Ziedonis Cakuls devoted half of his life to the sport of cycling. The son of a railway depot locomotive driver, he began his sporting career in 1950. He achieved equally high results on the track, on the road, and in cyclo-cross, winning silver and bronze medals several times at All-Union competitions.
In 1956, Ziedonis reached the peak of his sporting career by winning the USSR Championship title in cyclo-cross.
After ending his active sporting career, Ziedonis became a coach. Unfortunately, the years devoted to sport took their toll, and he passed away at the young age of 36.
In 1959, an article titled “One and a Half Times Around the Globe” was published, stating that if all the kilometers Ziedonis Cakuls had covered in training and competitions were added together, the total distance would exceed the circumference of the Earth.
Ziedonis Cakuls first gained wider recognition at the Riga City Championships in Mežaparks, where the previously unknown newcomer finished among the winners in the youth category. From that moment on, he never parted with his bicycle, training together with cyclists from “Dinamo” and the Riga Youth Sports School.
Within a few years, through perseverance and a strong work ethic, Ziedonis rose among Latvia’s strongest cyclists. Victories and high results followed one another both in republican and All-Union competitions.
- 1953 – At the Six-City Match on the Tula velodrome, Harijs Japiņš and Ziedonis Cakuls won the two-man team race.
- 1955 – At the USSR Track Championships, the Latvian team with Ziedonis Cakuls won silver medals.
1956 – At the “Dinamo” velodrome in Senču Sils, during the republican championships in the 50 km motor-paced race, Ziedonis Cakuls together with leader Harijs Japiņš set a new Latvian record: 25 km – 24 min 16.2 sec. At the finish – 48 min 50 sec, surpassing another Latvian record.
1957 – At the Latvian Spartakiad, Ziedonis became champion in the 30 km cyclo-cross event and was selected for the Latvian national team for the final of the 2nd USSR Peoples’ Spartakiad in Moscow.
In a hard-fought race, despite two punctured tires, Ziedonis Cakuls finished second, winning the silver medal at the 2nd USSR Peoples’ Spartakiad.
Among athletes, Ziedonis Cakuls is remembered not only for his achievements but also for his humanity and comradeship—for example, during the multi-day race of the Baltic republics, he gave his bicycle to his friend Harijs Japiņš, sacrificing his personal victory for the sake of the team.
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