Sean Kelly - list of victories

Macy0161

RobFowl wrote: »

And 2 Giros, a world TT title and Olympic Gold.....

Those two Giros, Giro-Tour doubles too.

Probably knew not to push his luck, share the wins, and be a nice guy. Nice guys don't tend to have their soup spat in...

greenspurs

Cape Clear wrote: »

Who'd be on the Nicest or Biggest Prick Of All Time list?

On Boards ?

Or in sport .....

Weepsie

Cape Clear wrote: »

Who'd be on the Nicest or Biggest Prick Of All Time list?

Nicest, Paul OConnell. He's a gentleman. the dunlop's were apparently lovely people too.

Prick, George Best probably (the islands most naturally talented )

Frankie Machine

Weepsie wrote: »

Battered his wife. Doesn't deserve to be in the conversation. Complete scumbag. People have forgotten about him for a reason

:rolleyes:

More irrelevant tittle tattle BS.

The two biggest derailing offenders in the thread, are two mods. Ridiculous.

Why not just go and bother the CA forum with your attention-seeking BS ? Virtue signalling is oxygen over there.

Anyway, Sean Kelly, the subject of the thread - nice article here which reiterates the 193 figure.

http://sportactive.net/images/stories/pdf/seankelly_article_velonews_july08.pdf

It's really uncomplicated. The man was one of the greatest of all time, in a global sport, which is amongst the most gruelling of them all.


.

greenspurs

Weepsie wrote: »

Battered his wife. Doesn't deserve to be in the conversation. Complete scumbag. People have forgotten about him for a reason

Wow...
here we go again....

If you are looking to erase all the deeds of 'Fallen Idols' , you are not going to have many left , are you ?

Maybe there should be a check list for the criteria ?

Anyway back to Kelly.

About when he abandoned the 87 Vuelta while leading , He said recently that the rumour that his mechanic cut away a lot of his saddle to relieve pressure on the boil was untrue.
Always thought it was true.

Bambaata

greenspurs wrote: »

About when he abandoned the 87 Vuelta while leading , He said recently that the rumour that his mechanic cut away a lot of his saddle to relieve pressure on the boil was untrue.
Always thought it was true.

They did cut away a bit of his bib shorts though Was listening in on the commentary when they were speaking about that. Must have been one hell of a sore!

Cape Clear

greenspurs wrote: »

Wow...
here we go again....

If you are looking to erase all the deeds of 'Fallen Idols' , you are not going to have many left , are you ?

Maybe there should be a check list for the criteria ?

Anyway back to Kelly.

About when he abandoned the 87 Vuelta while leading , He said recently that the rumour that his mechanic cut away a lot of his saddle to relieve pressure on the boil was untrue.
Always thought it was true.

Mentions about the saddle in his book but it sounds more like a small bit of cutting more so than anything else.

Cape Clear

greenspurs wrote: »

Wow...
here we go again....

If you are looking to erase all the deeds of 'Fallen Idols' , you are not going to have many left , are you ?

Maybe there should be a check list for the criteria ?

Anyway back to Kelly.

About when he abandoned the 87 Vuelta while leading , He said recently that the rumour that his mechanic cut away a lot of his saddle to relieve pressure on the boil was untrue.
Always thought it was true.

Not too many politically correct Xmas carols left after the woke brigade took aim at them.

dublin49

It's really uncomplicated. The man was one of the greatest of all time, in a global sport, which is amongst the most gruelling of them all.


if it wasnt for one Eddie Merckx who is globally accepted as the greatest ever.

magicbastarder

okay folks, some people don't like their sports stars being judged on actual or perceived misdemeanours off the saddle/off the pitch/whatever.
however, you can disagree with those opinions without resorting to OTT rhetoric. this is not the daily mail comments section.

any questions, PM me

Chivito550

Frankie Machine wrote: »

:rolleyes:

More irrelevant tittle tattle BS.

The two biggest derailing offenders in the thread, are two mods. Ridiculous.

Why not just go and bother the CA forum with your attention-seeking BS ? Virtue signalling is oxygen over there.

Anyway, Sean Kelly, the subject of the thread - nice article here which reiterates the 193 figure.

http://sportactive.net/images/stories/pdf/seankelly_article_velonews_july08.pdf

It's really uncomplicated. The man was one of the greatest of all time, in a global sport, which is amongst the most gruelling of them all.


.

Devil's advocate from somebody who is a big fan, but is cycling really a global sport, particularly in the 1980s?

You don't see anyone from Africa or Asia in the peleton. Outside of Colombia, there's not a whole lot happening in Latin America either.

Football and athletics (specifically track events, rather than field) and maybe boxing are the only true global sports.

breezy1985

Chivito550 wrote: »

Devil's advocate from somebody who is a big fan, but is cycling really a global sport, particularly in the 1980s?

You don't see anyone from Africa or Asia in the peleton. Outside of Colombia, there's not a whole lot happening in Latin America either.

Football and athletics (specifically track events, rather than field) and maybe boxing are the only true global sports.

No its not really a global sport its more like tennis where it has one global event like Wimbledon. There are pockets though like Japan love track and Eritrea are obsessed with cycling and it has a decent presence in French speaking Africa. Also Carapaz is Ecuadorian so thats a start


In reality Soccer is the only global sport and the rest have 1 big event if lucky. Athletics is a top sport in very few countries and most dont care outside the olympics and boxing is only a big sport in a small number of countries

Frankie Machine

Chivito550 wrote: »

Devil's advocate from somebody who is a big fan, but is cycling really a global sport, particularly in the 1980s?

You don't see anyone from Africa or Asia in the peleton. Outside of Colombia, there's not a whole lot happening in Latin America either.

Football and athletics (specifically track events, rather than field) and maybe boxing are the only true global sports.

I hear you, but I think Kelly's achievements stand the test of time, so I don't think the composition of the peloton in the '80's' is a disqualification. He's still one of the greats of all time today, as such.

Accept your point re 'global', though.

magicbastarder

Cycling was seen as a working class sport from what I understand, certainly into the 80s, at least for the participants. Has that changed at all?

breezy1985

magicbastarder wrote: »

Cycling was seen as a working class sport from what I understand, certainly into the 80s, at least for the participants. Has that changed at all?

No not really although it has gained a middle class following in the Uk and Ireland as a leisure sport and the idea of the great heros of the sport learning to cycle by riding 20km on crap roads just to pick up some milk in the biting rain is mostly gone.


Some nice stories though especially from Colombia where I think Uran who had to leave school to turn pro and feed the family when his father died and Nairo was almost paralysed in a crash going to school and on the recovery bed his father promised to give everything he had to buy him a new bike. Bardet joined the French army to get on their pro cycling team so he could afford to ride and Pinot is a pure bogger with his own farm to look after on the off days. Wiggins is working class and Sam Bennetts dad was a low league soccer player in Belgium and former Waterford United manager. And Peter Sagan won his first race on his sisters bike cause he didnt have one

Frankie Machine

Froome's brothers went to Rugby school and I think he to a boarding school in SA.

Don't know if he's an outlier in that regard.

Frankie Machine

David Millar's old man was an RAF pilot.

breezy1985

Frankie Machine wrote: »

Froome's brothers went to Rugby school and I think he to a boarding school in SA.

Don't know if he's an outlier in that regard.

I think he would be very posh by cycling standards. The working class cycling thing comes mostly from Flanders and North France where they have a legend of growing hard cyclists due to crap roads and biting wind and rain which is why they love Kelly. Think of the old stereotype of the Munster rugby player and you are on similar lines to a Flandrien

Frankie Machine

breezy1985 wrote: »

I think he would be very posh by cycling standards. The working class cycling thing comes mostly from Flanders and North France where they have a legend of growing hard cyclists due to crap roads and biting wind and rain which is why they love Kelly. Think of the old stereotype of the Munster rugby player and you are on similar lines to a Flandrien

I can't remember where I read it, but I have seen him described as the last of the old school Flemish riders.

Quite a tribute.

breezy1985

Frankie Machine wrote: »

I can't remember where I read it, but I have seen him described as the last of the old school Flemish riders.

Quite a tribute.

To be named a Flandrien despite not being from Belgium is a huge honour.

magicbastarder

breezy1985 wrote: »

The working class cycling thing comes mostly from Flanders and North France

i think the first book that comes to mind which discusses the working class link would be 'slaying the badger' so that dovetails into what you say.

eeeee

magicbastarder wrote: »

Cycling was seen as a working class sport from what I understand, certainly into the 80s, at least for the participants. Has that changed at all?

I think it's changed almost 100%, certainly here. The focus and support you need to get anywhere in cycling now is only available in a large part to the privileged.
It's not a very diverse sport either.

magicbastarder

no, and that's something i've noticed out on the road. it's exceptionally rare to see a non-caucasian cyclist who is a 'leisure cyclist'. plenty of commuter and working cyclists, though.

breezy1985

eeeee wrote: »

I think it's changed almost 100%, certainly here. The focus and support you need to get anywhere in cycling now is only available in a large part to the privileged.
It's not a very diverse sport either.

Here it has certainly as a leisure sport and most of our pros come from cycling or sports families.

Definitely not a diverse sport and you don't see many non white people outside a few French or African lads but I think that is cultural as more than being a discrimination thing as it's a rural sport in many countries and in France for instance you don't see many come out of Paris black or white

breezy1985

breezy1985 wrote: »

Here it has certainly as a leisure sport and most of our pros come from cycling or sports families.

Definitely not a diverse sport and you don't see many non white people outside a few French or African lads but I think that is cultural as more than being a discrimination thing as it's a rural sport in many countries and in France for instance you don't see many come out of Paris black or white

Very much a cultural thing in certain parts of Africa too according to a piece I saw last year on cycling in general there on either France 24 or BBC. They interviewed a man who ran a bike shop who told them (can't recall which countries were mentioned) that it's very much seen as a poor persons form of transport. People would rather walk or drive heaps of **** than be seen riding a bike.

Other parts are super passionate about cycling, but they lack the structures and supports to grow the sport to a high level.

TheBlaaMan

Raymzor wrote: »

I always thought the BlaaMan was a Waterford connection. I guess it must be a west Kerry island connection instead ��.

Dub.
Live in Waterford
Friends in Kerry.

Chivito550

breezy1985 wrote: »

No its not really a global sport its more like tennis where it has one global event like Wimbledon. There are pockets though like Japan love track and Eritrea are obsessed with cycling and it has a decent presence in French speaking Africa. Also Carapaz is Ecuadorian so thats a start


In reality Soccer is the only global sport and the rest have 1 big event if lucky. Athletics is a top sport in very few countries and most dont care outside the olympics and boxing is only a big sport in a small number of countries

That's not the point I was making.

Athletics is a global sport in that there are champions from all corners of the world. It makes sense, as the financial barriers to entry are very low for track events.

Don't agree re your point on most not caring outside the Olympics. In USA definitely. In Ireland too. But I've been to every World and European Championships since 2010 and all bar one or two has been extremely well attended. Athletics is far more popular on the continent than it is here.

breezy1985

Chivito550 wrote: »

That's not the point I was making.

Athletics is a global sport in that there are champions from all corners of the world. It makes sense, as the financial barriers to entry are very low for track events.

Don't agree re your point on most not caring outside the Olympics. In USA definitely. In Ireland too. But I've been to every World and European Championships since 2010 and all bar one or two has been extremely well attended. Athletics is far more popular on the continent than it is here.

Firstly athletics is a huge range of sport so you need to narrow it down to track and field for a fair comparison. I've been to the world championships and it was extremely well attended and I've also been to the TdF and WC in cycling that were also very well attended and that was in the UK so not even the heartland.

Take a school of 100 kids in almost any country in the world and ask how many watch athletics or participate outside school or ask em can they name any tracks and field star outside Bolt and very few will say yes to any of the 3. People are not kicking doors down to join athletics clubs with he exception of the diehard countries same as boxing or cycling. All of them are played in every country and have well attended major events but are nowhere in the national conversation in most countries

magicbastarder

how well specced are most schools for the space and equipment to offer athletics as an option for PE/general sports?

greenspurs

topic here ......



















current conversation -> .


https://www.procyclingstats.com/rider/sean-kelly/overview/start

Interesting to see that Kelly won the Tour de Suiss ( a notoriously 'hilly' stage race) twice, and Tour of Catalunya, (another 'Lumpy' race ) twice !
Just goes to show how he could adapt. Not bad for a sprinter