cite web| title= Happy Birthday, Eddy!| date= 17 June 2005| url= http://velonews.competitor.com/2005/06/news/happy-birthday-eddy_8224| access-date = 13 June 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150510150857/http://velonews.competitor.com/2005/06/news/happy-birthday-eddy_8224|work=VeloNews|publisher=Competitor Group|archive-date=10 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="L'Équipe 13 March 2007">L'Équipe, France, 13 March 2007</ref>

== Professional career ==

=== 1965–1967: Solo–Superia and Peugeot–BP–Michelin ===

====1965: First professional season====
Merckx turned professional on 29 April 1965 when he signed with [[Rik Van Looy]]'s Belgian team, {{UCI team code|Solo|1965}}.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=17}} He won his first race in [[Vilvoorde]], beating [[Emile Daems]].{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=19}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=49}} On 1 August,{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=19}} Merckx finished second in the Belgian national championships, which qualified him for the [[1965 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|men's road race]] at the [[1965 UCI Road World Championships|UCI Road World Championships]].<ref name="CW Int">{{cite news|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/eddy-merckx-interview-59823|title=Eddy Merckx interview|work=Cycling Weekly|publisher=IPC Media |date=17 June 2010|access-date=26 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150510204650/http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/eddy-merckx-interview-59823|archive-date=10 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Raphaël Géminiani]], the manager of the Bic cycling team, approached Merckx at the event and offered him 2,500 francs a month to join the team the following season.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=50}} Merckx chose to sign; however, since he was a minor the contract was invalid.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=50}}

After finishing the road race in 29th position,<ref>{{cite web|title=World Championships 1965: results Men|url=http://www.the-sports.org/cycling-world-championships-1965-results-men-s2-c0-b0-g146-t36-u85-v1.html|work=The-Sports.org|publisher=Info Média Conseil|access-date=2 July 2013|location=Québec, Canada}}</ref> Merckx returned to Belgium and discussed his plans for the next season with his manager [[Jean Van Buggenhout]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=50}} Van Buggenhout helped orchestrate a move that sent Merckx to the French-based [[Peugeot–BP–Michelin]] for 20,000 francs a month.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=50}} Merckx elected to leave {{UCI team code|Solo|1965|nolink=yes}} due to the way he was treated by his teammates, in particular Van Looy.<ref name="CW Int" /> Van Looy and other teammates mocked Merckx for his various habits such as his eating, or called him names.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=20}} In addition, Merckx later stated that during his time with Van Looy's team he had not been taught anything.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=49}}<ref name="CW Int" /> While with {{UCI team code|Solo|1965|nolink=yes}}, he won nine races out of the nearly 70 races he entered.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=50}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=53}}

====1966: First Monument victory====
[[File:Eddy Merckx 1966.jpg|thumb|left|Merckx finished in twelfth position in the men's road race at the [[1966 UCI Road World Championships]].|alt=A man on a bicycle, with a car behind him.]]
In March 1966, Merckx entered his first major stage race as a professional rider, the [[Paris–Nice]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=51}} He took the race lead for a single stage before losing it to [[Jacques Anquetil]] and eventually coming in fourth overall.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=51}} [[Milan–San Remo]], his first participation in one of cycling's Monuments, was the next event on the calendar for Merckx. There, he succeeded in staying with the main field as the race entered the final climb of the [[Poggio di San Remo|Poggio]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=52}} He attacked on the climb and reduced the field to a group of eleven, himself included.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=51–52}} Merckx was advised by his manager to hold off on sprinting full-out to the finish line until as late as possible.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=52}} At the end of the race, three other riders approached the line with him, and Merckx beat them in the sprint.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=52}} In the following weeks, he raced the [[Tour of Flanders]] and [[Paris–Roubaix]], the most important [[cobbled classics]]; in the former he crashed and in the latter he had a punctured tire.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=57}} At the [[1966 UCI Road World Championships]] he finished twelfth in the road race after suffering a cramp in the closing kilometers.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=57}} He finished the 1966 season with a total of 20 wins, including his first stage race win at the Tour of Morbihan.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=57}}

====1967: Second straight Milan–San Remo and world champion====
Merckx opened the 1967 campaign with two stage victories at the [[Giro di Sardegna]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=58}} He followed these successes by entering [[1967 Paris–Nice|Paris–Nice]] where he won the second stage and took the race lead.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=58}} Two stages later, a teammate, [[Tom Simpson]], attacked with several other riders on a climb and was nearly 20 minutes ahead of Merckx, who remained in a group behind.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=58}} Merckx attacked two days later on a climb 70&nbsp;km into the stage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=59}} He was able to establish a firm advantage, but obeyed orders from his manager to wait for the chasing Simpson.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=59}} Merckx won the stage, while Simpson secured his overall victory.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=59}}

[[File:Eddy Merckx 1967.jpg|thumb|upright|At the [[1967 Giro d'Italia]] Merckx won his first [[Grand Tour (cycling)|Grand Tour]] stages on the way to finishing ninth overall.|alt=Eddy Merckx being pushed while on bike before a stage.]]
On 18 March,<ref name="CDS 67 MSR">{{cite web|url=http://dlib.coninet.it/bookreader.php?&c=1&f=13770&p=1#page/2/mode/1up|title=Oggi 202 partenti|newspaper=Corriere dello Sport|date=18 March 1967|page=2|access-date=7 July 2013|language=it|trans-title=Today 202 participate|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150510223721/http://dlib.coninet.it/bookreader.php?&c=1&f=13770&p=1|archive-date=10 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Merckx started the [[1967 Milan–San Remo|Milan–San Remo]] and was seen as a 120–1 favorite to win the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=59}} He attacked on the Capo Berta and again on the Poggio, leaving only Gianni Motta with him.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=60}} The two slowed their pace and were joined by two more riders.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=60}} Merckx won the four-man sprint to the finish.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=60}} His next victory came in [[La Flèche Wallonne]] after he missed out on an early break, caught up to it, and attacked from it to win the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=62}} On 20 May, he started the [[1967 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]], his first [[Grand Tour (cycling)|Grand Tour]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=64}} He won the twelfth and fourteenth stages en route to finishing ninth in the general classification.<ref name="BRI 1967">{{cite web |url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1967.html |title=1967 Giro d'Italia |work=Bike Race Info |first1=Bill |last1=McGann |first2=Carol |last2=McGann |publisher=Dog Ear Publishing |access-date=10 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227171534/http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1967.html |archive-date=27 February 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref>

He signed with [[Faemino–Faema|Faema]] on 2 September for ten years worth 400,000 Belgian francs.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=65}} He chose to switch over in order to be in complete control over the team he was racing for.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=65}} In addition, he would not have to pay for various expenses that came with racing such as wheels and tires.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=66}} The next day, Merckx started the men's road race at the [[1967 UCI Road World Championships]] in [[Heerlen]], Netherlands.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=68}} The course consisted of ten laps of a circuit.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=66}} Motta attacked on the first lap and was joined by Merckx and five other riders.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=68}} The group thinned to five as they reached the finish line where Merckx was able to out-sprint [[Jan Janssen]] for first place.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=68}}<ref name="ELM 67 WC">{{cite news|url=http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1967/09/04/MD19670904-005.pdf|title=Merckx, nuevo Campeón del Mundo, Fondo Carretera|date=4 September 1967|page=5|language=es|trans-title=Merckx, new World Champion Road Fund|newspaper=El Mundo Deportivo|access-date=20 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150830225613/http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1967/09/04/MD19670904-005.pdf|archive-date=30 August 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> In doing so, he became the third rider to win the world road race amateur and professional titles.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=68}} By winning the race he earned the right to wear the [[rainbow jersey]] as world champion.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=68}}<ref name="ELM 67 WC"/>

=== 1968–1970: Faema ===

====1968: First Grand Tour victory====
Merckx's first victory with his new team came in a stage win at the Giro di Sardegna.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=71}} At Paris–Nice, he was forced to quit the race due to a knee injury he sustained during the event.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=72}} He failed to win his third consecutive Milan–San Remo and missed out at the Tour of Flanders the following weekend.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=72}} His next victory came at Paris–Roubaix when he bested [[Herman Van Springel]] in a race that was plagued by poor weather and several punctures to the competing riders.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=72}}
At the behest of his team, Merckx raced the [[1968 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]] instead of the [[1968 Tour de France|Tour de France]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=72}} He won the race's second stage after he attacked with one kilometer to go.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=72–73}}<ref name="BRI 1968 G">{{cite web|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1968.html |title=1968 Giro d'Italia |work= Bike Race Info |publisher=Dog Ear Publishing |last1=McGann |first1=Bill |last2=McGann |first2=Carol |access-date=6 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141010145018/http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1968.html|archive-date=10 October 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> The twelfth stage was marred by rainy weather and featured the climbs of the [[Tre Cime di Lavaredo]] for the stage finish.<ref name="BRI 1968 G" /> By the time Merckx had reached the penultimate climb, there was a six-man group at the front of the race with a nine-minute advantage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=73}} Merckx attacked and was able to get a sizable distance between himself and the group he left before he stopped to change his wheel in order to slow down due to orders from his team manager.<ref name="BRI 1968 G" />{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=74}} Merckx got back on his bike and caught the leading breakaway and rode past it to the finish, where he won the stage and took the race lead.<ref name="BRI 1968 G" />{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=75}} Merckx went on to win the race, along with the [[Points classification in the Giro d'Italia|points classification]] and [[Mountains classification in the Giro d'Italia|mountains classification]].<ref name="BRI 1968 G" /> In the [[Volta a Catalunya]], Merckx took the race lead from Gimondi in the race's time trial stage and won the event as a whole.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=76–77}} He finished the season with 32 wins in the 129 races he entered.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=293}}

====1969: A victory in Paris and injury in Blois====
Merckx opened the 1969 season with victories at the [[Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana|Vuelta a Levante]] and the Paris–Nice overall, as well as stages in each of the races.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=88}} On 30 March 1969 Merckx earned his first major victory of the 1969 calendar with his win at the [[1969 Tour of Flanders|Tour of Flanders]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=86}} On a rainy day that featured strong winds,{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=86}} he attacked first on the Oude Kwaremont, but a puncture nullified any gains he was able to establish.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=87}} He made a move on the Kapelmuur and was followed by a few riders.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=87}} As the wind shifted from a crosswind to a headwind with close to seventy kilometers left to go, Merckx increased the pace and rode solo to victory.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=87}} The seventeen days after the Tour of Flanders saw Merckx win nine times.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=88}} He won Milan–San Remo by descending the Poggio at high speed.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=88}} Merckx saw victory again in mid-April at the [[1969 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|Liège–Bastogne–Liège]] when he attacked with 70 kilometers remaining.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=89}}

He began the [[1969 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]] on 16 May, stating that he wished to ride less aggressively than the year before in order to save energy for the [[1969 Tour de France|Tour de France]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=100–101}} Merckx had won four of the race's stages and held the race lead going into the sixteenth day of racing.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=101}} However, before the start of the stage race director Vincenzo Torriani, along with a television camera and two writers, entered Merckx's hotel room and informed him that he had failed a doping control and was disqualified from the race, in addition to being suspended for a month.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=101–102}} On 14 June, the cycling governing body, the FICP, overturned the month long suspension and cleared him due to the "benefit of the doubt."{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=107}}

[[File:Mourenx velodrome 003.JPG|thumb|The Velodrome Eddy Merckx at Mourenx was named in honor of Merckx in 1999 due to his efforts during the seventeenth stage at the [[1969 Tour de France]].|alt=A green field with the words "Coupe du monde".]]
Before starting the Tour, Merckx had spent a large amount of his time resting and training, racing only five times.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=110}} Merckx won the race's sixth stage through attacking before the leg's final major climb, the Ballon d'Alsace, and then outlasting his competitors who were able to follow him initially.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=119–120}} During the seventeenth stage, Merckx was riding at the head of the race with several general classification contenders on the [[Col du Tourmalet]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=112}} Merckx shifted into a large gear, attacked, and went on to cross the summit with a 45-second advantage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=112–113}} Despite orders to wait for the chasing riders, Merckx increased his efforts.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=113}} He rode over the [[Col du Soulor]] and [[Col d'Aubisque]], increasing the gap to eight minutes.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=113}} With close to fifty kilometers to go, Merckx began to suffer [[hypoglycemia]] and rode the rest of the stage in severe pain.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=114}} At the end of the stage, Merckx told the journalists "I hope I have done enough now for you to consider me a worthy winner."{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=114}} Merckx finished the race with six stage victories to his credit, along with the general, points, mountains, and combination classifications, and the award for most aggressive rider.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=123}}

His next major race was the two-day race, [[Paris–Luxembourg]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=128}} Merckx was down fifty-four seconds going into the second day and attacked eight kilometers from the finish, on the slopes of the Bereldange.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=128}} Merckx rode solo to catch the leading rider Jacques Anquetil, whom he dropped with a kilometer remaining.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=128-129}} Merckx won the stage and gained enough time on the race leader Gimondi to win the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=129}}

[[File:Derny.jpg|thumb|left|Fernand Wambst, who was regarded as a great [[derny]] driver, agreed to pace Merckx in the omnium events in [[Blois]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=134}}|alt=An illustration of a derny.]]
On 9 September, Merckx participated in a three-round [[omnium]] event at the concrete velodrome in [[Blois]] where each rider was to be paced by a [[derny]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=133}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=134}} Fernand Wambst was Merckx's pacer for the contest.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=134}} After winning the first intermediate sprint of the first round, Wambst chose to slow their pace and move to the back of the race despite Merckx wanting to stay out in front for fear of an accident.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=135}} Wambst wanted to pass everyone to provide a show for the crowd.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=135}} The duo then increased their pace and began to pass each of the other contestants;{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=135}} however, as they passed the riders in first position, the leading derny lost control and crashed into the wall.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=135}} Wambst chose to avoid the derny by going below it, but the leader's derny came back down and collided with Wambst, while Merckx's pedal caught one of the dernies.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=136}} The two riders landed head first onto the track.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=136}}
{{Quote box
| quote = ‘’Blois was the worst experience of my career. Here I could have been dead. The accident cost me a few years of my career, because afterwards, with that back, I never had the same feeling uphill as I had in that very first Tour of ‘69.’'
| source = Eddy Merckx in 2005<ref>{{cite web |date=6 July 2005 |title=Eddy Merckx voor het eerst weer in Blois sinds zware val van 1969 |work=Het Nieuwsblad |trans-title=Eddy Merckx back in Blois for first time since heavy 1969 fall |url=https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/glmg69ra |publisher=[[Het Nieuwsblad]] |language=nl}}</ref>
| bgcolor = #CCDDFF
| align = right
| width = 29%
| quoted = 1
}}
Wambst died of a fractured skull as he was being transported to a hospital.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=136}} Merckx remained unconscious for 45 minutes and awoke in the operating room.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=136}} He sustained a [[concussion]], [[whiplash (medicine)|whiplash]], trapped nerves in his back, a displaced [[pelvis]], and several other cuts and bruises.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=137}} He remained at the hospital for a week before returning to Belgium.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=137}} He spent six weeks in bed before beginning to race again in October.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=137}} Merckx later stated that he "was never the same again" after the crash.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=137}}<ref name="BRI 1970 Giro">{{cite web|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1970.html |title=1970 Giro d'Italia |work=Bike Race Info|first1=Bill |last1=McGann |first2=Carol |last2=McGann |publisher=Dog Ear Publishing|access-date=10 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227195922/http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1970.html|archive-date=27 February 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> He would constantly adjust the height of his seat during races to help ease the pain.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=138}}

====1970: A Giro–Tour double====
Merckx entered the 1970 campaign nursing a case of mild [[tendonitis]] in his [[knee]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=140}} His first major victory came in Paris–Nice where he won the general classification, along with three stages.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=140}}<ref name="BRI 1970 Giro" /> On 1 April, Merckx won the [[Gent–Wevelgem]], followed by the [[Tour of Belgium]] – where he braved a snowy stage and followed the day up with a victory in the final time trial to secure the title – and [[1970 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=140–141}}<ref name="BRI 1970 Giro" /> In Paris–Roubaix, Merckx was battling a cold as the race began in heavy rain.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=140}} He attacked thirty-one kilometers from the finish and went on to win by five minutes and twenty-one seconds, the largest margin of victory in the history of the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=140}} The next weekend, Merckx attempted to race for teammate [[Joseph Bruyère]] in La Flèche Wallonne; however, Bruyère was unable to keep pace with the leading riders, leaving Merckx to take the victory.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=141}}

[[File:Ventoux Flamme Rouge (14829387042).jpg|thumb|right|After winning the fourteenth stage to the summit of [[Mont Ventoux]] during the [[1970 Tour de France]], Merckx had to be given oxygen.|alt=The summit of a mountain.]]
After the scandal at the previous year's Giro d'Italia, Merckx was unwilling to return to the race in [[1970 Giro d'Italia|1970]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=141}} His entry to the race was contingent upon all doping controls being sent to a lab in Rome to be tested, rather than being tested at the finish like the year before.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=141}} He started the race and won the second stage,<ref name="BRI 1970 Giro" /> but four days later showed signs of weakness with his knee as he was dropped twice while in the mountains.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=141}} However the next day, Merckx attacked on the final climb into the city of [[Brentonico]] to win the stage and take the lead.<ref name="BRI 1970 Giro" /> He won the stage nine [[individual time trial]] by almost two minutes over the second-place finisher, expanding his lead significantly.<ref name="BRI 1970 Giro" /> Merckx did not win another stage, but expanded his lead a little more before the race's conclusion.<ref name="BRI 1970 Giro" />

Before beginning the Tour, Merckx won the men's road race at the [[Belgian National Road Race Championships]].<ref name="BRI 1970 Tour">{{cite web|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1970.html|title=1970 Tour de France |work=Bike Race Info|first1=Bill |last1=McGann |first2=Carol |last2=McGann |publisher=Dog Ear Publishing|access-date=10 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150618031114/http://bikeraceinfo.com/tdf/tdf1970.html|archive-date=18 June 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Merckx won the Tour's opening prologue to take the race's first race leader's [[General classification in the Tour de France|yellow jersey]].<ref name="BRI 1970 Tour" />{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=142}} After losing the lead following the second stage,<ref name="BRI 1970 Tour" />{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=142}} he won the sixth stage after forming a breakaway with [[Lucien Van Impe]] and regained the lead.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=143}} After expanding his lead in the stage nine individual time trial, Merckx won the race's first true mountain stage, stage 10, and expanded his lead to five minutes in the general classification.<ref name="BRI 1970 Tour" />{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=143}} Merckx won three of the five stages contested within the next four days, including a summit finish to [[Mont Ventoux]], where upon finishing he was given [[oxygen]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=143–144}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=145}} Merckx won two more stages, both individual time trials, and won the Tour by over twelve minutes. He finished the Tour with eight stage victories and won the mountains and combination classifications.<ref name="BRI 1970 Tour" />{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=145}} The eight stage wins equaled the previous record for stage wins in a single Tour de France.<ref name="BRI 1970 Tour" />{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=146}} Merckx also became the third to accomplish the feat of winning the Giro and Tour in the same calendar year.<ref name="BRI 1970 Tour" />{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=142}}

=== 1971–1976: Molteni ===

====1971: A third consecutive Tour and second world championship====
[[File:Tour de France, Luis Ocaña, Bestanddeelnr 926-5233.jpg|upright|thumb|180px|Spaniard [[Luis Ocaña]] (pictured at the [[1973 Tour de France]]) was one of Merckx's major rivals during the [[1971 Tour de France]].|alt=A picture of a cyclist in a jersey that reads "Bic."]]
Faema folded at the end of the 1970 season causing Merckx and several of his teammates to move to another Italian team, [[Molteni (cycling team)|Molteni]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=162}}{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=225}} The first major victory for Merckx came in the Giro di Sardegna, which he secured after attacking on his own and riding solo through the rain to win the race's final stage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=162}} He followed that with his third consecutive Paris–Nice victory, a race he led from start to finish.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=162}} In the Milan–San Remo, Merckx worked with his teammates in a seven-man breakaway to set up a final attack on the Poggio.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=162}} Merckx's attack succeeded and he won his fourth edition of the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=162}} Six days later, he won the [[Omloop Het Nieuwsblad|Omloop Het Volk]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=162}}

After winning the Tour of Belgium again, Merckx headed into the major spring classics.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=163}} During the Tour of Flanders, Merckx's rivals worked against him to prevent him from winning.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=163}} A week later, he suffered five flat tires during the Paris–Roubaix.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=163}} The [[1971 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|Liège–Bastogne–Liège]] was held in cold and rain conditions.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=163}} After attacking ninety kilometers from the finish, Merckx caught the leaders on the road and passed them.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=163}} He rode solo until around three kilometers to go when Georges Pintens caught him.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=163}} Merckx and Pintens rode to the finish together, where Merckx won the two-man sprint.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=164}} Instead of racing the Giro d'Italia, Merckx elected to enter two shorter stages races in France, the [[Grand Prix du Midi Libre]] and the [[Critérium du Dauphiné]], both of which he won.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=164}}

The [[1971 Tour de France|Tour de France]] began with a [[team time trial]] that Merckx's team won, giving him the lead.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=165}} The next day's racing was split into three parts.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=165}} Merckx lost the lead after stage 1b, but regained it after stage 1c due to a time bonus that he earned from winning an intermediate sprint.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=165}} During the second stage, a major break with the major race contenders, including Merckx, formed with over a hundred kilometers to go.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=166}} The group finished nine minutes ahead of the peloton as Merckx came around [[Roger De Vlaeminck]] during the sprint to win the day.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=166}} After a week of racing, Merckx held a lead of around a minute over the main contenders.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=166}} The eighth stage saw a mountain top finish to [[Puy-de-Dôme]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=166}} [[Bernard Thévenet]] attacked on the lower slopes and Merckx was unable to counter.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=166}} [[Joop Zoetemelk]] and [[Luis Ocaña]] went with Thévenet and wound up gaining fifteen seconds on Merckx.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=166}}

[[File:Col du Cucheron - Le Planolet.JPG|thumb|left|While descending the [[Col du Cucheron]] during the ninth stage of the [[1971 Tour de France]], Merckx suffered a puncture. Seeing this, his rivals attacked and wound up gaining 1' 30" on Merckx.|alt=A picture of a mountain.]]
On the descent of the [[Col du Cucheron]] during the race's ninth leg, Merckx's tire punctured, prompting Ocaña to attack with Zoetemelk, Thévenet, and [[Gösta Pettersson]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=166–167}} The group of four finished a minute and a half ahead of Merckx, giving Zoetemelk the lead.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=167}} The following day Merckx lost eight minutes to Ocaña after a poor showing due to stomach pains and indigestion.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=168–169}} At the start of the eleventh stage, Merckx, three teammates, and a couple of others formed a breakaway.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=170}} Merckx's group finished two minutes in front of the peloton that was led by Ocaña's Bic team.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=171}} After winning the ensuing time trial, Merckx took back eleven more seconds on Ocaña.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=172}} The race entered the [[Pyrenees]] with the first stage, into [[Luchon]], being plagued by heavy thunderstorms that severely handicapped vision.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=173}} On the descent of the [[Col de Menté]], Merckx crashed on a left bend.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=174}} Ocaña, who was trailing, crashed into the same bend and Zoetemelk collided with him.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=174}} Merckx fell again on the descent and took the race lead as Ocaña was forced to retire from the race due to injuries from the crash.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=175}} Merckx declined to wear the yellow jersey the following day out of respect for Ocaña.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=175}} He won two more stages and the general, points, and combination classifications when the race finished in Paris.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=175}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=176}}

Seven weeks following the Tour, Merckx entered the men's road race at the [[1971 UCI Road World Championships|UCI Road World Championships]] that were held in [[Mendrisio]], Switzerland.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=179}} The route for the day was rather hilly and consisted of several circuits.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=179}} Merckx was a part of a five-man breakaway as the race reached five laps to go.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=179}} After attacking on the second to last stage, Merckx and Gimondi reached the finish, where Merckx won the race by four bike lengths.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=179}} This earned him his second rainbow jersey.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=179}} He closed out the 1971 calendar with his first victory in the [[Giro di Lombardia]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=179}} This victory meant that Merckx had won all of cycling's Monuments.<ref name="sports-reference" /> Merckx made the winning move when he attacked on the descent of the Intelvi Pass.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=179}} During the off-season, Merckx had his displaced pelvis tended to by a doctor.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=181}}

====1972: Breaking the hour record alongside a Giro–Tour double====
[[File:Raymond Poulidor, Tour de France 1966 (cropped).jpg|thumb|180px|upright|[[Raymond Poulidor]] (pictured at the [[1966 Tour de France]]) won [[1972 Paris–Nice|Paris–Nice]] after taking the lead away from Merckx in the race's final stage, an individual time trial.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=182}}|alt=A picture of a cyclist on a bike.]]
Due to his non-participation in track racing over the winter, Merckx entered the 1972 campaign in poorer form than in previous years.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=181}} In the Paris–Nice, Merckx broke a vertebra in a crash that occurred as the peloton was in the midst of a bunch sprint.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=181}} Against the advice of a physician, he started the next day being barely able to ride out of the saddle, leading Ocaña to attack him several times throughout the stage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=181}} In the race's fifth leg, Merckx sprinted away from Ocaña with 150 meters to go to win the day.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=182}} Merckx lost the race lead in the final stage to [[Raymond Poulidor]] and finished in second place overall.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=182}} Two days removed from Paris–Nice, Merckx was victorious for the fifth time at the Milan–San Remo after he established a gap on the descent of the Poggio.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=182}}

In Paris–Roubaix, he crashed again, further aggravating the injury he sustained from Paris–Nice.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=183}} He won Liège–Bastogne–Liège by making a solo move forty-six kilometers from the finish.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=183}} Three days later, in La Flèche Wallonne, Merckx was a part of a six-man leading group as the race neared its conclusion.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=183}} Merckx won the uphill sprint to the finish despite his [[derailleur]] shifting him to the wrong gear, forcing him to ride in a larger gear than anticipated.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=184}} He became the third rider to win La Flèche Wallonne and Liège–Bastogne–Liège in the same weekend.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=183}} Despite a monetary offer from race organizers for Merckx to participate in the [[1972 Vuelta a España|Vuelta a España]], he chose to take part in the [[1972 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=182}}

Merckx lost over two and a half minutes to Spanish climber [[José Manuel Fuente]] after the Giro's fourth stage that contained a summit finish to Blockhaus.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=187}} In the seventh stage, Fuente had attacked on the first climb of the day, the Valico di Monte Scuro.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=187}} However, Fuente cracked near the top of the climb, allowing for Merckx and Pettersson to catch and pass him. Merckx gained over four minutes on Fuente and became the new race leader.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=187}} He expanded his lead by two minutes through the stage 12a and 12b time trials, winning the former.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=188}} Fuente got Merckx on his own as the two climbed together during the fourteenth stage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=188}} He and teammate [[Francisco Galdós]] attacked, leaving Merckx behind.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=188}} Merckx eventually reconnected with the two on the final climb of the stage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=188}} He proceeded to attack and went on to win the stage by forty-seven seconds.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=188}} He lost two minutes to Fuente due to stomach trouble during the seventeenth leg that finished atop the [[Stelvio Pass]],{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=188}} but went on to win one more stage en route to his third victory at the Giro d'Italia.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=189}}

Merckx entered the [[1972 Tour de France|Tour de France]] in July where a battle between him and Ocaña was expected by many.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=189}} He took the opening prologue and expanded his advantage over all the other general classification contenders, except Ocaña, by at least three minutes.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=189–190}} Going into the Pyrenees, Merckx led Ocaña by fifty-one seconds.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=190}} The general classification favorites were riding together as the race hit the Col d'Aubisque in the seventh leg.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=190}} Ocaña punctured on the climb, allowing for the other riders to attack.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=190}} Ocaña chased after the group but crashed into a wall on the descent and went on to lose almost two minutes to Merckx.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=190}} Merckx was criticized for attacking while Ocaña had a flat, but Merckx responded that the year before Ocaña had done the same thing while the race was in the Alps.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=190}} Merckx won the following stage, regaining the lead which he had lost after the fourth leg.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=190}} During the next two major mountain stages, one to Mont Ventoux and the other to Orcières, he merely followed Ocaña's wheel.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=191}} He won three more stages before crossing the finish line in Paris as the race's winner,{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=192}} thus completing his second Giro-Tour double in the process.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=193}}

[[File:EddyMerckxHourRecordBike.jpg|thumb|left|[[Ernesto Colnago]] designed the bike Merckx used (pictured) during his [[hour record]] attempt to be similar to Merckx's track bike.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=197}} The bike weighed 5.9 kilograms and saw two hundred hours put into its production.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=200}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=224}}|alt=An orange bicycle behind glass.]]
After initially planning to attempt to break the [[hour record]] in August, Merckx decided to make the attempt in October after taking a ten-day hiatus from [[criterium]] racing to heal and prepare.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=197}} The attempt took place on 25 October in [[Mexico City]], Mexico at the outdoor track [[Agustín Melgar Olympic Velodrome|Agustin Melgar]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=198}} Mexico was chosen due to the higher altitude as this led to less air resistance.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=198}} He arrived in Mexico on the 21st to prepare for his attempt, but two days were lost due to rain.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=200}} His attempt started at 8:46 am local time and saw him finish the first ten kilometers twenty-eight seconds faster than the record pace.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=201–202}} However, Merckx started off too fast and began to fade as the attempt wore on.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=203}} He eventually was able to recover and posted a distance of {{convert|49.431|km|0|abbr=on}}, breaking the world record.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=204}}{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=131}}{{sfn|Nauright|Parrish|2012|p=368}} After finishing he was carried off and was quoted saying the pain was "very, very, very significant."{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=204}}

====1973: A Giro–Vuelta double====
An illness prevented Merckx from taking part in the Milan–San Remo at the start of the 1973 calendar.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=213}} During a span of nineteen days, Merckx won four classics including Omloop Het Volk, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, and Paris–Roubaix.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=213}} He decided to race the [[1973 Vuelta a España|Vuelta a España]] and the [[1973 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]], instead of racing the [[1973 Tour de France|Tour de France]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=213}} He won the opening prologue of the Vuelta to take an early lead.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=213}} Despite Ocaña's best efforts, Merckx won a total of six stages on his way to his only Vuelta a España title.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=213}} In addition to the general classification, Merckx won the race's [[Points classification in the Vuelta a España|points classification]] and [[Combination classification in the Vuelta a España|combination classifications]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=213}}

Four days after the conclusion of the Vuelta, Merckx lined up to start the Giro d'Italia.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=214}} He won the opening two-man time trial with [[Roger Swerts]] and the next day's leg as well.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=215}} Merckx's primary competitor, Fuente, lost a significant amount of time during the second stage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=214}} He won the eighth stage which featured a summit finish to [[Monte Carpegna]] despite Fuente attacking several times on the ascent.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=215}} Fuente tried attacking throughout the rest of the race, but was only able to make time gains on the race's penultimate stage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=215}} Merckx won the race after leading from start to finish, a feat only previously accomplished by [[Alfredo Binda]] and [[Costante Girardengo]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=215}} He also became the first rider to win the Giro and Vuelta in the same calendar year.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=215}}

[[File:Felice Gimondi 1966.jpg|thumb|180px|upright|[[Felice Gimondi]] (pictured in 1966) won the men's road race at the [[1973 UCI Road World Championships]], ahead of Merckx who was unable to contest the final sprint to the line, finishing last out of the leading group of four.|alt=A Felice Gimondi stamp.]]
The [[1973 UCI Road World Championships|UCI Road World Championships]] were held in [[Barcelona]], Spain in 1973 and contested on the Montjuich circuit.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=216}} During the road race, Merckx attacked with around one hundred kilometers left.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=216}} His move was marked by [[Freddy Maertens]], Gimondi, and Ocaña.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=216–217}} Merckx attacked on the final lap, but was reeled in by the three riders.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=217}} It came down to a sprint between the four, of which Merckx came in last and Gimondi in first.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=217}} Following the road race, Merckx won his first [[Paris–Brussels]] and [[Grand Prix des Nations]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=218}} He won both legs of [[À travers Lausanne]], as well as the Giro di Lombardia, but a [[#Doping|doping positive]] disqualified him.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=218}} He closed the season with over fifty victories to his credit.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=218}}

====1974: Completion of cycling's Triple Crown====
The 1974 season saw Merckx fail to win a spring classic for the first time in his career, in part due to him suffering from various illnesses during the early months.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=244}} [[Pneumonia]] forced him to quit racing for a month and forced him to enter the [[1974 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]] in poor form.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=245}} He lost time early in the race to Fuente, who took the race's first mountainous stage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=245}} Merckx gained time on Fuente in the race's only time trial.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=245}} Merckx attacked from two hundred kilometers out two days later in a stage that was plagued by horrendous weather.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=245}} Fuente lost ten minutes to Merckx, who became the race leader.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=245}} The twentieth stage had a summit finish to Tre Cime di Lavaredo.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=246}} Fuente and [[Gianbattista Baronchelli]] attacked on the climb, while Merckx was unable to match their accelerations.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=246}} He finished the stage only to see his lead shrink to twelve seconds over Baronchelli.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=246}} He held on to that lead until the race's conclusion, winning his fifth Giro d'Italia.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=246}}

Three days following his victory at the Giro, Merckx started the Tour de Suisse.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=247}} He won the race's prologue and rode conservatively for the rest of the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=247}} He took the final leg, an individual time trial, to seal his overall victory.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=247}} After finishing the race, Merckx had a [[sebaceous cyst]] removed on 22 June.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=247}} Five days following the surgery, he was scheduled to begin the [[1974 Tour de France|Tour de France]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=247}} The wound was still slightly open when he began the Grand Tour and it bled throughout the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=247}}

At the Tour, Merckx won the race's prologue, giving him the first race leader's ''maillot jaune'' ({{langx|en|yellow jersey}}),{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=247}} which he lost the next day to teammate Joseph Bruyère.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=248}} He won the seventh stage of the race, and regained the lead, through attacking in the closing kilometers and holding off the chasing peloton.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=248}} He put five minutes into Poulidor, his main rival, after dropping him on the [[Col du Galibier]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=249}} The next day, on the slopes of Mont Ventoux, Merckx rode to limit his losses after suffering several attacks from other general classification riders, including Poulidor, [[Vicente López Carril]] and [[Gonzalo Aja]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=249}} He expanded his lead through several stage victories afterward, including one where he attacked with ten kilometers to go in a flat stage and held off the peloton to reach the finish in [[Orléans]] almost a minute and a half before the chasing group.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=250}} Merckx finished the Tour with eight stage wins and his fifth Tour de France victory, equaling the record of Anquetil.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=250}}

[[File:Eddy Merckx Canada 1974 WK.jpg|thumb|left|With his victory in the [[1974 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|men's road race]] at the [[1974 UCI Road World Championships]] and his victories in two Grand Tours, the [[1974 Giro d'Italia|Giro]] and [[1974 Tour de France|Tour]], Merckx became the first rider to win the [[Triple Crown of Cycling]].|alt=A few cyclists riding on racing bicycles with a lot of spectators cheering.]]
Going into the [[1974 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|men's road race]] at the [[1974 UCI Road World Championships|UCI Road World Championships]], Merckx anchored a squad that included Van Springel, Maertens, and De Vlaeminck.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=253}} The route featured twenty-one laps of a circuit that contained two climbs.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=253}} Merckx and Poulidor attacked with around seven kilometers to go, after catching the leading breakaway.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=253}} The two rode to the finish together where Merckx won the sprint to the line, establishing a two-second gap between himself and Poulidor.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=253–254}} By winning the road race, Merckx became the first rider to win the [[Triple Crown of Cycling]], which consists of winning the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, and men's road race at the World Championships in one calendar year.<ref name="ELM 74 WC">{{cite news|url=http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1974/08/26/MD19740826-023.pdf|title=Merckx logro su tercer titulo mundial batiendo a Poulidor|date=26 August 1974|page=23|language=es|trans-title=Merckx achieving his third world title beating Poulidor|newspaper=El Mundo Deportivo|access-date=20 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630020705/http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1974/08/26/MD19740826-023.pdf|archive-date=30 June 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="CN EM TC">{{cite web|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/gallery-eddy-merckx-turns-70 |title=Gallery: Eddy Merckx turns 70 |date=16 March 2012 |work=Cycling News|publisher=Future Publishing |access-date=19 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630015848/http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/gallery-eddy-merckx-turns-70|archive-date=30 June 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> It was also his third world title, becoming the third rider to ever be world champion three times, after Binda and [[Rik Van Steenbergen]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=254}}

====1975: Second place at the Tour====
With victories at Milan–San Remo and [[1975 Amstel Gold Race|Amstel Gold Race]], Merckx opened the 1975 season in good form, also winning the [[Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=254}} In the Catalan Week, Merckx lost his super domestique Bruyère, who had helped Merckx to victory in years past many times, to a broken leg.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=254}} Two days following the Catalan Week, Merckx participated in the [[1975 Tour of Flanders|Tour of Flanders]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=254}} He launched an attack with eighty kilometers to go, with only [[Frans Verbeeck (cyclist)|Frans Verbeeck]] being able to match his acceleration.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=255}} Verbeeck was dropped as the race reached five kilometers remaining, allowing Merckx to take his third Tour of Flanders victory.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=255}} In Paris–Roubaix, Merckx suffered a flat tire with around eighty kilometers left when a part of a leading group of four.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=255}} After chasing for three kilometers, he caught the three other riders and the group rode into the finish together; De Vlaeminck won the day.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=255}} Merckx won his fifth Liège–Bastogne–Liège by attacking several times in the closing portions of the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=255}}

Merckx's attitude while racing had changed: riders expected him to chase down attacks, which angered him.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=255–256}} Notably, in the Tour de Romandie he was riding with race leader Zoetemelk as an attack occurred.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=256}} Merckx refused to chase the break down, and the two lost fourteen minutes.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=256}} Merckx contracted a cold and, later, tonsilitis while racing in the spring campaign.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=258}} This caused him to be in poor form, forcing him to not participate in the [[1975 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=258}} He then rode in the Dauphiné Libéré and was not on par with Thevenet, who won the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=258}} At the Tour de Suisse, De Vlaeminck won the race as a whole, while Merckx finished second.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=258}}

[[File:Eddy Merckx, Amstel Gold Race 1975 finish.jpg|thumb|Merckx crossing the finish line to win the [[1975 Amstel Gold Race]]|alt=A cyclist holding his hands aloft.]]
He placed second in the [[1975 Tour de France|Tour de France]]'s prologue.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=259}} The following morning's split stage saw Merckx put time on Thevenet by attacking with [[Francesco Moser]], Van Impe, and Zoetemelk.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=259}} In day's second leg, Merckx gained time on Zoetemelk.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=259}} He won the stage six individual time trial and gaining more time on Thevenet and Zoetemelk.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=259}} He won the next time trial into [[Auch]] as well.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=260}} During the race's eleventh stage, Merckx sent his team to set the pace early on in the stage.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=260}} Reaching the final climb of the day, Merckx was on his own as his team had been used to set the pace throughout the day.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=260}} On the day's final climb to [[Pla d'Adet]], he matched an acceleration by Zoetemelk.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=260}} Thevenet then launched an attack, to which Merckx could not follow and saw him lose over two minutes.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=260}} After the stage Merckx switched decided to mark Thevenet for the rest of the race and make an attack on the Puy-de-Dôme.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=260}}

While climbing the Puy-de-Dôme, Thevenet and Van Impe attacked.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=260}} Merckx followed at his own pace and kept the two riders within a hundred meters.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=261}} With about 150&nbsp;m remaining, Merckx was prepared to sprint to the line, but was punched in the back by a spectator, Nello Breton.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=261}} He crossed the line thirty-four seconds behind Thevenet and proceeded to vomit after catching his breath.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=261}} The punch left him with a large bruise.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=261}} During the rest day he was found to have an inflamed liver for which he was prescribed blood thinners.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=261}}

The stage following the rest day featured five climbs, Merckx felt a pain on the third climb in the area of the punch and had a teammate get him an [[analgesic]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=262}} Thevenet attacked several times on the climb of the [[Col des Champs]], all of which Merckx countered.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=263}} Merckx retaliated by speeding away on the descent.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=263}} On the start of the next climb, Merckx had his Molteni teammates set the pace and he distanced himself from his competitors before the start of the final climb.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=263}} However, as Merckx began the final climb he cracked. Thevenet caught and passed him with four kilometers left.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=264}} Gimondi, Van Impe, and Zoetemelk passed Merckx, who finished fifth and one minute and twenty-six seconds down.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=264–265}} The following day, Merckx caught up with the leading breakaway and wanted to push ahead, but the riders chose not to participate in the pace making, leading Merckx to sit up and get caught.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=265}} He lost two more minutes to Thevenet, who attacked on the [[Col d'Izoard]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=265}} He crashed in the next leg, breaking a [[cheekbone]], and gained some time on Thevenet before the finish in Paris.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=266}} He finished in second place, the first time he had lost a Tour in his six starts.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=267}}

====1976: A record seventh Milan–San Remo====
He opened his 1976 season with his record seventh victory in Milan–San Remo.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=269}} He followed with a victory in the Catalan Week, but suffered a crash in the final stage when a spectator's bag caught his handlebars, injuring his elbow.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=269}} This injury plagued his performance throughout the spring classic season.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=269}} He entered the [[1976 Giro d'Italia|Giro d'Italia]] but failed to win a stage for the first time in his career.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=269}} He finished the race in eighth overall while battling a saddle boil throughout the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=269}} Following the Giro's conclusion Merckx announced that he and his team Molteni would not take part in the [[1976 Tour de France|Tour de France]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=270}} He took part in the men's road race at the [[1976 UCI Road World Championships|UCI Road World Championships]] and finished in fifth position.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=270}} He ended his season in October after racing for most of August.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=270}} He failed to win the [[Super Prestige Pernod International]], a competition where riders were awarded points for their placements in certain professional races, for the first time since 1968.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=270}} In the first two months of his off-season, Merckx spent the majority of his time lying down.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=270}} Molteni ended their sponsorship at the end of the season.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=270}}

=== 1977–1978: Fiat France and C&A ===
[[File:Raphaël Geminiani-a (cropped).jpg|upright|thumb|180px|[[Raphaël Géminiani]] (pictured during the [[1954 Tour de France]]) became Merckx's new team manager with [[Fiat France (cycling team)|Fiat France]] for the 1977 season.|alt=A cyclist posing for a photo.]]

[[Fiat France (cycling team)|Fiat France]] became the new sponsor for Merckx's team and Raphaël Géminiani the new manager.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=272}} He got his season's first victories in the Grand Prix d'Aix and [[Tour Méditerranéen]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=273}} Merckx agreed to ride a light spring season in order to save himself for a chance at a sixth Tour victory.{{sfn|Cazeneuve|Chany|2011|p=664}} He took one stage at the Paris–Nice but had to withdraw from the race's final stage due to [[sinusitis]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=273}} In the spring classics, Merckx did not win any races, with his best finish being a sixth place in the Liège–Bastogne–Liège.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=273}} Before the Tour, Merckx raced both the Dauphiné Libéré and Tour de Suisse, winning one stage of the latter.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=273}}

He admitted his poor form and anxiety about aggravating previous injuries going into the [[1977 Tour de France|Tour de France]].{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=274}} He held on to second place overall for two weeks.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=274}} As the race entered the Alps, Merckx began to lose more time; he lost thirteen minutes on the stage to [[Alpe d'Huez]] alone.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=274}} On the stage into [[Saint-Étienne]], Merckx attacked and gained enough time to move into sixth overall; he finished the Tour in the same position.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=275}} In the time following the Tour, Merckx raced twenty-two races in a span of forty days before coming in thirty-third at the [[1977 UCI Road World Championships|UCI Road World Championships]] men's road race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=276}} Merckx earned his final victory on the road on 17 September in a kermis race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=276}} In late December, Fiat France chose to end their sponsorship of Merckx in favor of building a more French centered squad.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=281}}

In January, the department store [[C&A]] announced that they would sponsor [[C&A (cycling team)|a new team]] for Merckx after their owner met Merckx at a football game.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=281}} His plan for the season was to race one last Tour de France and then ride several smaller races for appearances.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|pp=281–282}} He raced a total of five races in the 1978 calendar.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=271}} His last victory was in a track event, an omnium in [[Zürich]], on 10 February 1978 with [[Patrick Sercu]].<ref name="memoire">{{cite web|title=Palmarès de Eddy Merckx (Bel)|language=fr|trans-title=Awards of Eddy Merckx (Bel)|url=http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.eu/palmares/merckx_eddy.php|work=Memoire du cyclisme|access-date=8 May 2013}}</ref> His first road race came in the Grand Prix de Montauroux on 19 February.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=271}} Merckx came to the front of the race and put in a large effort before swinging off and quitting the race.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=281}} His best finish came in the [[Tour de Haut]], where he managed fifth.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=281}} He dropped out of Omloop Het Volk due to [[colitis]] and completed his final race on 19 March, a kermis in Kemzeke.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=281}} Following the race, Merckx went on a vacation to go skiing.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=281}} He returned from travel to train more, but by this point the team sponsor knew he was going to quit.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=281}} Merckx announced his retirement from the sport on 18 May.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=281}} He stated that the doctors advised him against racing.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=282}}

== Retirement ==
{{Main|Eddy Merckx Cycles}}
{{#invoke:multiple image|
| image1    = EddyMerckxFactoryInMeise.jpg
| width1    = 175
| alt1      = A bike factory
| image2    = 1989 7-Eleven TEAM - Eddy Merckx 1-10.JPG
| width2    = 175
| alt2      = A bicycle
| footer    = [[Eddy Merckx Cycles]] (factory pictured left) opened in 1980 and soon began producing bikes that were used by several professional cycling teams (a 1989 model used by {{UCI team code|MOT|1989}} pictured right) in the last two decades of the 20th century.
}}
Following his exit from racing, Merckx opened up [[Eddy Merckx Cycles]] on 28 March 1980 in Brussels.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=328}} The initial workers that were hired for the factory were trained by Ugo De Rosa, a notable bike maker, before starting.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=286}} The company almost went bankrupt at one point and was also caught up in a tax repayment controversy.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=286}} Merckx would spend time giving input on the models as they were being produced.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=328}}{{sfn|Moore|Benson|2013|p=135}} Despite the financial problems the brand became highly regarded and successful, being used by several top-level cycling teams in the 1980s and 1990s.{{sfn|Moore|Benson|2013|p=134}} Merckx stepped down as CEO in 2008 and sold most of his shares,{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=288}} but continued to test the bikes that were created and had some input.{{sfn|Moore|Benson|2013|p=135}} Cycling journalist Sam Dansie believes that Eddy Merckx Cycles has maintained a presence as an elite bicycle due to its adoption of new methods over time.{{sfn|Moore|Benson|2013|p=135}} As of January 2015, the business is still based in Belgium and distributes to over twenty-five countries.<ref name="PM EMC">{{cite web|url=http://pelotonmagazine.com/goods/eddy-merckx-custom-bike-eddy-70/|title=Merckx Masterpiece: The EDDY70 |date=27 January 2015 |work=Peloton|publisher=Move Press|access-date=10 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150710220420/http://pelotonmagazine.com/goods/eddy-merckx-custom-bike-eddy-70/|archive-date=10 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

Merckx managed the Belgian national team world championships for eleven years, between 1986 and 1996.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=287}} He acted as the race director for the Tour of Flanders for a brief period of time.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=287}} He temporarily sponsored a youth developmental team with CGER Bank, a team that featured his son Axel.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=288}} He helped organize the [[Grand Prix Eddy Merckx]], which started out as an invitation only individual time trial event, later becoming a two-man time trial event.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=288}} The event folded after 2004 due to riders' lack of interest.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=288}}

He played a pivotal role in getting the [[Tour of Qatar]] started in 2002.<ref name="CW TOQ">{{cite news|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/eddy-merckx-takes-pride-in-tour-of-qatar-status-157591|title=How Eddy Merckx put the Middle East on the cycling map|date=14 February 2015|author=Gregor Brown|work=Cycling Weekly|access-date=11 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150711135549/http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/eddy-merckx-takes-pride-in-tour-of-qatar-status-157591|archive-date=11 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2001 [[Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani]], the former [[Emir]] of [[Qatar]], reached out to Merckx and told him of his interest in starting a bicycle race to show off his country.<ref name="CW TOQ" /> Merckx then contacted then [[Union Cycliste Internationale]] (UCI) president [[Hein Verbruggen]], who checked out Qatar's roads.<ref name="CW TOQ" /> Following a successful inspection, Merckx contacted the [[Amaury Sport Organisation]] about working with him planning the race; they agreed in 2001.<ref name="CW TOQ" /> Merckx officially co-owned the race with Dirk De Pauw and helped organize it until the race was cancelled before the 2017 edition due to financial reasons.<ref name="CW TOQ" /><ref name="CW Q WC">{{cite news|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/eddy-merckx-rates-tough-qatar-world-champs-course-156553|title=Eddy Merckx rates tough Qatar World Champs course|date=9 February 2015|author=Gregor Brown|work=Cycling Weekly|publisher=IPC Media |access-date=11 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150711140607/http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/eddy-merckx-rates-tough-qatar-world-champs-course-156553|archive-date=11 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="CN ToO Split">{{cite web|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/eddy-merckx-splits-with-aso-in-tour-of-oman-spat/|title=Eddy Merckx splits with ASO in Tour of Oman spat|date=15 November 2017 |website=[[Cycling News]]|access-date=19 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190809021121/http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/eddy-merckx-splits-with-aso-in-tour-of-oman-spat/|archive-date=9 August 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> In addition, Merckx also helped Qatar secure the right to host the [[2016 UCI Road World Championships]], as well as designing the race route for the road race.<ref name="CW TOQ" /><ref name="CW Q WC" /><ref name="CN ToO Split"/> Merckx briefly co-owned and helped start the [[Tour of Oman]] in 2010.<ref name="TOM">{{cite news|author=John Wilcockson|url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2015/02/news/merckx-pushes-to-renew-tour-of-oman-contract-despite-rider-protest_361628|title=Merckx pushes to renew Tour of Oman contract despite rider protest|date=25 February 2015 |work=VeloNews|publisher=Competitor Group|access-date=14 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150702073908/http://velonews.competitor.com/2015/02/news/merckx-pushes-to-renew-tour-of-oman-contract-despite-rider-protest_361628|archive-date=2 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2015, Merckx said later that although he was not racing, he knew would still be involved with the sport "as a bike builder, first in the factory and now as an ambassador."<ref name="CN EMC">{{cite web|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/eddy-merckx-reflects-on-his-career-and-life-on-his-70th-birthday|title=Eddy Merckx reflects on his career and life on his 70th birthday |author=Stephen Farrand|date=19 June 2015 |website=[[Cycling News]]|access-date=19 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150710220049/http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/eddy-merckx-reflects-on-his-career-and-life-on-his-70th-birthday|archive-date=10 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> In November 2017, it was announced that Merckx and his partner Dirk De Pauw split with Tour of Oman organizer ASO following an undisclosed dispute.<ref name="CN ToO Split"/>

== Personal life ==
[[File:Eddy-merckx-1350831751.jpg|thumb|Eddy Merckx during an interview in 2010|alt=Eddy Merckx talking.]]
Merckx officially began dating Claudine Acou in April 1965.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=69}} Acou was a 21-year-old teacher and daughter of the trainer of the national amateur team.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=40}} Merckx asked her father for permission to marry her between track races.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=69}} On 5 December 1967 Merckx married Acou after four years of courtship.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=69}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=40}}{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=11}} She would often handle the press for her husband, who was shy.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=70}} Acou gave birth to their first child, Sabrina, on 14 February 1970.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=140}} Merckx skipped a team training camp to be with his wife for Sabrina's birth.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=140}} Acou later gave birth to a son, [[Axel Merckx|Axel]], who also became a professional cyclist.{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=132}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=83}}{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=288}} Merckx was brought up speaking [[Flemish dialects|Flemish]], but was taught [[French language|French]] in school.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=83}}

In 1996 [[Albert II of Belgium]], King of the Belgians, gave him the title of [[baron]].{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=132}}{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=335}} In Italy, Merckx was given the title of ''[[Cavaliere]]''.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=335}} In 2011, he was named [[Legion of Honour|Commandeur de la Légion d'honneur]] by then French President [[Nicolas Sarkozy]] in Paris, having been named ''Chevalier'' (Knight) of the order in January 1975.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=335}}<ref name="CDLH">{{cite news|url=http://www.lapresse.ca/sports/autres-sports/cyclisme/201112/06/01-4475064-eddy-merckx-eleve-au-rang-de-commandeur-de-la-legion-dhonneur.php|title=Eddy Merckx élevé au rang de Commandeur de la Légion d'honneur |work=La Presse|trans-title=Eddy Merckx to the rank of Commander of the Legion of Honour|language=fr|date=6 December 2011|agency=[[Agence France-Presse]]|access-date=27 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712141400/http://www.lapresse.ca/sports/autres-sports/cyclisme/201112/06/01-4475064-eddy-merckx-eleve-au-rang-de-commandeur-de-la-legion-dhonneur.php|archive-date=12 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Merckx has become an ambassador for the Damien The Leper Society, a foundation named after a Catholic priest, which battles [[leprosy]] and other diseases in developing countries.{{sfn|Thorne|Lambers|1998|p=202}} He was blessed by [[Pope John Paul II]] in Brussels in the 1990s.{{sfn|Thorne|Lambers|1998|p=202}} Merckx is an art lover and stated that his favorite artist is [[René Magritte]], a [[surrealist]].<ref name="CW Int" /> [[Salvador Dalí]] is another of his favorites.<ref name="CW Int" />

Before starting the third stage of the 1968 Giro d'Italia,<ref name="CN PM">{{cite web|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/did-merckx-ride-with-potentially-lethal-heart-problem/|title=Did Merckx ride with potentially lethal heart problem?|date=21 March 2012 |work=Cycling News|publisher=Future Publishing |access-date=19 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712161743/http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/did-merckx-ride-with-potentially-lethal-heart-problem/|archive-date=12 July 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> Merckx was found to have a heart condition.<ref name="Pacem">{{cite news|author=VeloNews.com|url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2013/03/news/eddy-merckx-fitted-with-a-pacemaker-to-control-heart-issues_278614|title=Eddy Merckx fitted with a pacemaker to control heart issues|date=22 March 2013 |work=VeloNews|access-date=14 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712160915/http://velonews.competitor.com/2013/03/news/eddy-merckx-fitted-with-a-pacemaker-to-control-heart-issues_278614|archive-date=12 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> A cardiologist, Giancarlo Lavezzaro, found that Merckx had [[Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy|non-obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy]], a disease that has killed several young athletes.<ref name="CN PM" /><ref name="Pacem" /> In 2013, Merckx was given a [[pacemaker]] to help correct a heart rhythm issue.<ref name="Pacem" /> The surgery was performed in [[Genk]] on the 21st of March of that year as a preventative measure.<ref name="Pacem" /> Merckx stated that he never had any heart issues while racing, despite the fact that several men in his family died young of heart-related problems.<ref name="CN PM" /><ref name="Pacem" /> In May 2004, he had an [[esophagus]] operation to cure stomachaches that had plagued him since he was young.<ref name="CN ESOP">{{cite web|url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2004/nov04/nov29news |title=Merckx dispels health rumours |author=Jeff Jones & Hedwig Kröner |date=29 November 2004 |work=Cycling News |publisher=Future Publishing |access-date=19 June 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712162328/http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news%2F2004%2Fnov04%2Fnov29news |archive-date=12 July 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> In August, he reported that he lost nearly 30&nbsp;kg after the procedure.<ref name="CN ESOP" /> On 13 October 2019, Merckx was hospitalised after a cycling accident, having suffered a haemorrhage and falling unconscious for a while. He was released a week later.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Long |first1=Jonny |title=Eddy Merckx released from hospital following bike crash |url=https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/racing/eddy-merckx-released-hospital-following-bike-crash-440843 |work=[[Cycling Weekly]] |access-date=22 October 2019 |date=20 October 2019}}</ref>

In December 2024, Merckx crashed while on a group bike ride and fractured his hip. He will undergo surgery at the same hospital as [[Remco Evenepoel]] did the previous week.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-12-09 |title=Eddy Merckx crash: Cycling legend to undergo surgery after suffering a fractured hip |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/articles/cj901dkl2e4o |access-date=2024-12-10 |website=BBC Sport |language=en-GB}}</ref> As a result of the accident, Merckx required a full hip replacement.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Stokes |first=Shane |date=2024-12-11 |title='Next Time I Will Ride with Training Wheels': Eddy Merckx Gets Total Hip Replacement after Crash |url=https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-racing/next-time-i-will-ride-with-training-wheels-eddy-merckx-gets-total-hip-replacement-after-crash/ |access-date=2024-12-12 |website=Velo |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Career achievements ==
{{Main|List of career achievements by Eddy Merckx}}
{{Clear}}

== Legacy ==
[[File:Eddy Merckx Molteni 1973.jpg|thumb|Merckx (pictured in August 1973) was a successful cyclist on the road and on the track, with a record of 525 victories to his credit over the course of his career.]]
Merckx has been regarded by many as the greatest and most successful cyclist of all time.<ref name="VN EM 70" /><ref name="VN 60" />{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=130}}{{sfn|Nauright|Parrish|2012|p=368}}<ref name="BRI EM">{{cite web|url=http://www.bikeraceinfo.com/photo-galleries/rider-gallery/merckx-eddy.html |title=Eddy Merckx Photo Gallery |work= Bike Race Info |publisher=Dog Ear Publishing |last1=McGann |first1=Bill |last2=McGann |first2=Carol |access-date=6 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150713162638/http://www.bikeraceinfo.com/photo-galleries/rider-gallery/merckx-eddy.html|archive-date=13 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="NYT CAN">{{cite news|author=George Vecsey|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/27/sports/cycling/cyclist-merckx-had-big-appetite-for-racing-and-winning.html|title=Appetite for Racing, and for Winning|date=26 August 2011|work=The New York Times|agency=[[Associated Press]]|access-date=22 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130722133243/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/27/sports/cycling/cyclist-merckx-had-big-appetite-for-racing-and-winning.html|archive-date=22 July 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> He rode well in the Grand Tours and in the one-day classics.<ref name="PM EM">{{cite web|url=http://pelotonmagazine.com/pages/from-inside-peloton-1972-the-greatest-season-ever/|title=From Inside Peloton: 1972, The Greatest Season Ever|author=Patrick Brady |work=Peloton|date=6 April 2014 |publisher=Move Press|access-date=10 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150710220420/http://pelotonmagazine.com/goods/eddy-merckx-custom-bike-eddy-70/|archive-date=10 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> He was a very good time trialist and climber.<ref name="sports-reference" />{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=130}}<ref name="BRI EM" /> In addition, Merckx showed great ability to race on the track.<ref name="BRI EM" /> He was known for racing style that consisted of attacking constantly, which came to be known as ''la course en tête'' ("the race in the lead") for which the documentary on Merckx, "La Course en Tête" (which also has the double meaning of 'the race in your head') was named.{{Sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=219}}{{refn|name=Tete|group=N|This term was popularized by the eponymous film by Joel Santoni that documented Merckx's racing.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=219}}}} Attacking for Merckx was the best form of defence.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=220}} He would spend a day in a breakaway and then make another significant attack the following day.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=221}} Despite his constant attacking, he would occasionally ride in a defensive mindset, particularly when racing the Giro and facing Fuente.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=222}} Merckx entered over 1,800 races during his career and won a total of 525.<ref name="VN EM 70" /><ref name="CN EM TC" /><ref name="BRI EM" /><ref name="PM EM" /><ref name="CW EM Lega">{{cite news|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/cycling-legends-the-ultimate-guide-to-eddy-merckx-out-now-176086|title=Cycling Legends: the ultimate guide to Eddy Merckx – pre-order your copy now|author=Cycling Weekly|work=Cycling Weekly|publisher=IPC Media |date=10 June 2015|access-date=26 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150714130343/http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/cycling-legends-the-ultimate-guide-to-eddy-merckx-out-now-176086|archive-date=14 July 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Due to his dominance in the sport some cycling historians refer to the period in which he raced as the "Merckx Era."{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=225}} During his professional career, he won 445 of the 1585 races he entered.<ref name="VN 60" /> Between the years of 1967 and 1977 Merckx raced between 111 and 151 races each season.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=277}} In 1971, he raced 120 times and won 54 of the events,{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=225}} the most races any cyclist has won in a season. Merckx admits that he was the best of his generation, but insists it's not practical to compare across generations.<ref name="NYT CAN" /> Given the specialization of a cyclist's role in the modern peloton, Merckx's number of road race victories will most likely never be surpassed in the future.

Merckx is one of the three riders to win all five '[[Classic cycle races|Monuments of Cycling]]' (i.e., Milan–San Remo, Tour of Flanders, Paris–Roubaix, [[Liège–Bastogne–Liège]], and the Giro di Lombardia), the other two being Rik Van Looy and Roger De Vlaeminck.<ref name="sports-reference" />{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=130}} He finished his career with nineteen victories across the monuments, more than any other rider and eight more than the rider with the second most.<ref name="sports-reference" />{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=130}}<ref name="CN EM TC" /> He won twenty-eight classic races,<ref name="BRI EM" /> with Paris–Tours being the only race he did not win. The closest he came to victory in the race was sixth in the 1973 race. A lesser Belgian rider, [[Noël Vantyghem|Noël van Tyghem]], won Paris–Tours in 1972<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cykelsiderne.net/wedstrijdfichestatscdet.php?wedstrijdid=1102&landid=17 |title=Cykelsiderne. Database. Sejre/Etaper pr. land Paris – Tours Belgien |publisher=Cykelsiderne.net |date=27 June 2010 |access-date=17 July 2010}}</ref> and said: "Between us, I and Eddy Merckx have won every classic that can be won. I won Paris–Tours, Merckx won all the rest."<ref name="Independent, alt view">{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/tour-de-france-an-alternative-view-of-the-ultimate-road-race-456215.html |title=Tour de France: An alternative view of the ultimate road race|work=The Independent|location=UK |publisher=Independent Digital News and Media |date= 6 July 2007|access-date=17 July 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080708095307/http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/tour-de-france-an-alternative-view-of-the-ultimate-road-race-456215.html|archive-date=8 July 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref>

{{Quote box
| quote = One takes Merckx's legs, Merckx's head, Merckx's muscles, Merckx's heart and Merckx's zeal for victory.
| source = [[Bernard Hinault]] when asked to describe the "ideal cyclist"<ref>{{cite web |date=17 June 2015 |title=70 feitjes over de jarige 'Kannibaal' Eddy Merckx |url=https://www.ad.nl/wielrennen/70-feitjes-over-de-jarige-kannibaal-eddy-merckx~a06efbeb/ |website=www.ad.nl |publisher=[[Algemeen Dagblad]] |language=nl}}</ref>
| bgcolor = #CCDDFF
| align = right
| width = 29%
| quoted = 1
}}
While racing, he became the third rider to win all three Grand Tours in his career, a feat that has since been accomplished by more riders.{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=130}}<ref name="PM EM" /> He holds the record for most Grand Tour victories with 11, along with the record for most stage wins across all three Grand Tours with 64.<ref name="CW EM Lega" /> He has completed the most Giro-Tour doubles in history with three.<ref name="PM EM" /><ref name="CW EM Lega" /> He was the first rider to win cycling's Triple Crown which has only been accomplished two other times, by [[Stephen Roche]] in 1987 and [[Tadej Pogačar]] in 2024.<ref name="sports-reference" />{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=130}}<ref name="BRI EM" /> He is the only rider to win the general, points and mountains classifications at the Giro d'Italia, in 1968, and at the Tour de France, in 1969.{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=130}} Since then, the general, points and mountains classifications have been won at the Vuelta a España by [[Tony Rominger]] in 1993 and by [[Laurent Jalabert]] in 1995.{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=130}} He shares the record for most victories at both the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France, with five wins at each.{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=225}}{{sfn|Nauright|Parrish|2012|p=368}} In those races he also holds the records for days spent in the race leader's jersey at 78 and 96 respectively.{{sfn|Nauright|Parrish|2012|p=368}}<ref name="VN EM GDTHOF">{{cite news|url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2012/03/news/giro-ditalia-hall-of-fame-inducts-eddy-merckx-as-its-first-member_209438|title=Giro d'Italia Hall of Fame inducts Eddy Merckx as its first member|date=15 March 2012|author=VeloNews.com |work=VeloNews|publisher=Competitor Group|access-date=14 May 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630014658/http://velonews.competitor.com/2012/03/news/giro-ditalia-hall-of-fame-inducts-eddy-merckx-as-its-first-member_209438|archive-date=30 June 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> For his career successes in the Giro d'Italia, Merckx became the first rider inducted into the race's Hall of Fame in 2012.<ref name="VN EM GDTHOF" /><ref name="CN EM HOF">{{cite web|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/merckx-inducted-into-giro-ditalia-hall-of-fame |title=Merckx inducted into Giro d'Italia Hall of Fame|date=16 March 2012 |work=Cycling News|access-date=13 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626210151/http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/merckx-inducted-into-giro-ditalia-hall-of-fame|archive-date=26 June 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> When being inducted, Merckx was given the modern-day trophy with the winners engraved until 1974, the last year he won the race.<ref name="VN EM GDTHOF" /><ref name="CN EM HOF" /> At the Tour, he sits just behind Mark Cavendish for the record of the most stage wins in a career, Merckx's thirty-four to Cavendish's thirty-five.<ref name="BRI EM" /><ref name="CW EM Lega" />{{sfn|Liggett|Raia|Lewis|2005|p=179}} The ''Grand Départ'' for the [[2019 Tour de France]] was held in Brussels, Belgium to honor Merckx's first Tour de France win in 1969.<ref name="VN Tdf 2019">{{cite news|url=https://www.velonews.com/2019/07/news/50-years-on-merckxs-legendary-status-gets-fresh-recognition_496410|title=50 years on, Merckx's legendary status gets fresh recognition|date=7 July 2019|author=Rupert Guinness |work=VeloNews|access-date=9 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190809022213/https://www.velonews.com/2019/07/news/50-years-on-merckxs-legendary-status-gets-fresh-recognition_496410|archive-date=9 August 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Tour de France honours Merckx with 2019 Brussels Grand Depart |url=https://en.as.com/en/2017/05/30/other_sports/1496178624_428985.html |access-date=6 July 2019 |work=[[Diario AS]] |agency=[[Perform Group]] |date=30 May 2017}}</ref>

He was given the nickname "The Cannibal" by the daughter of [[Christian Raymond]], a teammate of Merckx's.<ref name="NYT CAN" />{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=146}} Raymond had commented on Merckx not allowing anyone else to win, to which his daughter referred to Merckx as a cannibal.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=146}}<ref name="NYT CAN" /> Raymond liked the nickname and then mentioned it to the press.{{sfn|Friebe|2012|p=146}} In Italy, he was known as ''il mostro'' ("the Monster").{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=226}}

Dutch cyclist [[Joop Zoetemelk]] said "First there was Merckx, and then another classification began behind him."<ref name="VN 60" /> Cycling journalist and commentator [[Phil Liggett]] wrote that if Merckx started a race, many riders acknowledged that they likely would be competing for second place.{{sfn|Liggett|Raia|Lewis|2005|p=178}} Ted Costantino wrote that Merckx was undoubtedly the number one cyclist of all time, whereas in other sports there are debates that go on about who is actually the greatest of all time.<ref name="VN 60" /> [[Gianni Motta]] told of how Merckx would ride without a racing cape when it was snowing or raining in order to go faster than other riders.{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=54}} Even after his retirement, many subsequent stars still feel overshadowed by his fame and race results. Merckx befriended [[Fiorenzo Magni]] when he began racing for an Italian team.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2012/03/news/giro-ditalia-hall-of-fame-inducts-eddy-merckx-as-its-first-member_209438 |title=Giro d'Italia Hall of Fame inducts Eddy Merckx as its first member |work=VeloNews |date=25 April 2012 |access-date=30 October 2013 |archive-date=30 June 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630014658/http://velonews.competitor.com/2012/03/news/giro-ditalia-hall-of-fame-inducts-eddy-merckx-as-its-first-member_209438 |url-status=dead }}</ref> He was criticized by opposing riders for his relentless pursuit of victory that prevented even lesser known riders from collecting a few victories.{{sfn|Heijmans|Mallon|2011|p=131-132}} When told that he won too much, Merckx stated that "The day when I start a race without intending to win it, I won't be able to look at myself in the mirror."{{sfn|Fotheringham|2013|p=226}}

=== Records overview ===

==== Grand Tours ====
* Most [[Grand Tour (cycling)#Wins per rider|Grand Tour wins]]: 11
* Most [[Grand Tour (cycling)#Winners of three or more consecutive Grand Tours|consecutive Grand Tours wins]]: 4 in [[1972 Giro d'Italia]], [[1972 Tour de France]], [[1973 Vuelta a España]] & [[1973 Giro d'Italia]]
* Most [[List of riders with stage wins at all three cycling Grand Tours|Grand Tour stage wins]]: 64
* Most [[List of Tour de France general classification winners#Multiple winners|Tour de France wins]]: 5 in [[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1970 Tour de France|1970]], [[1971 Tour de France|1971]], [[1972 Tour de France|1972]] & [[1974 Tour de France|1974]] (record shared with [[Jacques Anquetil]], [[Bernard Hinault]] and [[Miguel Induráin]])
* Most stage wins in 1 Tour de France: 8 in 1970 (record shared with [[Charles Pélissier]] and [[Freddy Maertens]])
* Most days in [[Yellow jersey statistics|Tour de France yellow jersey]] [[File:Jersey gold.svg|20px]]: 96
* First [[Tour de France records and statistics#Riders who have won in all three specialties|winner of all 3 specialties in 1 Tour de France]] (mountain, sprint, and [[individual time trial]]) in 1974 (equalled by [[Bernard Hinault]] and [[Wout van Aert]])
* The only general, points and mountains classification winner in the Tour de France: 1969
* Most Tour de France [[Combativity award in the Tour de France|combativity awards]] [[File:Jersey_red_number.svg|20x20px]]: 4 in 1969, 1970, 1974 & [[1975 Tour de France|1975]]
* Most [[Giro d'Italia]] wins: 5 in [[1968 Giro d'Italia|1968]], [[1970 Giro d'Italia|1970]], [[1972 Giro d'Italia|1972]], [[1973 Giro d'Italia|1973]] & [[1974 Giro d'Italia|1974]] (record shared with [[Alfredo Binda]] and [[Fausto Coppi]])
* Most days in [[Giro d'Italia records and statistics|Giro d'Italia pink jersey]] [[File:Jersey rosa.svg|20px]]: 78
* The only general, points and mountains classification winner in the Giro d'Italia: [[1968 Giro d'Italia|1968]]

==== Classic races ====
* Winner of all 5 [[Cycling monument|Monuments of Cycling]] (record shared with [[Rik Van Looy]] and [[Roger De Vlaeminck]])
* [[Cycling monument#Most monuments wins|Most victories in all Monuments]]: 19
* The only [[Cycling monument#Winners of three monuments in a single year|winner of 3 Monuments in 1 year]]: 4 times in 1969, 1971, 1972 & 1975
* The only cyclist to win all 5 [[Cycling monument|Monuments]] more than once
* Most victories in [[Classic cycle races|classic races]]: 28{{refn|name=classics|group=N|Classics at that time were Milano-San Remo, Ronde van Vlanderen, Paris-Roubaix, Liege-Bastogne-Liege, Il Lombardia, Paris-Tours, Fleche Wallonne, Paris-Brussels, Amstel Gold Race, Züri-Metzgete and Gante-Wevelgen. He never won Paris-Tours neither Züri-Metzgete.}}
* Most victories in a single classic: 7 in [[Milan–San Remo]] [[1966 Milan–San Remo|1966]], [[1967 Milan–San Remo|1967]], [[1969 Milan–San Remo|1969]], [[1971 Milan–San Remo|1971]], [[1972 Milan–San Remo|1972]], [[1975 Milan–San Remo|1975]] & [[1976 Milan–San Remo|1976]]
* Most [[Liège–Bastogne–Liège]] wins: 5 in [[1969 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1969]], [[1971 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1971]], [[1972 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1972]], [[1973 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1973]] & [[1975 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|1975]]
* Most [[Gent–Wevelgem]] wins: 3 in [[1967 Gent–Wevelgem|1967]], [[1970 Gent–Wevelgem|1970]] & [[1973 Gent–Wevelgem|1973]] (shared record)

==== Other ====
[[File:Jan Janssen, Eddy Merckx, Ramon Saez Marzo 1967.jpg|thumb|Merckx celebrating his first UCI world title in [[1967 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|1967]].]]
* Most road races won by a professional cyclist: 525
* Most road races won in 1 season: 54 (of 120 entries) in 1971
* [[Hour record|UCI World hour record]] [[File:MaillotMundialCrono.PNG|20px]]: [[Hour record#UCI hour record (1972–2014)|1972]]
* Most [[UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|UCI World Road Championships]] [[File:Jersey_rainbow.svg|20x20px]]: 3 in [[1967 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|1967]], [[1971 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|1971]] & [[1974 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race|1974]] (record shared with [[Alfredo Binda]], [[Rik Van Steenbergen]], [[Óscar Freire]] and [[Peter Sagan]])
* [[Triple Crown of Cycling]] winner: 1974 (record shared with [[Stephen Roche]] and [[Tadej Pogačar]])
* [[1971 Liège–Bastogne–Liège|Monument]] winner, [[1971 Tour de France|Grand Tour]] winner and [[1971 UCI Road World Championships|UCI World Champion]] in 1 year: 1971 (record shared with [[Alfredo Binda]], [[Bernard Hinault]], [[Remco Evenepoel]] and [[Tadej Pogačar]])
* Most [[Super Prestige Pernod]] wins: 7 in 1969, 1970, [[1971 Super Prestige Pernod|1971]], 1972, 1973, 1974 & 1975
* Most [[Escalada a Montjuïc]] wins: 6 in 1966, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974 & 1975
* Most [[Giro di Sardegna]] wins: 4 in 1968, 1971, 1973 & 1975
* Most [[Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme]] wins: 2 in 1975 and 1976 (shared record)

===== World hour record =====
{| class="wikitable"
!Discipline
!Record
!Date
!Event
!Velodrome
!{{abbr|Ref|References}}
|-
|[[Hour record]]
! scope="row" style="text-align:left;" |49.431&nbsp;km
|25 October 1972
| style="text-align:center;" |—
|[[Agustín Melgar Olympic Velodrome]], [[Mexico City]]
| style="text-align:center;" |<ref name="sporting">{{cite web |date=25 October 2022 |title=RETRO: 50 jaar geleden verpulverde Eddy Merckx het uurrecord |url=https://sporza.be/nl/2022/10/25/retro-50-jaar-geleden-verpulverde-eddy-merckx-het-uurrecord~1666687517270/ |access-date=25 October 2022 |publisher=[[Sporza]]}}</ref>
|}

== Doping ==
[[File:Eddy Merckx 1969.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Merckx (pictured during at 1969 Six Days of Milan) was involved in three separate doping incidents during his career.|alt=A cyclist wearing a jersey that reads "Faema."]]
Merckx was leading the 1969 Giro d'Italia after the sixteenth stage in [[Savona]].<ref name="BRI 1969">{{cite web|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1969.html |title=1969 Giro d'Italia |work=Bike Race Info|first1=Bill |last1=McGann |first2=Carol |last2=McGann |publisher=Dog Ear Publishing|access-date=10 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227195922/http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1969.html|archive-date=27 February 2014|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="CN M Dop">{{cite news|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/giro-ditalia-the-merckx-years |title=Giro d'Italia: The Merckx years|website=[[Cyclingnews.com]]|location=Bath, UK|date= 3 May 2011|access-date=10 May 2015|author=Stephen Farrand|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150511200303/http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/giro-ditalia-the-merckx-years|archive-date=11 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="CN M Dop2">{{cite news|url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2008/worlds08/?id=/features/2008/woodland_merckx_worlds08 |title=Will Eddy receive a warm welcome? |website=[[Cyclingnews.com]]|location=Bath, UK |date=23 September 2008 |access-date=10 May 2015 |author=Les Woodland |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150511214000/http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2008/worlds08/?id=%2Ffeatures%2F2008%2Fwoodland_merckx_worlds08 |archive-date=11 May 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> After the stage, he went to the mobile lab that travelled with the race and conducted drug tests.{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=251}}{{refn|name=Savona|group=N|At the 1969 Giro d'Italia the top two in the general classification were drug tested after each stage, along with two other cyclists chosen at random.{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=251}}}} His first test was positive for [[fencamfamine]], an [[amphetamine]],<ref name="BRI 1969" /><ref name="CN M Dop" /><ref name="CN M Dop2" />{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=251}} and a second test was also positive.<ref name="CN M Dop" /><ref name="CN M Dop2" />{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=251}} The results of the test were announced to the press before Merckx and his team were informed.<ref name="eurosport3222">{{cite web |date=1 August 2019 |title=Milestones: Eddy Merckx & the Tour de France that Almost Wasn't |url=https://www.flahute.com/cycling/cycling-history/milestones-eddy-merckx-the-tour-de-france-that-almost-wasnt/ |publisher=Flahute}}</ref> The positive test meant Merckx was to be suspended for a month.<ref name="LGDS Dop">{{cite news|url=http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/1999/giugno/06/Merckx_positivo_cacciato_dal_Giro_ga_0_9906069133.shtml|title=Merckx positivo: cacciato dal Giro nel 1969 |newspaper=La Gazzetta dello Sport|author=Rino Negri |trans-title=Merckx positive expelled from the Tour in 1969| language=it|date=6 June 1999|access-date=27 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150511215644/http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/1999/giugno/06/Merckx_positivo_cacciato_dal_Giro_ga_0_9906069133.shtml|archive-date=11 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Race director Vincenzo Torriani delayed the start of the seventeenth stage in an attempt to persuade the president of the [[Italian Cycling Federation]] to allow Merckx to begin the stage.<ref name="CN M Dop2" /> However, the president was not in his office and Torriani was forced to start the stage, disqualifying Merckx in the process.<ref name="CN M Dop2" /> In the following days, the UCI removed the suspension.<ref name="CN M Dop" /><ref name="CN M Dop2" />

From the start, Merckx claimed his innocence saying that "I am a clean rider, I do not need to take anything to win." He had previously tested negative eight times during the race.<ref>{{cite web |date=6 May 2017 |title=The Secret of Savona |url=https://www.podiumcafe.com/book-corner/2017/5/6/15567934/the-secret-of-savona |publisher=Podium Cafe}}</ref> The majority of the international press believed in his innocence, stating that with his lead, it was illogical that he would use banned substances on an easy stage, with a doping test certain to follow if he was still the leader.<ref name="EP M Dop">{{cite news |author=Carlos Arribas |date=6 June 1999 |title=Merckx también tuvo que dejar el Giro |language=es |trans-title=Merckx also had to leave the Giro |newspaper= El País|url=http://elpais.com/diario/1999/06/06/deportes/928620002_850215.html |url-status=live |access-date=27 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150511200858/http://elpais.com/diario/1999/06/06/deportes/928620002_850215.html |archive-date=11 May 2015}}</ref> He argued that his samples had been mishandled.<ref name="CN M Dop" /><ref name="CN M Dop2" />{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=254}} After the incident, several conspiracy theories emerged, including that the urine that tested positive was not Merckx's,{{sfn|Foot|2011|pp=252–253}} and that he had been given a water bottle with the stimulant in it{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=253}}⁠{{nowrap|{{mdash}}{{px2}}}}ostensibly all moves to give Italian [[Felice Gimondi]] a better chance at victory.{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=252}}{{sfn|Foot|2011|p=253}}<ref name="eurosport3222" />

On 8 November 1973, it was announced that Merckx had tested positive for [[norephedrine]] after winning the Giro di Lombardia a month earlier.<ref name="LS 73 GiL">{{cite news|author=Gianni Pignata|url=http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,19/articleid,1118_01_1973_0264_0019_16216471/|title=Merckx, doping nel "Lombardia"|language=it|date=9 November 1973|page=19|newspaper=La Stampa|publisher=Editrice La Stampa|access-date=27 May 2012|trans-title=Merckx, doping in "Lombardia"}}</ref><ref name="LU 73 GiL">{{cite news |url=http://archiviostorico.unita.it/cgi-bin/highlightPdf.cgi?t=ebook&file=/archivio/uni_1973_11/19731109_0010.pdf |title=Merckx positivo! (Il <<Lombardia>> è di Gimondi) |language=it |date=9 November 1973 |page=10 |newspaper=l'Unità |publisher=PCI |access-date=27 May 2012 |trans-title=Merckx positivo! (The <<Lombardia>> is Gimondi's) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150511225758/http://archiviostorico.unita.it/cgi-bin/highlightPdf.cgi?t=ebook&file=%2Farchivio%2Funi_1973_11%2F19731109_0010.pdf |archive-date=11 May 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Upon learning of the first test being positive in later October, he had a counter-analysis performed which was also positive.<ref name="LS 73 GiL" /> The drug was present in a cough medicine that the Molteni doctor, Dr. Cavalli, prescribed to him.<ref name="LS 73 GiL" /> Merckx was disqualified from the race and the victory was awarded to second-place finisher Gimondi.<ref name="LS 73 GiL" /><ref name="LU 73 GiL" /><ref name="BRI 73 GiL">{{cite web|url=http://www.bikeraceinfo.com/classics/Tour%20of%20Lombardy/1973-giro-di-lombardia.html|title=1973 Giro di Lombardia results|work=Bike Race Info|first1=Bill |last1=McGann |first2=Carol |last2=McGann |publisher=Dog Ear Publishing|access-date=10 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150511224223/http://www.bikeraceinfo.com/classics/Tour%20of%20Lombardy/1973-giro-di-lombardia.html|archive-date=11 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> In addition, Merckx was given a month's suspension and fined 150,000 lira.<ref name="LS 73 GiL" /><ref name="LU 73 GiL" /> He admitted his fault in taking the medicine but said that the name norephedrine was not on the bottle of cough syrup he used.<ref name="LS 73 GiL" /> Norephedrine was later removed from the [[List of drugs banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency|WADA-list]] of banned substances.<ref>{{cite web |date=17 June 2010 |title=De kampioen Merckx was de maat der dingen, ondanks de mens Merckx |work=Het Nieuwsblad |url=https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/bj2rgi5p |language=nl}}</ref>

On 8 May 1977, Merckx, along with several other riders, tested positive for the stimulant [[pemoline]] at La Flèche Wallonne.<ref name="EP 77 Dop">{{cite news|url=http://elpais.com/diario/1977/05/08/deportes/231890412_850215.html|title= Merckx también tuvo que dejar el Giro |newspaper= El País|trans-title= Merckx also had to leave the Giro|language=es|date=8 May 1977|access-date=27 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150618033643/http://elpais.com/diario/1977/05/08/deportes/231890412_850215.html|archive-date=18 June 2015|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="LS 77 Dop">{{cite news|agency=Associated Press|url=http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,19/articleid,1093_01_1977_0100_0020_20344081/anews,true/|title=Maetans sospeso (ma farà il Giro)|language=it|date=10 May 1977|page=19|newspaper=La Stampa|publisher=Editrice La Stampa|access-date=27 May 2012|trans-title=Maetans suspended (but will do the Giro)}}</ref><ref name="LU 77 Dop">{{cite news |url=http://archiviostorico.unita.it/cgi-bin/highlightPdf.cgi?t=ebook&file=/archivio/uni_1977_05/19770510_0012.pdf |title=<<Condizionale>> per Merckx Maertens e altri quattro |language=it |date=10 May 1977 |page=12 |newspaper=l'Unità |publisher=PCI |access-date=27 May 2012 |trans-title=<<Conditional>> for Merckx Maertens and four others |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150618034255/http://archiviostorico.unita.it/cgi-bin/highlightPdf.cgi?t=ebook&file=%2Farchivio%2Funi_1977_05%2F19770510_0012.pdf |archive-date=18 June 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="ELM 77 Dop-1">{{cite news |url=http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1977/05/09/MD19770509-052.pdf|title=Merckx y Maertens se doparon|language=es |date=9 May 1977 |page=52 |newspaper=El Mundo Deportivo|access-date=21 April 2013|trans-title=Merckx and Maertens were doped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150618035643/http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1977/05/09/MD19770509-052.pdf|archive-date=18 June 2015|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="ELM 77 Dop-2">{{cite news |url=http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1977/05/11/MD19770511-030.pdf|title=Merckx y Maertens contra el <<anti-doping>> |language=es |date=11 May 1977 |page=30 |newspaper=El Mundo Deportivo|access-date=21 April 2013|trans-title=Merckx and Maertens against <<anti- doping>>|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150618035423/http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1977/05/11/MD19770511-030.pdf|archive-date=18 June 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> The group of riders was charged by the Belgian cycling federation, and were each given a 24,000 [[Spanish peseta|pesetas]] fine and a one-month suspension.<ref name="ELM 77 Dop-2" /> Initially, Merckx announced his intention to appeal the penalty, saying he only took substances that were not on the banned list.<ref name="ELM 77 Dop-2" /> His eighth-place finish in the race was voided. Years later, Merckx said he did take a banned substance, citing that he was wrong to have trusted a doctor.{{fact|date=July 2024}}

Due to Merckx's positive tests during his career, he was one of several riders asked by the event organizers to stay away from the [[2007 UCI Road World Championships]] in [[Stuttgart]], Germany.<ref name="EM 07 UCI">{{cite web|title=Eddy Merckx joins list of unwelcome people in Stuttgart |author=Gregor Brown & Bjorn Haake |url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2007/sep07/sep26news2 |date=26 September 2007 |website=[[Cyclingnews.com]]|access-date=28 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150717021921/http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news%2F2007%2Fsep07%2Fsep26news2 |archive-date=17 July 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> The organizers stated that {{nowrap|"[they]}} had to be role models", while Merckx wrote them off, claiming they were crazy.<ref name="EM 07 UCI" />

== Honours and awards ==

=== Titles of honour ===
* [[File:Legion Honneur Chevalier ribbon.svg|40px]] Knight of the French [[Legion of Honour]]: 1975<ref name="CDLH" />
* [[File:BEL Order of Leopold II - Officer BAR.png|40px]] Officer in the Belgian [[Order of Leopold II]]: 1996<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OKuL8mfCJc4C&q=Merckx+leopoldsorde&pg=PA172|title=Adelbrieven verleend door Z.M. Albert II, Koning der Belgen, 1993-2000|date=29 November 2018|publisher=Lannoo Uitgeverij|isbn=9789020945232|access-date=29 November 2018|via=Google Books}}</ref>
* [[File:Legion Honneur Commandeur ribbon.svg|40px]] Commander of the French Legion of Honour: 2014<ref>{{cite web |last=rdc |title=Freddy Thielemans wordt officier in de Franse Légion d'honneur |date=12 May 2014 |url=http://www.standaard.be/cnt/dmf20140512_01101887 |access-date=29 November 2018 |publisher=De Standaard |language=nl}}</ref>
* [[File:Cavaliere OMRI BAR.svg|40px]] Knight in the [[Order of Merit of the Italian Republic]]
* [[File:Olympic Rings black.svg|40px]] Silver [[Olympic Order]]: 1995<ref>{{cite web |title=Olympic Order Recipients (1386) |url=https://www.olympedia.org/lists/200/manual |access-date=1 January 2023}}</ref>
* Created [[Baron]] Merckx by Royal Decree, with devise Post Proelia Praemia: 1996
* Honorary doctorate of the university [[Vrije Universiteit Brussel|VUB]]: 2011<ref>{{cite news |date=17 March 2011 |title=Eddy Merckx krijgt eredoctoraat van VUB |language=nl |publisher=Bruzz |url=https://www.bruzz.be/samenleving/eddy-merckx-krijgt-eredoctoraat-van-vub-2011-03-17}}</ref>
* [[Belgian Olympic and Interfederal Committee Order of Merit]]: 2013<ref>{{cite web |date=31 May 2013 |title=Eddy Merckx krijgt Orde van Verdienste: "Dit is grote eer" |url=https://www.hln.be/meer-sport/eddy-merckx-krijgt-orde-van-verdienste-dit-is-grote-eer~a01faff4/ |publisher=Het Laatste Nieuws |language=nl}}</ref>
* Merckx is honorary citizen of [[Meise]], [[Tielt-Winge]] and [[Tervuren]]<ref>{{cite news|title="Toch maar mooi ereburger zoals Eddy Merckx"|language=nl|url=https://www.hln.be/meise/toch-maar-mooi-ereburger-zoals-eddy-merckx~a8f22c36/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Eddy Merckx opent oorlogsmuseum in Tielt-Winge|language=nl|url=https://www.standaard.be/cnt/dmf11112000_035}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Merckx ereburger van Tervuren|language=nl|url=https://www.hbvl.be/cnt/eid36781}}</ref>
* [[Bronze Zinneke]]: 2006<ref>{{cite web |title=Bronzen Zinnekes voor Merckx, Van Himst en Wynants |url=https://www.bruzz.be/samenleving/bronzen-zinnekes-voor-merckx-van-himst-en-wynants-2006-06-07 |publisher=bruzz.be |language=nl |publication-date=7 June 2006}}</ref>

=== Sport awards and honours ===
[[File:Wielerwedstrijden in Olympisch Stadion, ereronde van Eddy Merckx, Bestanddeelnr 926-5867.jpg|thumb|In 2000, the UCI named Merckx (pictured in 1973) ''Cyclist of the 20th Century'']]
{{div col|colwidth=60em}}
* [[Belgian National Sports Merit Award]]: 1967<ref name="eurosport212">{{cite web |date=17 June 2015 |title=70 feitjes over de jarige 'Kannibaal' Eddy Merckx |url=https://sportnieuws.nl/wielrennen/tour-de-france/70-feitjes-over-de-jarige-kannibaal-eddy-merckx/ |publisher=Sportnieuws.nl |language=nl}}</ref>
* [[Belgian Sportsman of the year|Belgian Sportsman of the Year]]: 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974<ref name="eurosport232">{{cite web |date=18 December 2011 |title=Palmares Sportman van het jaar |url=https://www.standaard.be/cnt/dmf20111218_125 |publisher=De Standaard |language=nl}}</ref>
* [[Tour de France]] Overall [[Combativity award in the Tour de France|Combativity award]]: [[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1970 Tour de France|1970]], [[1974 Tour de France|1974]], [[1975 Tour de France|1975]]
* Tour de France Stage Combativity award (14): 4 in [[1975 Tour de France|1975]]; 3 in [[1970 Tour de France|1970]]; 2 in [[1969 Tour de France|1969]], [[1974 Tour de France|1974]] & [[1977 Tour de France|1977]]; 1 in [[1971 Tour de France|1971]]
* [[European Sportsperson of the Year|PAP European Sportsperson of the Year]]: 1969, 1970<ref name="eurosport212" />
* Worldwide Sportsman of the Year: 1969, 1971, 1974<ref name="eurosport212" />
* {{ill|Grand Prix de l'Académie des Sports|fr|Académie des sports}}: 1969
* {{ill|Mendrisio d'Or|fr|Mendrisio d'or}}: 1972, 2011
* {{ill|Gan Challenge|it|Gan Challenge}}}: 1973, 1974, 1975<ref name="eurosport209">{{cite web |title=Challenge Gan |url=http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.eu/dossiers/dos_gan.php |publisher=Memoire du Cyclisme |language=fr}}</ref>
* Swiss {{ill|AIOCC Trophy|fr|Trophée de l'Association internationale des organisateurs de courses cyclistes}}: 1980, 2021<ref name="eurosport112">{{cite web |date= |title=2017 AIOCC TROPHY |url=https://www.aiocc.ch/en/aiocc-trophy/ |publisher=AOICC}}</ref>
* Procyclingstats.com – All Time Wins Ranking (1st place, 276 wins)<ref name="eurosport7">{{cite web |title=All time wins ranking |url=https://www.procyclingstats.com/statistics.php?nation=&sekse=1&filter=Filter&p=start&s=all-time-wins-ranking |publisher=ProCyclingStats}}</ref>
* Belgian Sportsman of the 20th Century: 1999'''<ref name="eurosport34">{{cite web |date=30 December 2000 |title=Merckx en Berghmans sportfiguren van de eeuw |work=De Standaard |url=https://www.standaard.be/cnt/dst30122000_107 |language=nl}}</ref>'''
* [[Reuters]] Worldwide Sports Personality of the Century (7th place): 1999<ref>{{cite web |date=19 November 1999 |title=Pele tops sportsman of the century poll |url=https://www.iol.co.za/capeargus/sport/pele-tops-sportsman-of-the-century-poll-330759 |publisher=IOL}}</ref>
* Reuters General Sportsman of the Century (2nd place): 1999<ref>{{cite web |date=22 November 1999 |title=Eddy Merckx naast de prijzen in verkiezing sportlui van de eeuw |work=De Standaard |url=https://www.standaard.be/cnt/dst9911220035 |language=nl}}</ref>
* [[Union Cycliste Internationale|UCI]] Cyclist of the 20th Century: 2000<ref name="eurosport2092">{{cite web |date=16 April 2000 |title=Samaranch premia Merckx |url=http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/2000/aprile/16/Samaranch_premia_Merckx_ga_0_00041614647.shtml |publisher=La Gazetta Dello Sport |language=it}}</ref>
* [[Marca (newspaper)|Marca]] Legend: 2000<ref>{{cite web |date=May 2018 |title=80 Leyendas – Eddy Merckx: cómo ser el mejor de todos los tiempos |url=https://www.marca.com/80aniversario/leyendas/2018/05/01/5ae88ef022601d77618b45c2.html |work=Marca |language=es}}</ref>
* [[Vincenzo Torriani]] Award: 2001<ref name="eurosport2094">{{cite web |date=12 October 2018 |title=Ciclismo-Contador recibirá hoy el Premio Torriani |url=https://www.marca.com/ciclismo/2018/10/12/5bc11302e2704e68948b4643.html |work=Marca}}</ref>
* Introduced in the [[UCI Hall of Fame]]: 2002
* UCI Top 100 of All Time: (1st place, 24 510 points){{refneeded|date=April 2025}}
* Memoire du Cyclisme – Ranking of the Greatest Cyclists (1st place): 2002<ref name="eurosport19">{{cite web |date=31 December 2021 |title=Les meilleurs coureurs de tous les temps (1892-2002) |url=http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.eu/dossiers/dos_marszalek2.php |publisher=Mémoire du Cyclisme |language=fr}}</ref>
* [[Bleacher Report]] – The 30 Most Dominant Athletes of All Time (20th): 2010<ref name="eurosport3">{{cite web |date=1 October 2010 |title=Michael Jordan Or Wayne Gretzky? The 30 Most Dominant Athletes Of All Time |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/442846-michael-jordan-or-wayne-gretzky-the-30-most-dominant-athletes-of-all-time |website=[[Bleacher Report]]}}</ref>
* Bleacher Report – Tour de France All-Time Top 25 Riders (1st place): 2011<ref name="eurosport22">{{cite web |date=9 July 2011 |title=Tour de France All-Time Top 25 Riders, No. 5 to 1 |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/761582-tour-de-france-all-time-top-25-riders |website=[[Bleacher Report]]}}</ref>
* Italian Sport and Civilization Award: 2011<ref name="eurosport2093">{{cite web |date=7 November 2011 |title=Mark Cavendish e Eddy Merckx ricevono il Premio Internazionale Sport Civiltà |url=http://www.suipedali.it/articolo/mark-cavendish-e-eddy-merckx-ricevono-il-premio-internazionale-sport-civilta/4221/ |website=Suipedali |language=it |access-date=2 March 2022 |archive-date=18 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518063535/http://www.suipedali.it/articolo/mark-cavendish-e-eddy-merckx-ricevono-il-premio-internazionale-sport-civilta/4221/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* First Member Giro Hall of Fame: 2012<ref name="eurosport222">{{cite web |date=16 March 2012 |title=Giro d'Italia Hall of Fame inducts Eddy Merckx as its first member |url=https://www.velonews.com/events/giro-ditalia/giro-ditalia-hall-of-fame-inducts-eddy-merckx-as-its-first-member/ |publisher=VeloNews}}</ref>
* Topito – Top 15 Greatest Cyclists Ever (1st place): 2012<ref name="eurosport18">{{cite web |date=1 July 2012 |title=Top 15 des plus grands cyclistes de tous les temps, le best-of |url=https://www.topito.com/top-cyclistes-tous-temps |publisher=Topito}}</ref>
* [[L'Équipe]] Trophée Champion des Champions de Légende: 2014<ref name="eurosport32">{{cite web |date=24 December 2014 |title=Pauline Ferrand-Prévot and Eddy Merckx honoured in Paris |url=http://www.thebikecomesfirst.com/pauline-ferrand-prevot-and-eddy-merckx-honoured-in-paris/ |publisher=The Bike Comes First}}</ref>
* [[Rouleur (magazine)|Rouleur]] Hall of Fame: 2018<ref>{{cite news |date=18 September 2018 |title=Eddy Merckx is guest of honour at 2018 Rouleur Classic |publisher=Endurance.biz |url=https://endurance.biz/2018/industry-news/eddy-merckx-is-guest-of-honour-at-2018-rouleur-classic/}}</ref>
* [[VeloNews|Velonews]] The Greatest Cyclists of All Time (1st place): 2019<ref name="eurosport8">{{cite web |date=20 February 2019 |title=The Outer Line: Ranking the greatest cyclists of all time |url=https://www.velonews.com/events/the-outer-line-ranking-the-greatest-cyclists-of-all-time/ |work=Velonews}}</ref>
* [[Wiggle Ltd|Wiggle]] The Best Cyclists Ever Rank (1st place): 2020<ref name="eurosport9">{{cite web |date=6 July 2022 |title=The best cyclists ever – ranked |url=https://blog.wiggle.co.uk/best-cyclists-ever-ranked |publisher=Wiggle |access-date=23 February 2022 |archive-date=23 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220223100116/https://blog.wiggle.co.uk/best-cyclists-ever-ranked |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* [[Eurosport]] Greatest General Classification Cyclist of all Time: 2020<ref name="eurosport11">{{cite web |date=19 July 2020 |title=Eddy Merckx voted greatest GC cyclist of all time – The Eurosport Cup |url=https://www.eurosport.com/cycling/tour-de-france/2019/re-cycle-when-eddy-merckx-descended-the-galibier-for-victory-in-valloire_sto7810554/story.shtml |publisher=Eurosport}}</ref>
* CyclingRanking – Overall Ranking (1st place): 2022<ref name="eurosport4">{{cite web |title=Overall Ranking |url=https://www.cyclingranking.com/ |publisher=Cycling Ranking}}</ref>
* [[Vélo d'Or]] honorary award: 2023<ref>{{cite web |title=VELO D'OR 2023 - Die Preisträgerinnen & Preisträger im Überblick |url=https://www.tour-magazin.de/profi-radsport/aktuelles/velo-dor-2023-bester-radsportler-beste-radsportlerin-gekurt/ |publisher=tour-magazin.de |language=de |publication-date=25 October 2023}}</ref>
{{div col end}}

=== Places and statues ===
{{#invoke:multiple image|
| align             = right
| total_width       = 450
| image1            = Luc De Blick - Standbeeld Eddy Merckx (cropped).png
| alt1              = Statue of Eddy Merckx in Kiezegem, Belgium
| image2            = Eddy Merckx-statue Stavelot.png
| alt2              = Statue of Eddy Merckx in Stavelot, Belgium
| image3            = Monument Eddy Merckx te Wolvertem (cropped).png
| alt3              = Monument of Eddy Merckx in Wolvertem, Belgium
| footer            = Statue of Merckx in Meensel-Kiezegem and monuments in Stavelot and Meise
}}
* Monument in [[Stavelot]]: 1993<ref name="eurosport2067">{{cite web |title=Côte de Stockeu |url=https://www.klimgeiten.nl/overzicht/stockeu/stockeu.htm |publisher=Klimgeiten |language=nl}}</ref>
* Vélodrome Eddy Merckx, [[Mourenx]]: 1999<ref name="eurosport2062">{{cite news |date=15 July 2021 |title=Tour de France : " Mourenx, un très bon souvenir " pour Eddy Merckx |language=fr |publisher=Sudouest |url=https://www.sudouest.fr/sport/cyclisme/tour-de-france-mourenx-un-tres-bon-souvenir-pour-eddy-merckx-4158438.php}}</ref>
* [[Eddy Merckx metro station]], [[Brussels Metro|Brussels]]: 2003<ref name="eurosport206">{{cite web |date=12 March 2002 |title=Metrostation Eddy Merckx |work=De Standaard |url=https://www.standaard.be/cnt/dst12032002_017 |language=nl}}</ref>
* Sports complex, [[Vlaams Wielercentrum Eddy Merckx]], Gent: 2006<ref name="eurosport2063">{{cite web |title=Vlaams Wielercentrum Eddy Merckx |url=https://www.sport.vlaanderen/waar-sporten/onze-centra/sport-vlaanderen-gent/accommodaties/vlaams-wielercentrum-eddy-merckx/ |publisher=Sport Vlaanderen |language=nl}}</ref>
* Monument in [[Meise]]: 2015<ref name="eurosport2064">{{cite web |date=13 June 2015 |title=Eddy Merckx onthult eigen monument in Meise |url=https://www.ringtv.be/nieuws/eddy-merckx-onthult-eigen-monument-meise |publisher=RingTV |language=nl}}</ref>
* Statue in [[Meensel-Kiezegem]]: 2015<ref name="eurosport2065">{{cite web |date=13 October 2015 |title=Standbeeld Eddy Merckx krijgt vaste stek aan Huis Pypen |work=Het Nieuwsblad |url=https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/blcva_01917215 |language=nl}}</ref>
* Square Eddy Merckx in [[Woluwe-Saint-Pierre|Sint-Pieters-Woluwe]]: 2019<ref name="eurosport2066">{{cite web |date=28 March 2019 |title=Plein voor Eddy Merckx in Brussel ingehuldigd: waarom hij wel, maar Nina Derwael niet? |url=https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/nl/2019/03/26/wielerlegende-eddy-merckx-heeft-vanaf-vandaag-in-brussel-een-eig/ |publisher=VRT |language=nl}}</ref>
* Monument in [[Petit-Enghien]]: 2023 <ref>{{cite web |date=1 October 2023 |title=Eddy Merckx inaugure une sculpture en son honneur à Petit-Enghien, 62 ans après sa première victoire |url=https://www.rtbf.be/article/eddy-merckx-inaugure-une-sculpture-en-son-honneur-a-petit-enghien-62-ans-apres-sa-premiere-victoire-11264781 |publisher=RTBF |language=fr}}</ref>

=== Events and awards ===
* Golden Bike Eddy Merckx: a cycle race for novices from 1983 to 2008<ref>{{cite web |date=3 March 2008 |title=Les Jeunes sur la Route |url=https://www.dhnet.be/archives-journal/2003/08/04/les-jeunes-sur-la-route-WNVNA5RFTFHQZLXLRWQFL4KRKU/ |url-status= |access-date=6 January 2023 |work=[[La Dernière Heure]] |language=fr}}</ref>
* [[Grand Prix Eddy Merckx]]: a professional cycle race from 1980 to 2004<ref>{{cite web |title=2004»GP Eddy Merckx (1.2) |url=https://www.procyclingstats.com/race/gp-eddy-merckx/2004/result |publisher=ProCyclingStats}}</ref>
* {{ill|Chiba Alpencup|de|Chiba Alpencup}} Eddy Merckx Classics'''<ref name="eurosport322">{{cite web |title=Rennserie CHIBA Alpencup Der CHIBA Alpencup findet 2020 leider nicht statt |url=https://www.alpen-guide.de/artikel/chiba-alpencup-602 |publisher=AlpenGuide.de |language=de}}</ref>'''
* Start of the [[2019 Tour de France]] in Brussels in honour of Eddy Merckx<ref>{{cite web |date=30 May 2017 |title=Zu Ehren von Eddy Merckx: Tour-de-France-Start 2019 angeblich in Brüssel |url=https://www.eurosport.de/radsport/zu-ehren-von-merckx-tour-de-france-start-2019-angeblich-in-brussel_sto6188843/story.shtml |publisher=Eurosport |language=de}}</ref>
* From 2023, the [[Vélo d'Or]] "Eddy Merckx trophy" is awarded for the best classics cyclist'''<ref name="eurosport3223">{{cite web |title=Vélo d'Or 2023 : suivez en direct vidéo la cérémonie |url=https://www.lequipe.fr/Velo-mag/Cyclisme-sur-route/Actualites/Suivez-en-direct-video-la-ceremonie-du-velo-d-or-2023/1427233 |publisher=lequipe.fr/ |language=fr |publication-date=24 October 2023}}</ref>'''

== Popular culture ==
[[File:Stamp of Ajman - 1969 - Colnect 267416 - Eddy Merckx 1945 Belgium.jpeg|thumb|Merckx on a 1969 Stamp of [[Emirate of Ajman|Ajman]]]]

=== Music ===
* The single ''[[Vas-Y Eddy]]'' (1967) by Jean Saint-Paul is notable for being the first recorded song about Merckx
* ''[[Eddy Prend Le Maillot Jaune]]'', a song by Pierre-André Gil was released after his first Tour de France victory
* The single ''[[Bravo Eddy!]]'' by Jean Narcy was released in 1970
* ''[[Eddy Est Imbattable!]]'' by Pierre-André Gil was released in 1971
* Merckx is mentioned in the 1974 song ''Paris-New York, New York-Paris'' by [[Jacques Higelin]]
* ''Eddy Merckx'' is a song by the Belgian band [[Sttellla]] on the album ''Il faut tourner l'Apache'' in 1998

=== Films and series ===
* A 1973 Danish short film was made, [[Eddy Merckx in the Vicinity of a Cup of Coffee]], starring Merckx and [[Walter Godefroot]]
* In the 1973 comedy film [[The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob]], Merckx was cited by Louis de Funès as the author of Che Guevara's famous quote: "The revolution is like a bicycle: when it doesn't move forward, it falls''."''
* The 1974 documentary film ''La Course en Tête'' by [[Joël Santoni]] looks at the racing and private life of Merckx
* The 1976 Danish documentary film [[A Sunday in Hell]] focuses on the contenders Merckx, [[Roger De Vlaeminck]], [[Freddy Maertens]], and [[Francesco Moser]] in the [[1976 Paris–Roubaix|Paris–Roubaix]] race of that year
* Merckx has a cameo in the 1985 sports drama film [[American Flyers]], starring Kevin Costner
* Merckx is the rival – more or less fantasized – of [[Benoît Poelvoorde]] in the 2001 film [[Le Vélo de Ghislain Lambert]] by Philippe Harel
* In 2005, he appears in episode 39b of the second season of [[Space Goofs]], where his character provides the Earth's core with energy, pedalling a stationary bike
* Merckx has a cameo in the 2012 French-Belgian comedy film [[Torpedo (2012 film)|Torpedo]] by Matthieu Donck
* The Flemish movie, set in the seventies [[Allez, Eddy]] was released in 2012
* Eddy Merckx is the subject of an autobiographical fiction written by Christophe Van Staen, entitled Eddy Merckx, Nobel Prize? (Lamiroy, 2019)

=== Comic books ===
* [[Les Fabuleux Exploits d'Eddy Merckx]], a [[Celebrity comics|celebrity comic]], was released in 1973. It was translated in different languages
* Eddy Merckx appears in the comic strip ''San-Antonio Fait un Tour'' published by Fleuve Noir in 1973
* He appears as a speedy messenger in the comic book [[Asterix in Belgium]] of the [[Asterix]] series by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo, published in 1979
* A tribute to Eddy Merckx is paid in the 1987 [[Boule et Bill]] album nr. 24, Billets de Bill
* Merckx also appears in album 79 (1988) of the [[Robert en Bertrand]] series and album 247 (1996) of the [[Spike and Suzy]] series.<ref>{{Cite web |date=3 January 2024 |title=Suske in de Gele Trui |url=https://suskeenwiske.ophetwww.net/versus/artikel/kader.php |website=suskeenwiske.ophetwww.net |language=nl}}</ref>
* Another tribute is paid in one of the adventures of Donald Duck, who must compete against the champion of his uncle's rival: "Dydy Berkxz"

== Books on Merckx ==
{{div col|colwidth=60em}}

=== In English ===
* ''The Champion Eddy Merckx'' by Claude le Boul in 1987, Ludion, 71 p. (Collected paintings; English, Dutch, French)
* ''Eddy Merckx: The Greatest Cyclist of the 20th Century'' by Rik Vanwalleghem and Steven Hawkins in 1996, [[VeloPress]], 216 p. (English) {{ISBN|9781884737725}}
* {{cite book |last1=Thorne |first1=Brian |last2=Lambers |first2=Elke |title=Person-Centred Therapy: A European Perspective |date=1998 |publisher=SAGE |isbn=978-0-7619-5155-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QnHGmdUOg0MC}}
* {{cite book |last1=Liggett |first1=Phil |last2=Raia |first2=James |last3=Lewis |first3=Sammarye |title=Tour de France For Dummies |date=27 May 2005 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-0-7645-8449-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HeBJN_cysjoC}}
* {{cite book |last1=Foot |first1=John |title=Pedalare! Pedalare! |date=3 May 2011 |publisher=A&C Black |isbn=978-1-4088-1755-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eGBRfzR_onUC}}
* {{cite book |last1=Heijmans |first1=Jeroen |last2=Mallon |first2=Bill |title=Historical Dictionary of Cycling |date=9 September 2011 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-7369-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nrdfuueq2CcC}}
* {{cite book |last1=Friebe |first1=Daniel |title=Eddy Merckx: The Cannibal |date=2012 |publisher=Ebury Press |isbn=978-0-09-194314-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nOUq4U_NkGsC}}
* ''Eddy Merckx 525'' by Frederik Backelandt & Karl Vannieuwkerke in 2012, Kannibaal, 224 p. (English, Dutch) {{ISBN|9781934030899}}
* {{cite book |last1=Nauright |first1=John |last2=Parrish |first2=Charles |title=Sports Around the World: History, Culture, and Practice |date=2012 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-59884-300-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IkLYDgTnMxEC}}
* {{cite book |last1=Fotheringham |first1=William |author-link=William Fotheringham |title=Merckx: Half Man, Half Bike |date=2012 |publisher=Yellow Jersey Press |isbn=978-0-224-09195-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JZvum2iHSB4C}}
* {{cite book |last1=Fotheringham |first1=William |author-link=William Fotheringham |title=Half Man, Half Bike: The Life of Eddy Merckx, Cycling's Greatest Champion |date=1 April 2013 |publisher=Chicago Review Press |isbn=978-1-61374-729-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XYcme7KBAHsC}}
* {{cite book |last1=Moore |first1=Richard |last2=Benson |first2=Daniel |others=Foreword by Robert Penn |title=The racing bicycle : design, function, speed |date=2013 |publisher=Universe |location=New York |isbn=9780789324658}}
* ''Merckx 69: Celebrating the World's Greatest Cyclist in his Finest Year'' by Tonny Strouken and Jan Maes in 2015, Bloomsbury Publishing 180 p. (English, Dutch, French) {{ISBN|9781472910646}}
* ''The Dream of Eddy Merckx'' by Freddy Merckx in 2019, Sportliteratuur Uitgeverij, 56 p. (English, Dutch, French) {{ISBN|9781513646121}}
* ''De Rivals of Merckx'' by Filip Osselaer in 2019, Borgerhoff & Lamberigts, 208 p. (English, Dutch, French) {{ISBN|9789089319852}}
* ''1969 – The Year of Eddy Merckx'' by Johny Vansevenant in 2019, [[Lannoo]], 432 p. (English, Dutch, French) {{ISBN|9789401462860}}<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 December 2022 |title="1969 - The Year of Eddy Merckx" in English at last! |url=https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/en/2019/12/24/_1969-the-year-of-eddy-merckx-in-english-at-last/ |website=[[Sporza]]}}</ref>

=== In other languages ===
* ''Eddy Merckx'' by Louis Clicteur & Lucien Berghmans in 1967, 164 p. (Dutch)
* ''Mijn Wegjournaal'' by Louis Clicteur in 1971, 176 p. (Dutch)
* ''Eddy Merckx Story'' by Jan Cornand in 1978, 111 p. (Dutch)
* ''Eddy Merckx – Mijn Levensverhaal'' by Robert Janssens in 1989, 208 p. (Dutch) {{ISBN|9789028914650}}
* ''Eddy Merckx – De Mens achter de Kannibaal'' by Rik Vanwalleghem in 1993, 216 p. (Dutch, French) {{ISBN|9789073322059}}
* ''Spraakmakende biografie van Eddy Merckx'' by Philippe Brunel in 2005, 192 p. (Dutch)
* ''De Mannen achter Merckx : het Verhaal van Faema en Molteni'' by Patrick Cornillie and Johny Vansevenant in 2006, 304 p. (Dutch, French) {{ISBN|90-77562-28-1}}
* ''Fietspassie/La Passion du Vélo'' by Toon Claes&nbsp;and Eddy Merckx in 2008, 196 p. (Dutch, French) {{ISBN|9789086792047}}
* ''De Zomer van '69, hoe Merckx won van Armstrong'' by Patrick Cornillie in 2009, 343 p. (Dutch) {{ISBN|9789086792023}}
* ''Merckxissimo'' by Karl Vannieuwkerke & Stephan Vanfleteren in 2009, 144 p. (Dutch, French) {{ISBN|978 90 8138 940 2}}
* ''Eddy Merckx en Ik – Herinneringen aan de Kannibaal'' by Stefaan Van Laere in 2010, 184 p. (Dutch)
* ''Eddy Merckx – Getuigenissen van Jan Wauters'' by Jan Wauters in 2010, 176 p. (Dutch) {{ISBN|9789089311450}}
* ''Mannen tegen Merckx – van Van Looy tot Maertens'' by Johny Vansevenant in 2012 (Dutch) {{ISBN|9789491376214}}
* ''Eddy Merckx – Een leven'' by Daniel Friebe in 2013, 272 p. (Dutch) {{ISBN|9789401404471}}
* ''Eddy Merckx – De biografie'' by Johny Vansevenant in 2015, 400 p. (Dutch, French) {{ISBN|9789492081513}}
* ''Eddy! Eddy! Eddy! De Tour in België'' by Geert de Vriese in 2019, 256 p. (Dutch) {{ISBN|9789089247308}}
* ''50 jaar Merckx – Jubileum van een Tourlegende'' by Tonny Strouken in 2020, 140 p. (Dutch, French) {{ISBN|9789059247314}}
* ''L'Irrésistible Ascension d'un Jeune Champion'' by Pierre Thonon in 1968, 170 p. (French) 
* ''Merckx ou la Rage de Vaincre'' by Léon Zitrone in 1969, 208 p. (French) ASIN B0061R9A8O
* ''Qui êtes-vous Eddy Merckx?'' by Marc Jeuniau in 1969, 112 p. (French) ASIN B008AWK3MK 
* ''Du Maillot Arc en Ciel au Maillot Jaune'' by Pierre Thonon in 1970, 167 p. (French)
* ''Le Phénomène Eddy Merckx et ses Rivaux'' by François Terbeen in 1971, 185 p. (French) ASIN B003WRURD8
* ''Face à Face avec Eddy Merckx'' by Marc Jeuniau in 1971, 111 p. (French) 
* ''Mes Carnets de Route en 1971'' by Marc Jeuniau in 1971, 159 p. (French) 
* ''Plus d'un Tour dans Mon Sac: Mes Carnets de Route 1972'' by Marc Jeuniau in 1972, 158 p. (French) 
* ''Eddy Merckx cet Inconnu''&nbsp;by Roger Bastide in 1972, 124 p. (French) 
* ''Les Exploits Fabuleux d'Eddy Merckx'' by Yves Duval and Christian Lippens in 1973, 48 p. (Comic book in French) 
* ''Mes 50 Victoires en 1973: Mes carnets de route 1973'' by René Jacobs in 1973, 159 p. (French) 
* ''Merckx / Ocana : Duel au Sommet'' by François Terbeen in 1974, 217 p. (French) 
* ''Coureur Cycliste: Un Homme et son Métier'' by Eddy Merckx and Pierre Chany in 1974, 248 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782221231975}}
* ''Ma Chasse aux Maillots Rose, Jaune, Arc-en-Ciel: Mes Carnets de route 1974'' by Eddy Merckx, Marc Jeuniau, Pierre Depré in 1974, 158 p. (French) ASIN B0014MKH4C
* ''Le Livre d'Or de Eddy Merckx'' by Georges Pagnoud in 1976, 111 p. (French) {{ISBN|978-2263000218}}
* ''Eddy Merckx l'Homme du Défi'' by Marc Jeuniau in 1977, 220 p. (French) {{ISBN|2801600911}}
* ''La Roue de la Fortune, du Champion à l'Homme d'Affaires'' by Joël Godaert in 1989, 208 p. (French) {{ISBN|2 7130 1006 3}}
* ''Eddy Merckx, l'Épopée'' by Théo Mathy in 1999, 159 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782507000455}}
* ''Merckx Intime'' by Philippe Brunel in 2002, 159 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782702132289}}
* ''Eddy Merckx, Ma Véritable Histoire'' by Stéphane Thirion in 2006, 200 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782930359595}}
* ''Eddy Merckx, les Tours de France d'un Champion Unique'' by Théo Mathy in 2008, 200 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782507000455}}
* ''Tour 75 : Le Rêve du Cannibale'' by Laurent Watiez in 2010, 103 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782916655208}}
* ''Dans l'Ombre d'Eddy Merckx – Les Hommes qui ont Couru contre le Cannibale'' by Johny Vansevenant in 2012, 384 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782507050849}}
* {{cite book |last1=Cazeneuve |first1=Thierry |last2=Chany |first2=Pierre |title=La fabuleuse histoire du Tour de France |trans-title=The Story of the Tour de France |date=2011 |publisher=La Martinière |location=Paris |isbn=9782732447926 |edition=Nouv. éd. |language=fr}}
* ''Coup de Foudre dans l'Aubisque: Eddy Merckx dans la Légende''&nbsp;by Bertrand Lucq in 2015, 136 p. (French) {{ISBN|2758800454}}
* ''Eddy : Ma Saison des Classiques en Version 1973'' by François Paoletti in 2015, 212 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782940585038}}
* ''Eddy Merckx, c’est Beaucoup plus qu’Eddy Merckx'' by Christophe Penot in 2015, 48 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782844211262}}
* ''Sur les Traces d'Eddy Merckx'' by Jean-Louis Lahaye and ean-Louis Lahaye in 2016, 250 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782507053420}}
* ''La Fabuleuse Carrière d'Eddy Merckx en un Survol'' by Michel Crepel in 2016, 202 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782334149334}}
* ''Eddy Été 69'' by Jean-Paul Vespini in 2019, 191 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782970132912}}
* ''On m'Appelait le Cannibale'' by Stéphane Thirion in 2019, 255 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782875573919}}
* ''Eddy Merckx : Analyse d'une Légende'' by Jean Cléder in 2019, 224 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782372541183}}
* ''Merckx-Ocana: Le Bel Ete 1971'' by Pascal Sergent in 2021, 153 p. (French) {{ISBN|9782490997046}}
* ''E non Chiamatemi (più) Cannibale. Vita e Imprese di Eddy Merckx'' by Angelo De Lorenzi in 2003, 153 p. (Italian) {{ISBN|9788888551210}}
* ''Il Sessantotto a Pedali. Al Giro con Eddy Merckx'' by Francesco Ricci in 2008, 151 p. (Italian) {{ISBN|9788860410825}}
* ''Fausto Coppi Eddy Merckx. Due campionissimi a confronto'' by Luciano Boccaccini in 2011, 112 p. (Italian) {{ISBN|9788875494353}}
* ''Chiedimi chi Era Merckx. Le Stagioni di Eddy dall'Esordio al Congedo'' by Porreca G. Paolo in 2013, 237 p. (Italian) {{ISBN|9788867760206}}
* ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=bZmfjwEACAAJ Merckx, il Figlio del Tuono]'' (Merckx, the Son of Thunder) by Claudio Gregori in 2016, 570 p. (Italian) {{ISBN|9788898876587}}
* ''Gimondi & Merckx. La Sfida'' by Giorgio Martino in 2019, 159 p. (Italian) {{ISBN|9788898970469}}
* ''Eddy Merckx'' by Helmer Boelsen in 1973, 128 p. (German) {{ISBN|9783767900134}}
* ''Die Nacht, in der Ich Eddy Merckx Bezwang'' by Marc Locatelli in 2019, 48 p. (German) {{ISBN|9783037311936}}
{{div col end}}

== See also ==
{{#invoke:Portal|portal|Biography|Sports|Belgium}}
* [[Cycling records]]
* [[Yellow jersey statistics]]
* [[Pink jersey statistics]]
* [[List of foreign recipients of the Légion d'Honneur]]
* [[List of Giro d'Italia general classification winners]]
* [[List of Grand Tour general classification winners]]
* [[List of noble families in Belgium]]
* [[List of Tour de France general classification winners]]
* [[List of Tour de France secondary classification winners]]
* [[List of Vuelta a España general classification winners]]
* [[List of Vuelta a España classification winners]]

==References==
'''Footnotes'''
{{reflist|group=N}}

'''Citations'''
<references />

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Eddy Merckx}}
* {{Sports links}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-ach|rec}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Ole Ritter]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Hour record|UCI hour record]] (49.431 km)|years=25 October 1972&nbsp;– 27 October 2000}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Chris Boardman]]}}
{{s-reg|be}}
{{s-new|creation}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Baron Merckx]]|years=1996–}}
{{s-inc}}
{{s-end}}

{{navboxes top
| title = Sporting positions and awards
| bg = gold
| fg = navy
}}
{{UCI Road World Champions – Men's road race}}
{{UEC European Track Champions – Men's omnium}}
{{Tour de France general classification winners}}
{{Tour de France points classification winners}}
{{Tour de France mountains classification winners}}
{{Tour de France combativity award winners}}
{{Tour de France combination classification winners}}
{{giro d'Italia general classification winners}}
{{Giro d'Italia points classification winners}}
{{Giro d'Italia mountains classification winners}}
{{Vuelta a España winners}}
{{Vuelta a España Green Jersey}}
{{Vuelta a España Combination Classification}}
{{Super Prestige Pernod International winners}}
{{Belgian National Road Race Championships (men)}}
{{Belgian Sportsperson of the Year}}
{{Belgian National Sports Merit Award}}
{{Milan–San Remo winners}}
{{Tour of Flanders winners}}
{{Paris–Roubaix winners}}
{{Liège–Bastogne–Liège winners}}
{{Giro di Lombardia winners}}
{{UCI Hall of Fame}}
{{PAP European Sportsperson of the Year}}
{{navboxes bottom}}
{{#invoke:Authority control|authorityControl}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merckx, Eddy}}
[[Category:Eddy Merckx| ]]
[[Category:1945 births]]
[[Category:Belgian barons]]
[[Category:Belgian Giro d'Italia stage winners]]
[[Category:Belgian male cyclists]]
[[Category:Belgian sportspeople in doping cases]]
[[Category:Belgian Tour de France stage winners]]
[[Category:Belgian track cyclists]]
[[Category:Belgian Vuelta a España stage winners]]
[[Category:Cycling announcers]]
[[Category:Cyclists at the 1964 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Cyclists from Flemish Brabant]]
[[Category:Doping cases in cycling]]
[[Category:Giro d'Italia winners]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Olympic cyclists for Belgium]]
[[Category:People from Tielt-Winge]]
[[Category:Tour de France prologue winners]]
[[Category:Tour de France winners]]
[[Category:Tour de Suisse stage winners]]
[[Category:UCI Road World Champions (elite men)]]
[[Category:Vuelta a España winners]]
[[Category:Commanders of the Legion of Honour]]
[[Category:Cyclists awarded knighthoods]]