Race of Peace, 9 to May 23

Promising beginnings...

The young Pavel Tonkov takes part in his first Race of Peace, the greatest test amateur, in Soviet team A. At 19 years, he obtains remarkable 9th places.

This Race of Peace 1988 is summarized especially with a duel between the team of the USSR and the team of the GDR, that is to say Poulnikov, Ugrumov, Uslamine, Tonkov, Konyshev and Abdoujaparov against Ampler, Schur, Raab and Ludwig. As of the prologue of Bratislava, Tonkov is classified 12th. He obtains his best result at the time-trial of Zakopane, where he is classified 8th with 15" of the winner Uwe Ampler. In fact, the young Pavel Tonkov especially seems a good cronoman more than like a good climber. At the end the 10 days of race, it is classified 9th with 2' of Ampler, and 3rd Soviet. But Pavel is not very convinced by his performances: "I finished the last season very tired, and now, I have much evil to adapt to the change of category".

Hessen-Rundfart, 1 to August 7

19 years and already Soviet number one!

After the Race of Peace, Pavel is engaged on the Tour of Yugoslavia. His condition improves of day in day, and he finishes 2th of the test in same time as the winner. In July, he is "finally" victorious of a stage of the Tour of the Bohemian, his first great success. It will be followed of many others...

At the beginning of August, Pavel disputes Hessen-Rundfart in team A, with Piotr Ugrumov, 27 years and already veteran of cycling amateur, as leader. But, it is the young Tonkov, 19 years, which appears the best as of the first stage, in Herborn, that he gains with 7" in advance on his team-mate Romes Ganetdinov. Piotr Ugrumov, in spite of two personal successes of stages, does not have any more but to be put at the service of his young leader who dominates the race with large calms, and is winning on the general classification in front of Gainetdinov. At 19 years, Tonkov shows that it is already the best Soviet runner for the stage races!