Christian Vande Velde : A Champion Cyclist By Any Name

Christian Vande Velde is on the verge of winning the Tour of Missouri, but the cycling world and even the Vande Velde family has a unique identity crisis.

Christian Vande Velde

Vande Velde’s name on his race number in the Tour of Missouri is spelled Vandevelde. And it’s also often spelled as one word in other races. But the 32-year-old cyclist and everyone on his father’s side of the family, spells the family’s last name as two words, both words capitalized . . . Vande Velde.

But there are also family members in Belgium, including Christian Vande Velde’s cousins, who spell the name correctly as three words.

So let’s let Christian Vande Velde explain:

“When my grandfather went to war, they messed it (the family name) up and said it was Vande Velde,” he said. “But his brother put it back to Van de Velde, but my side of the family is all Vande Velde. But it should be three words.

“I’ve said it a thousand times. When I got back to Belgium (the family’s ancestry is Belgian), they always, ‘This is how it should be spelled. It’s weird. All my cousins still spell it with three words.”

Vande Velde’s father, who also was an accomplished pro cyclist, signed the family name with two words, both words beginning with uppercase letters. And it’s been that way for about 50 years, which is why Christian Vande Velde also signs his name as two words.

And yet, the name is really three words. And what does the name mean? Its translation: “From The Fields.”