When he was 15-years-old Wilde Baridón was given his first bicycle from his father, taking part in his first competitive race three years later. Baridón soon caught the attention of the Uruguayan Cycling Federation and became part of the national team. In 1963 he won gold in the team road race and silver in the individual road race at the Pan American Games in São Paulo. One year later he won an Olympic qualification race in Uruguay to secure himself a place at the 1964 Tokyo Games. At the Olympics he finished more than 20 minutes behind the winner in the individual road race, but did place 10th in the 100 kilometres team time trial with his compatriots. That same year Baridón had two podium finishes on stages at the Vuelta del Uruguay, going on to finish 10th overall in the general classification. Sadly, however, his promising career was cut short when he died following a crash at a race in Montevideo in November 1965, at age 24. Following Baridón’s death, a memorial cycling race was held in his hometown of Tarariras, along with a street being named after him.
Uruguay