Team Ranking
1) The Netherlands……………………….……….104h 39m 02s
2) Bulgaria……………………………………..…..104h 46m 34s
3) East Germany (D.D.R)………………………….104h 46m 40s
One of the greatest Amateur rider of his era, Fedor Den Hertog, besides this edition, won as well the 1969 & 1971 Tour of Britain (Milk Race); the 1969 Tour of Belgium amateur; the 1972 Tour de l‘Avenir; the 1973 Olympia’s Tour & most impressive of all, the 1969 Rheinland-Pfalz-Rundfahrt winning an incredible 9 out of 11 stages. He was successful too on the tracks & riding one day races, for he was Dutch amateur Track Pursuit champion in 1968 & 1971; won the 1968 Dutch amateur road race championship; the 1970 Grand Prix des Nations amateur and became in 1968, team time-trial Olympic Gold medalist (together with, among others, Joop Zoetemelk),
He finally turn professional in 1974, but his heydays were over and, soon, by 1977, he retired.
Rider ranked overall 8, Hennie Kuiper, would soon turn professional and have a more than exceptional career, finishing twice runner-up in the 1977 & 1980 Tour de France besides winning the great Classics, Ronde van Vlaanderen & Giro di Lombadia, both in 1981; Paris-Roubaix in 1983; Milano-Sanremo in 1985 as well as being road world champion in 1975.
The successful Dutch team of this edition; winning the overall and the team ranking consisted of Matthijs De Koning; Fedor Den Hertog; Hennie Kuiper; Popke Oosterhof; Nico Vermeulen & Tino Tabak, team coached by Ab Rozijn
For the first time ever, no stage win at all for Bulgaria
And for the first time ever, this edition’s average speed is over the 40 km/h !