.gif)
Seán Kelly (cyclist)
Encyclopedia
John James 'Sean' Kelly is an Irish
former professional road bicycle racer. He was one of the most successful road cyclists of the 1980s, and one of the finest classics
riders of all time. From turning professional in 1977 until his retirement in 1994, he won nine monument classics, and 193 professional races in total. He won Paris–Nice seven years in a row and the first UCI Road World Cup in 1989. He won the 1988 Vuelta a España
and had multiple wins in the Giro di Lombardia, Milan – San Remo, Paris–Roubaix and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Other victories include the Critérium International
, Grand Prix des Nations
and smaller tours including the Tour de Suisse
, Vuelta al País Vasco and Volta a Catalunya.
Although Kelly never won the World Road Race Championships, he twice won bronze medals (1982 & 1989) & also finished 5th in 1987, the year compatriot Stephen Roche
won gold. Kelly was first to be ranked No.1 when the FICP rankings were introduced in March 1984, a position he held for a record six years. In the 1984 season, Kelly achieved 33 victories.
on 24 May 1956. He was named John James Kelly after his father and then, to avoid confusion at home, referred to as Sean. Seán is an Irish
version of John.
For eight years he attended Crehana National School, to which he travelled with his older brother, Joe. Fellow pupils recall a boy who retreated into silence because, they thought, he felt intellectually outclassed. His education ended at 13 when he left school to help on the farm after his father went to hospital in Waterford with an ulcer. At 16 he began work as a bricklayer.
Kelly began cycling after his brother had started riding to school in September 1969. Joe rode and won local races and on 4 August 1970 Sean rode his own first race, at Kennedy Terrace in Carrickbeg, part of Carrick-on-Suir. The race was an eight-mile (13 km) handicap, which meant the weaker riders started first and the best last. Kelly set off three minutes before the backmarkers. He was still three minutes ahead when the course turned for home after four miles (6 km) and more than three minutes in the lead when he crossed the line.
At 16 he won the national junior championship at Banbridge
, County Down
.
in 1974 and again in 1975 and stages in the Tour of Ireland of 1975. The 1976 Olympic Games were in Montreal, Canada, and Kelly and two other Irish riders, Pat
and Kieron McQuaid, went to South Africa to ride the Rapport Tour stage-race in preparation. They and others rode under false names because of an international ban on athletes competing in South Africa, as a protest against apartheid. Kelly's team was caught out when a journalist from the London Daily Mail
tried to have British riders, as he understood them to be, pictured with Richard Burton
and Elizabeth Taylor
, who were in South Africa for a second honeymoon. The reticence of team officials to allow riders to be pictured intrigued him and he learned they were riding in secret. He sent pictures to the Daily Mail, where cycling enthusiasts identified them. They were John Curran and Henry Wilbraham from Scotland, and the three from Ireland. They filled a page of the paper on 16 October 1975 with headlines including "The secret team who masquerade as Britain."
The Irish were suspended from racing for six months. They were racing again when the International Olympic Committee
banned them from the Olympics for life.
Unable to ride in Canada, Kelly rode the 1976 Tour of Britain
and then went to Metz
, in France, after a London enthusiast, Johnny Morris, had arranged an invitation. The club offered him £25 a week, free accommodation and four francs a kilometre for every race he won. Kelly won 18 of the 25 races he started in France and won the amateur Giro di Lombardia in Italy. That impressed two French team managers, Jean de Gribaldy
and Cyrille Guimard
. De Gribaldy went to Ireland unannounced to discuss a contract with the Flandria professional team. He didn't know where Kelly lived and wasn't sure he would recognise him. He took with him another cyclist, to point out Kelly and translate the conversation. Kelly was out driving a tractor and de Gribaldy set out again in the taxi that had brought him from Dublin, hoping to find Kelly as he drove home. They found him and went to Kelly's stepbrother's house. De Gribaldy offered £4,000 a year plus bonuses. A week later Kelly asked for £6,000 and got it. He signed for de Gribaldy with misgivings about going back on his promise to return to Metz, where the club had offered him better terms than before.
Kelly left for France in January 1977 and lived for two years at 18 place de la Révolution in Besançon, de Gribaldy's home town. He shared with four team-mates.
, were in the main section, based in Belgium. Kelly rode with the second section, based more in France because Flandria wanted to sell more of its mopeds, scooters and bicycles there. The strongest riders in both camps came together for big races. Kelly was recruited as a domestique for Maertens in the main team for year's Paris–Nice - shortly afterwards he won his first race, the opening stage of the Tour of Romandy - and stayed in it for the Tour de France, in which he also won a stage.
Kelly stayed with de Gribaldy for 1977 and 1978. Then in 1978 Michel Pollentier
was disqualified from the Tour de France after cheating a drugs test on the afternoon that he took the race lead. He left the team at the end of the season and started his own, with a new backer, Splendor. Both Maertens and Pollentier wanted Kelly. Pollentier and Splendor offered Kelly more and made him a team leader. But Splendor was new and logistic problems became obvious. The bikes were in poor state - enough that Splendor decided not to ride Paris–Roubaix - and the manager, Robert Lauwers, was replaced. Kelly rose above it and rode for himself. The writer Robin Magowan said:
In time the team improved. Kelly received few offers from elsewhere and Splendor matched those he did get. He was paid about £30,000 plus bonuses in his last season. But strengthening the team had included bringing in another sprinter, Eddy Planckaert
, and Kelly's role as a foreigner in the team was unclear. He heard that de Gribaldy was starting a new team and the two were reunited in 1982 at Sem-France Loire
. By now Kelly had a reputation as a sprinter who could not win stage races, although he did finish fourth in the 1980 Vuelta a España
. De Gribaldy employed him as unambiguous team leader, someone he believed could win stage races and not just stages. Kelly won Paris–Nice and four of its stages. On the last of those, a time-trial to the col d'Eze, he beat Gilbert Duclos-Lasalle and pushed him out of the lead. That year he also won the maillot vert (the green jersey of best sprinter) of the Tour de France
. He finished third in the world championship in England and at the end of the year married his girlfriend, Linda Grant, the daughter of a local cycling club official. Carrick-on-Suir named the town square "the Sean Kelly Square" in tribute to his achievements in the 1982 Tour de France
and his bronze medal at the championship The following year Kelly again won Paris–Nice and then the Critérium International
and the Tour de Suisse
as well as the maillot vert of the Tour de France
the second time in a row.
in the Giro di Lombardia after a battle over the Intelvi and Schignano passes. Kelly won the sprint by the narrowest margin, less than half a wheel separating the first four, against cycling greats including Francesco Moser
, Adri Van Der Poel
, Hennie Kuiper
and world champion Greg LeMond.
Kelly dominated the following spring. He won Paris–Nice for the third successive time beating Roche as well as the Tour de France winner, Bernard Hinault
who was returning after a knee injury. Kelly finished second in Milan – San Remo and the Ronde van Vlaanderen, but was unbeatable in Paris–Roubaix and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. The day after Paris–Roubaix, the French daily sports paper, L'Équipe
, pictured Kelly cycling the cobbles with mud on his face and had the heading Insatiable Kelly! referring to his appetite for winning that spring He won all three stages in the Critérium International: the bunch sprint on stage 1, a solo victory in the mountain stage and beating Roche in the final time trial
. Kelly achieved 33 victories in 1984. He was becoming a contender in the grands tours, as seen by finishing fifth in the Tour de France
. This may have caused him to lose his grip on the maillot vert in that year's Tour. Kelly was wearing it as the Tour was finishing on the Champs-Élysées
but lost it in the bunch finish to the Belgian, Frank Hoste
, who finished ahead of Kelly gaining points to take the jersey off Kelly's shoulders.
He won Paris–Nice in 1985, again beating Roche. He won the maillot vert for the third time and finished fourth in the 1985 Tour de France. Kelly won the first Nissan International Classic beating Van Der Poel. At the end of the season, he won the Giro di Lombardia.
He won Milan – San Remo in 1986 after winning Paris–Nice. He finished second in the Ronde van Vlaanderen and won Paris–Roubaix again. He finished on a podium in a grand tour for the first time when he finished third in the 1986 Vuelta a España
. Kelly missed the 1986 Tour de France due to a serious crash in the last stage of Tour de Suisse. He returned to Ireland and won the Nissan Classic again. His second win in the Nissan came after a duel with Steve Bauer
, who took the yellow jersey
after Kelly crashed numerous times. Kelly went into the final stage three seconds behind Bauer and took the jersey when he finished third on the stage and won bonus seconds.
Kelly won Paris–Nice in 1987 on the last day after Roche, the leader, punctured. Later, leading the Vuelta a España with three days to go, he retired with an infection. His bad luck continued in the Tour de France, retiring after a crash tore ligaments in his shoulder. After the World Championship
, in which he finished fifth behind Roche, Kelly returned to Ireland to win the Nissan for the third consecutive time.
Kelly won his seventh Paris–Nice in spring 1988, a record. He won Gent–Wevelgem several weeks later. He returned in April to the 1988 Vuelta a España
. He stayed two minutes behind the leader, Laudelino Cubino
, during the first two weeks then finished fourth behind Parra and Anselmo Fuerte on stage 13 (won by Fabio Parra
), cutting a minute and a half into Cubino's lead. From this stage, Fuerte had moved into second overall and later took the jersey from Cubino on the 16th stage. Kelly maintained the gap between himself and Fuerte and started the time trial
on the second last day 21 seconds behind. He won and took the leader's amarillo jersey. The following day Kelly won his only grand tour, over West German Raimund Dietzen. He also won the points competition. After his Vuelta win Kelly returned to Carrick-on-Suir where a parade was held in his honour.
Kelly finished 46th in the Tour de France
, just over an hour behind Pedro Delgado
. He was no longer a contender for overall victory after this and said he'd never win the Tour de France
. Kelly finished third behind the German, Rolf Gölz, in the Nissan Classic that year
Kelly finished third in the sprint at the rainy world road championship of 1989 at Chambéry, France, behind Dimitri Konyshev and Greg Lemond. Lemond won his second rainbow jersey as world champion.
Kelly switched to the Dutch PDM team
and stayed there three years until the end of 1991. The following year he won Liège–Bastogne–Liège, the maillot vert in the Tour de France, and the inaugural UCI Road World Cup championship.
Kelly won the Tour de Suisse
in 1990. In March 1991, he broke a collarbone, then pulled out of the 1991 Tour de France
and then while Kelly was competing the Tour of Galicia in August, his brother Joe was killed in a race near Carrick-on-Suir
. He came back to win his fourth Nissan Classic by four seconds over Sean Yates
and then went to and won the classic at the end of the season, the Giro di Lombardia.
and prepared for Milan – San Remo. Race favourite Moreno Argentin
attacked from the leading group on the final climb, the Poggio
. He broke clear after several attempts and reached the top eight seconds before the rest. It seemed he was on his way to a solo victory as the peloton descended the Poggio, where Maurizio Fondriest
led, marked by Argentin's team-mate Rolf Sorensen. Kelly was behind these two in third position . Kelly attacked with three kilometres of descending left. Sorensen could not hold his acceleration and Kelly got away. He caught Argentin with a kilometre to go. Both stalled, the chasers closing fast, Argentin gesturing to Kelly to take the front. Kelly stayed on Argentin's wheel. The two moved again, preparing for a sprint; Kelly launched himself and in the final 200m came past Argentin to win his final classic.
In 1992, Kelly travelled to Colombia
for the Clasico RCN
, where he won the second stage. His PDM team-mate, Martin Earley
, pushed him into second place at the 1993 Irish road championship
.
Kelly's last year as a professional was 1994, when he rode for Catavana. He returned to Carrick-on-Suir at the end of the season to ride the annual Hamper race. That was Kelly's last race as a professional. Eddy Merckx
, Laurent Fignon
, Bernard Hinault
, Roger De Vlaeminck
, Claude Criquielion, Stephen Roche, Martin Earley, Acacio Da Silva
and Paul Kimmage
were among 1,200 cyclists present. The President of Ireland
, Mary Robinson
, attended a civic presentation to Kelly the day before the race. Kelly won in a sprint against Roche. Kelly won this race again six years later.
, from Eddy Merckx
through to Lance Armstrong
. His first Tour was also the first for Bernard Hinault
and the two battled in the sprint of stage 15. Greg LeMond
and Laurent Fignon
emerged in the early eighties and challenged Kelly in the classics as well as in the Tour, and Kelly witnessed the rise of Miguel Indurain
and the early career of Lance Armstrong
. Kelly's career coincided with Stephen Roche
as well as classics specialists including Francesco Moser
, Claude Criquielion, Moreno Argentin and Eric Vanderaerden
. Evidence of Kelly's dominance can be seen from his three victories in the season-long Super Prestige Pernod International
competition (predecessor to the World Cup). Kelly competed throughout the season, from Paris–Nice in March to the Giro di Lombardia in October, winning both in 1983 and 1985.
Robin Magowan said: "It is customary to talk of Kelly as quintessentially an Irish rider. For my part, though, I think it helps to place Kelly better as a cyclist to see him as the last of the Flemish riders. This is usually a title associated with the post-war rider, Briek Schotte who has become appropriately enough the man in day-to-day charge of the de Gribaldy teams. As exemplified by Schotte it stood for a certain type of mentality, willing to suffer, narrowly focussed, and hard, hard, hard. Kelly had all this in him from his Irish small farm background: the outside loo; the dogs that have to be chained before you can step from your car; the one career possible, as a bricklayer on a construction site, stretching away and away into the grey mists. On the positive side, along with the self-reliance, came a physical strength that even by peasant standards is impressive. In a profession of iron wills, there is no one harder.
Kelly is the subject of several books, including his biography Kelly and A Man For All Seasons by David Walsh
.
until the final few hundred metres, Kelly could instigate breaks and climb well, proving this by winning the Vuelta a España
in 1988. His victories in Paris–Roubaix (1984, 1986) showed his ability in poor weather and on pavé sections, while he could stay with the climbing specialists in the mountains in the Tour de France
. He was also a formidable descender, clocking a career top race speed of 124 km/h, while descending from Col de Joux Plane
to Morzine on stage 19 of the Tour in 1984
. He finished fourth in the Tour in 1985 and won the maillot vert in 1982
, 1983
, 1985
, and 1989
, the first to win four times, a feat he repeated in the Vuelta a España. Kelly won five stages in the Tour de France and 16 in the Vuelta a España
.
and has established and is involved in the Sean Kelly Cycling Academy in Belgium. In 2006 he launched Ireland's first professional team, the Sean Kelly Team, composed of young Irish and Belgian riders based at the Sean Kelly Cycling Academy in Merchtem, Belgium. He rides long-distance charity cycling tours with Blazing Saddles, a charity raising money for the blind and partially sighted. Such tours have included a journey across America by bike in 2000. He also participates in charity cycling endurance events in Scotland (notably with the Braveheart Cycling Fund), England, France and Ireland.
The inaugural Sean Kelly Tour of Waterford was held on 19 August 2007.
Kelly was one of the 600 participants. The second was on the 24 August 2008. Kelly was one of the 2,048. The 2009 tour went ahead on the 30th August 2009. It attracted over 3,400 participants. On 29 August 2010, 3708 cyclists took part in the Tour. In 2011 the attendance ballooned to over 8,000 over the 2 days and 10km,50km,90km and 160km events.
WD = withdrew
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
former professional road bicycle racer. He was one of the most successful road cyclists of the 1980s, and one of the finest classics
Classic cycle races
The classic cycle races are one-day professional cycling road races in the international calendar. Most of the events, all run in western Europe, have been fixtures on the professional calendar for decades and the oldest ones date back to the 19th Century. They are normally held at roughly the same...
riders of all time. From turning professional in 1977 until his retirement in 1994, he won nine monument classics, and 193 professional races in total. He won Paris–Nice seven years in a row and the first UCI Road World Cup in 1989. He won the 1988 Vuelta a España
Vuelta a España
The Vuelta a España is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages...
and had multiple wins in the Giro di Lombardia, Milan – San Remo, Paris–Roubaix and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Other victories include the Critérium International
Critérium International
The Critérium International is a two-day bicycle stage race held in France every spring. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in 1932....
, Grand Prix des Nations
Grand Prix des Nations
The Grand Prix des Nations was an individual time trial for professional racing cyclists. Held annually in France, it was instituted in 1932 and often regarded as the unofficial time trial championship of the world and as a Classic cycle race. The race was the idea of a Parisian newspaper editor...
and smaller tours including the Tour de Suisse
Tour de Suisse
The Tour de Suisse is a UCI World Tour stage race held annually in June. The race debuted in 1933 and has evolved in timing, duration and sponsorship. With the Critérium du Dauphiné, it is a proving ground for the Tour de France, and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar...
, Vuelta al País Vasco and Volta a Catalunya.
Although Kelly never won the World Road Race Championships, he twice won bronze medals (1982 & 1989) & also finished 5th in 1987, the year compatriot Stephen Roche
Stephen Roche
Stephen Roche is a retired professional road racing cyclist. In a 13-year professional career, he peaked in 1987, becoming only the second cyclist to win the Triple Crown of victories in the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia stage races, plus the World road race championship...
won gold. Kelly was first to be ranked No.1 when the FICP rankings were introduced in March 1984, a position he held for a record six years. In the 1984 season, Kelly achieved 33 victories.
Early life
Kelly is the second son of Jack (John) and Nellie Kelly, farmers of 48 acres (194,249.3 m²) in Curraghduff. He was born at Belleville Maternity Home in WaterfordWaterford
Waterford is a city in the South-East Region of Ireland. It is the oldest city in the country and fifth largest by population. Waterford City Council is the local government authority for the city and its immediate hinterland...
on 24 May 1956. He was named John James Kelly after his father and then, to avoid confusion at home, referred to as Sean. Seán is an Irish
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
version of John.
For eight years he attended Crehana National School, to which he travelled with his older brother, Joe. Fellow pupils recall a boy who retreated into silence because, they thought, he felt intellectually outclassed. His education ended at 13 when he left school to help on the farm after his father went to hospital in Waterford with an ulcer. At 16 he began work as a bricklayer.
Kelly began cycling after his brother had started riding to school in September 1969. Joe rode and won local races and on 4 August 1970 Sean rode his own first race, at Kennedy Terrace in Carrickbeg, part of Carrick-on-Suir. The race was an eight-mile (13 km) handicap, which meant the weaker riders started first and the best last. Kelly set off three minutes before the backmarkers. He was still three minutes ahead when the course turned for home after four miles (6 km) and more than three minutes in the lead when he crossed the line.
At 16 he won the national junior championship at Banbridge
Banbridge
Banbridge is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Bann and the A1 road. It was named after a bridge built over the Bann in 1712. The town grew as a coaching stop on the road from Belfast to Dublin and thrived from Irish linen manufacturing...
, County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
.
Amateur career and Olympic ban
Kelly won the national championship again in 1973, then took a senior licence before the normal qualifying age of 18 and won the Shay Elliot Memorial raceShay Elliott Memorial Race
The Shay Elliot Memorial race is a one day race held in Spring in Ireland. It is run in honour of former Irish professional cyclist Seamus Shay Elliot. The race was previously known as the Route de Chill Mhantain. It became the Shay Elliott Trophy in the late sixties, then the Shay Elliott Memorial...
in 1974 and again in 1975 and stages in the Tour of Ireland of 1975. The 1976 Olympic Games were in Montreal, Canada, and Kelly and two other Irish riders, Pat
Pat McQuaid
Patrick "Pat" McQuaid is a former Irish professional road racing cyclist and current president of the Union Cycliste Internationale .-Background:...
and Kieron McQuaid, went to South Africa to ride the Rapport Tour stage-race in preparation. They and others rode under false names because of an international ban on athletes competing in South Africa, as a protest against apartheid. Kelly's team was caught out when a journalist from the London Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
tried to have British riders, as he understood them to be, pictured with Richard Burton
Richard Burton
Richard Burton, CBE was a Welsh actor. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award, six of which were for Best Actor in a Leading Role , and was a recipient of BAFTA, Golden Globe and Tony Awards for Best Actor. Although never trained as an actor, Burton was, at one time, the highest-paid...
and Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age...
, who were in South Africa for a second honeymoon. The reticence of team officials to allow riders to be pictured intrigued him and he learned they were riding in secret. He sent pictures to the Daily Mail, where cycling enthusiasts identified them. They were John Curran and Henry Wilbraham from Scotland, and the three from Ireland. They filled a page of the paper on 16 October 1975 with headlines including "The secret team who masquerade as Britain."
The Irish were suspended from racing for six months. They were racing again when the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
banned them from the Olympics for life.
Unable to ride in Canada, Kelly rode the 1976 Tour of Britain
Tour of Britain
The Tour of Britain is a cycle race, conducted over several stages, in which participants race from place to place across parts of Great Britain....
and then went to Metz
Metz
Metz is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place...
, in France, after a London enthusiast, Johnny Morris, had arranged an invitation. The club offered him £25 a week, free accommodation and four francs a kilometre for every race he won. Kelly won 18 of the 25 races he started in France and won the amateur Giro di Lombardia in Italy. That impressed two French team managers, Jean de Gribaldy
Jean de Gribaldy
Jean de Gribaldy was a French road cyclist and directeur sportif.-Biography:Born in Besançon, former professional racing cyclist from 1945 to 1954, Jean de Gribaldy began a successful career as a directeur sportif in the mid-1960s .Called le Vicomte , he discovered Sean Kelly, Joaquim Agostinho...
and Cyrille Guimard
Cyrille Guimard
Cyrille Guimard is a French former professional road racing cyclist who became a directeur sportif and then a television commentator...
. De Gribaldy went to Ireland unannounced to discuss a contract with the Flandria professional team. He didn't know where Kelly lived and wasn't sure he would recognise him. He took with him another cyclist, to point out Kelly and translate the conversation. Kelly was out driving a tractor and de Gribaldy set out again in the taxi that had brought him from Dublin, hoping to find Kelly as he drove home. They found him and went to Kelly's stepbrother's house. De Gribaldy offered £4,000 a year plus bonuses. A week later Kelly asked for £6,000 and got it. He signed for de Gribaldy with misgivings about going back on his promise to return to Metz, where the club had offered him better terms than before.
Kelly left for France in January 1977 and lived for two years at 18 place de la Révolution in Besançon, de Gribaldy's home town. He shared with four team-mates.
Professional career
Kelly's first professional race was the Étoile de Bessèges. It started on 7 February 1977 and lasted six days. Kelly came 10th on the first day. The Flandria team was in two parts: the strongest riders, such as the world champion Freddy MaertensFreddy Maertens
Freddy Maertens is a Belgian former professional racing cyclist and twice World Road Race Champion.- Career :...
, were in the main section, based in Belgium. Kelly rode with the second section, based more in France because Flandria wanted to sell more of its mopeds, scooters and bicycles there. The strongest riders in both camps came together for big races. Kelly was recruited as a domestique for Maertens in the main team for year's Paris–Nice - shortly afterwards he won his first race, the opening stage of the Tour of Romandy - and stayed in it for the Tour de France, in which he also won a stage.
Kelly stayed with de Gribaldy for 1977 and 1978. Then in 1978 Michel Pollentier
Michel Pollentier
Michel Pollentier is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer. He became professional in 1973. The highlight of his career was his overall win in the 1977 Giro d'Italia....
was disqualified from the Tour de France after cheating a drugs test on the afternoon that he took the race lead. He left the team at the end of the season and started his own, with a new backer, Splendor. Both Maertens and Pollentier wanted Kelly. Pollentier and Splendor offered Kelly more and made him a team leader. But Splendor was new and logistic problems became obvious. The bikes were in poor state - enough that Splendor decided not to ride Paris–Roubaix - and the manager, Robert Lauwers, was replaced. Kelly rose above it and rode for himself. The writer Robin Magowan said:
Some people can do business on the committee system; others find that life is only fun when you are running the show. In Kelly's case it was to mean working for the collection of underpaid has-beens that de Gribaldy habitually assembled. But a smaller, less pretentious team can have its advantages for a rider of Kelly's sort. When you don't have to compete for a team's loyalty you can concentrate on winning races, and that's exactly what Kelly proceeded to do.
In time the team improved. Kelly received few offers from elsewhere and Splendor matched those he did get. He was paid about £30,000 plus bonuses in his last season. But strengthening the team had included bringing in another sprinter, Eddy Planckaert
Eddy Planckaert
Eddy Planckaert is a former professional road racing cyclist from Belgium. In 1988, Planckaert enjoyed perhaps his best year by capturing the green jersey at the 1988 Tour de France and winning the Ronde van Vlaanderen...
, and Kelly's role as a foreigner in the team was unclear. He heard that de Gribaldy was starting a new team and the two were reunited in 1982 at Sem-France Loire
Sem-France Loire
The Sem-Loire France cycling team was a French professional cycling team that existed for four years from 1980 to 1983. Although a small team, directeur sportif Jean de Gribaldy directed the team to success in various classic races and in stage races such as Paris–Nice and the Tour de France as...
. By now Kelly had a reputation as a sprinter who could not win stage races, although he did finish fourth in the 1980 Vuelta a España
Vuelta a España
The Vuelta a España is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages...
. De Gribaldy employed him as unambiguous team leader, someone he believed could win stage races and not just stages. Kelly won Paris–Nice and four of its stages. On the last of those, a time-trial to the col d'Eze, he beat Gilbert Duclos-Lasalle and pushed him out of the lead. That year he also won the maillot vert (the green jersey of best sprinter) of the Tour de France
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
. He finished third in the world championship in England and at the end of the year married his girlfriend, Linda Grant, the daughter of a local cycling club official. Carrick-on-Suir named the town square "the Sean Kelly Square" in tribute to his achievements in the 1982 Tour de France
1982 Tour de France
The 1982 Tour de France was the 69th Tour de France, taking place July 2 to July 25, 1982. The total race distance was 22 stages over 2179 miles , with riders averaging 23.649 mph...
and his bronze medal at the championship The following year Kelly again won Paris–Nice and then the Critérium International
Critérium International
The Critérium International is a two-day bicycle stage race held in France every spring. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in 1932....
and the Tour de Suisse
Tour de Suisse
The Tour de Suisse is a UCI World Tour stage race held annually in June. The race debuted in 1933 and has evolved in timing, duration and sponsorship. With the Critérium du Dauphiné, it is a proving ground for the Tour de France, and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar...
as well as the maillot vert of the Tour de France
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
the second time in a row.
Height of professional career
Kelly confirmed his potential in autumn 1983. A leading group of 18 entered ComoComo
Como is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy.It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como....
in the Giro di Lombardia after a battle over the Intelvi and Schignano passes. Kelly won the sprint by the narrowest margin, less than half a wheel separating the first four, against cycling greats including Francesco Moser
Francesco Moser
Francesco Moser , nicknamed "Lo sceriffo" , is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer. He was one of the dominant riders from the mid-1970s to the early 1980s, and won the 1984 Giro d'Italia, the 1977 world road racing championship and six victories in three of the five Monuments...
, Adri Van Der Poel
Adri van der Poel
Adrie van der Poel is a retired Dutch cyclist. The Grand Prix Adri van der Poel is named after him. Van der Poel was a professional from 1981 to 2000. His biggest wins included 6 classics, two stages of the Tour de France and the World Cyclo-Cross Championships in 1996...
, Hennie Kuiper
Hennie Kuiper
Hennie Kuiper is a Dutch former professional road racing cyclist. His career includes a gold medal in the Olympic road race at Munich in 1972, becoming world professional road race champion in 1975, as well as winning four of the five “Monument” classics...
and world champion Greg LeMond.
Kelly dominated the following spring. He won Paris–Nice for the third successive time beating Roche as well as the Tour de France winner, Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault is a former French cyclist known for five victories in the Tour de France. He is one of only five cyclists to have won all three Grand Tours, and the only cyclist to have won each more than once. He won the Tour de France in 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982 and 1985...
who was returning after a knee injury. Kelly finished second in Milan – San Remo and the Ronde van Vlaanderen, but was unbeatable in Paris–Roubaix and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. The day after Paris–Roubaix, the French daily sports paper, L'Équipe
L'Équipe
L'Équipe is a French nationwide daily newspaper devoted to sports, owned by Éditions Philippe Amaury. The paper is noted for coverage of football , rugby, motorsports and cycling...
, pictured Kelly cycling the cobbles with mud on his face and had the heading Insatiable Kelly! referring to his appetite for winning that spring He won all three stages in the Critérium International: the bunch sprint on stage 1, a solo victory in the mountain stage and beating Roche in the final time trial
Time trial
In many racing sports an athlete will compete in a time trial against the clock to secure the fastest time. In cycling, for example, a time trial can be a single track cycling event, or an individual or team time trial on the road, and either or both of the latter may form components of...
. Kelly achieved 33 victories in 1984. He was becoming a contender in the grands tours, as seen by finishing fifth in the Tour de France
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
. This may have caused him to lose his grip on the maillot vert in that year's Tour. Kelly was wearing it as the Tour was finishing on the Champs-Élysées
Champs-Élysées
The Avenue des Champs-Élysées is a prestigious avenue in Paris, France. With its cinemas, cafés, luxury specialty shops and clipped horse-chestnut trees, the Avenue des Champs-Élysées is one of the most famous streets and one of the most expensive strip of real estate in the world. The name is...
but lost it in the bunch finish to the Belgian, Frank Hoste
Frank Hoste
Frank Hoste is a retired Belgian racing cyclist, who won the green jersey in the 1984 Tour de France. Hoste was a professional cyclist from 1977 to 1991, then he started a bicycle factory.-Major victories:1982...
, who finished ahead of Kelly gaining points to take the jersey off Kelly's shoulders.
He won Paris–Nice in 1985, again beating Roche. He won the maillot vert for the third time and finished fourth in the 1985 Tour de France. Kelly won the first Nissan International Classic beating Van Der Poel. At the end of the season, he won the Giro di Lombardia.
He won Milan – San Remo in 1986 after winning Paris–Nice. He finished second in the Ronde van Vlaanderen and won Paris–Roubaix again. He finished on a podium in a grand tour for the first time when he finished third in the 1986 Vuelta a España
Vuelta a España
The Vuelta a España is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages...
. Kelly missed the 1986 Tour de France due to a serious crash in the last stage of Tour de Suisse. He returned to Ireland and won the Nissan Classic again. His second win in the Nissan came after a duel with Steve Bauer
Steve Bauer
Steven Todd Bauer, MSM is a former professional road bicycle racer from Canada. He is an Olympic medallist and winner of several professional races.-Cycling career:...
, who took the yellow jersey
Yellow jersey
The general classification in the Tour de France is the most important classification, the one by which the winner of the Tour de France is determined. Since 1919, the leader of the general classification wears the yellow jersey .-History:...
after Kelly crashed numerous times. Kelly went into the final stage three seconds behind Bauer and took the jersey when he finished third on the stage and won bonus seconds.
Kelly won Paris–Nice in 1987 on the last day after Roche, the leader, punctured. Later, leading the Vuelta a España with three days to go, he retired with an infection. His bad luck continued in the Tour de France, retiring after a crash tore ligaments in his shoulder. After the World Championship
1987 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race
The 1987 UCI Road World Championships - Men's Road Race took place on September , 1987 in Villach, Austria. The Championship was won by the Irish rider Stephen Roche, who outsprinted the rest of a five-man group in the final 500 metres...
, in which he finished fifth behind Roche, Kelly returned to Ireland to win the Nissan for the third consecutive time.
Kelly won his seventh Paris–Nice in spring 1988, a record. He won Gent–Wevelgem several weeks later. He returned in April to the 1988 Vuelta a España
1988 Vuelta a España
The 1988 Vuelta a España was the 43rd Vuelta a España, taking place from April 25 to May 15, 1988. It consisted of 20 stages over 3425 km, ridden at an average speed of 38.506 km/h...
. He stayed two minutes behind the leader, Laudelino Cubino
Laudelino Cubino
Laudelino Cubino González is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist. He was born in Béjar, Spain.- Palmarès :19861987Laudelino Cubino González is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist...
, during the first two weeks then finished fourth behind Parra and Anselmo Fuerte on stage 13 (won by Fabio Parra
Fabio Parra
Fabio Enrique Parra Pinto is a retired Colombian road racing cyclist. Parra was successful as an amateur in Colombia, winning the Novatos classification for new riders or riders riding their first edition of the race, and finishing 14th in the 1979 Vuelta a Colombia and then the General...
), cutting a minute and a half into Cubino's lead. From this stage, Fuerte had moved into second overall and later took the jersey from Cubino on the 16th stage. Kelly maintained the gap between himself and Fuerte and started the time trial
Time trial
In many racing sports an athlete will compete in a time trial against the clock to secure the fastest time. In cycling, for example, a time trial can be a single track cycling event, or an individual or team time trial on the road, and either or both of the latter may form components of...
on the second last day 21 seconds behind. He won and took the leader's amarillo jersey. The following day Kelly won his only grand tour, over West German Raimund Dietzen. He also won the points competition. After his Vuelta win Kelly returned to Carrick-on-Suir where a parade was held in his honour.
Kelly finished 46th in the Tour de France
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
, just over an hour behind Pedro Delgado
Pedro Delgado
Pedro Delgado Robledo , also known as Perico, is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer. He won the 1988 Tour de France, as well as the Vuelta a España in 1985 and 1989....
. He was no longer a contender for overall victory after this and said he'd never win the Tour de France
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
. Kelly finished third behind the German, Rolf Gölz, in the Nissan Classic that year
Kelly finished third in the sprint at the rainy world road championship of 1989 at Chambéry, France, behind Dimitri Konyshev and Greg Lemond. Lemond won his second rainbow jersey as world champion.
Kelly switched to the Dutch PDM team
PDM (cycling team)
PDM-Concorde also PDM-Ultima was a Dutch professional cycling team from 1986 until the end of 1992. Gin-MG was co-sponsor in Spanish races and Cidona was co-sponsor in the 1991 Nissan Classic. The team was sponsored by Philips Dupont Magnetics, a joint venture between the electronics company,...
and stayed there three years until the end of 1991. The following year he won Liège–Bastogne–Liège, the maillot vert in the Tour de France, and the inaugural UCI Road World Cup championship.
Kelly won the Tour de Suisse
Tour de Suisse
The Tour de Suisse is a UCI World Tour stage race held annually in June. The race debuted in 1933 and has evolved in timing, duration and sponsorship. With the Critérium du Dauphiné, it is a proving ground for the Tour de France, and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar...
in 1990. In March 1991, he broke a collarbone, then pulled out of the 1991 Tour de France
1991 Tour de France
The 1991 Tour de France was the 78th Tour de France, taking place July 6 to July 28, 1991. The total race distance was 22 stages over 3914 km, with riders averaging 38.747 km/h.-Stages:-General classification:-External links:* *...
and then while Kelly was competing the Tour of Galicia in August, his brother Joe was killed in a race near Carrick-on-Suir
Carrick-on-Suir
Carrick-on-Suir is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. As the name – meaning "the rock of the Suir" – suggests, the town is situated on the River Suir. The of the town gives the population as 5,906 and shows that it has grown by 5.7% since 2002...
. He came back to win his fourth Nissan Classic by four seconds over Sean Yates
Sean Yates
Sean Yates is an English former professional cyclist and head Directeur Sportif at Team Sky.-Career:Yates competed at the 1980 Summer Olympics, finishing sixth in the 4,000m individual pursuit. He also competed in the 1996 Summer Olympics...
and then went to and won the classic at the end of the season, the Giro di Lombardia.
Twilight of his career
Kelly won the Giro di Lombardia for a third time in 1991 but started 1992 regarded as past his prime. He moved to FestinaFestina cycling team
Festina is a former professional cycling team that was active in the professional peloton from 1989 to 2001. The team was sponsored by the watch manufacturers Festina Lotus AV.-Beginnings:...
and prepared for Milan – San Remo. Race favourite Moreno Argentin
Moreno Argentin
Moreno Argentin is an Italian former professional cyclist .Born in San Donà di Piave , he won stages in the Tour de France, the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de Suisse. Known as Il Capo , he won Liège–Bastogne–Liège four times, the La Flèche Wallonne three times and the Ronde van Vlaanderen and Giro...
attacked from the leading group on the final climb, the Poggio
Poggio di Sanremo
The Poggio di San Remo is a hill in Italy, near San Remo. It's used in the Milan – San Remo bicycle race, and has often been the site of decisive attacks to the win....
. He broke clear after several attempts and reached the top eight seconds before the rest. It seemed he was on his way to a solo victory as the peloton descended the Poggio, where Maurizio Fondriest
Maurizio Fondriest
Maurizio Fondriest is a retired Italian professional road racing cyclist.-Career:Born in Cles, Trentino, Fondriest turned professional in 1987 with the Ecoflam team. He subsequently rode for Alfa-Lum in 1988, winning the World Cycling Championships along with stages in the Tour de Suisse and...
led, marked by Argentin's team-mate Rolf Sorensen. Kelly was behind these two in third position . Kelly attacked with three kilometres of descending left. Sorensen could not hold his acceleration and Kelly got away. He caught Argentin with a kilometre to go. Both stalled, the chasers closing fast, Argentin gesturing to Kelly to take the front. Kelly stayed on Argentin's wheel. The two moved again, preparing for a sprint; Kelly launched himself and in the final 200m came past Argentin to win his final classic.
In 1992, Kelly travelled to Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
for the Clasico RCN
Clásico RCN
The Clásico RCN is an annual cycling road race that takes place over many stages through different regions of Colombia during October...
, where he won the second stage. His PDM team-mate, Martin Earley
Martin Earley
Martin Earley is a former Irish professional road bicycle racer.He turned professional in 1985 with the Fagor team with whom he stayed until 1987. In 1986 he won the 14th stage of the Giro d'Italia and the second of the Vuelta al País Vasco...
, pushed him into second place at the 1993 Irish road championship
Irish National Cycling Championships
The Irish National Cycling Championships are annual cycling races to decide the Irish cycling champion for several disciplines, across several categories of rider....
.
Kelly's last year as a professional was 1994, when he rode for Catavana. He returned to Carrick-on-Suir at the end of the season to ride the annual Hamper race. That was Kelly's last race as a professional. Eddy Merckx
Eddy Merckx
Edouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx , better known as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian former professional cyclist. The French magazine Vélo called him "the most accomplished rider that cycling has ever known." The American publication, VeloNews, called him the greatest and most successful cyclist of all...
, Laurent Fignon
Laurent Fignon
Laurent Patrick Fignon was a French professional road bicycle racer. He won the Tour de France in 1983 and in 1984. He missed winning it a third time, in 1989, by 8 seconds, the closest margin ever to decide the tour. He also won the Giro d'Italia in 1989, after having been the runner-up in 1984,...
, Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault is a former French cyclist known for five victories in the Tour de France. He is one of only five cyclists to have won all three Grand Tours, and the only cyclist to have won each more than once. He won the Tour de France in 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982 and 1985...
, Roger De Vlaeminck
Roger De Vlaeminck
Roger De Vlaeminck is a Belgian former professional racing cyclist. He was described by Rik Van Looy as '"The most talented and the only real classics rider of his generation"...
, Claude Criquielion, Stephen Roche, Martin Earley, Acacio Da Silva
Acácio da Silva
Acácio da Silva Mora is a former Portuguese professional road bicycle racer. He was a professional from 1982 to 1994 during which he won stages in the Tour de France, the Giro d'Italia and stages in many other stage races. He won three stages in total in the Tour de France, one in 1987, one in...
and Paul Kimmage
Paul Kimmage
Paul Kimmage is an award-winning sports journalist who writes for the Sunday Times newspaper in the United Kingdom and is a former professional road bicycle racer.Kimmage was born into a cycling family...
were among 1,200 cyclists present. The President of Ireland
President of Ireland
The President of Ireland is the head of state of Ireland. The President is usually directly elected by the people for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office, but the President does exercise certain limited powers with absolute...
, Mary Robinson
Mary Robinson
Mary Therese Winifred Robinson served as the seventh, and first female, President of Ireland from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, from 1997 to 2002. She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister, campaigner and member of the Irish Senate...
, attended a civic presentation to Kelly the day before the race. Kelly won in a sprint against Roche. Kelly won this race again six years later.
Doping
Kelly tested positive twice during his career. He failed tests after Paris–Brussels in 1984 and the Tour of the Basque Country in 1988.Assessment
Kelly's career is remarkable in that it spanned the eras of several legends of the Tour de FranceTour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
, from Eddy Merckx
Eddy Merckx
Edouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx , better known as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian former professional cyclist. The French magazine Vélo called him "the most accomplished rider that cycling has ever known." The American publication, VeloNews, called him the greatest and most successful cyclist of all...
through to Lance Armstrong
Lance Armstrong
Lance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
. His first Tour was also the first for Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault is a former French cyclist known for five victories in the Tour de France. He is one of only five cyclists to have won all three Grand Tours, and the only cyclist to have won each more than once. He won the Tour de France in 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982 and 1985...
and the two battled in the sprint of stage 15. Greg LeMond
Greg LeMond
Gregory James LeMond is a former professional road bicycle racer from the United States and a three-time winner of the Tour de France. He was born in Lakewood, California and raised in Reno, Nevada....
and Laurent Fignon
Laurent Fignon
Laurent Patrick Fignon was a French professional road bicycle racer. He won the Tour de France in 1983 and in 1984. He missed winning it a third time, in 1989, by 8 seconds, the closest margin ever to decide the tour. He also won the Giro d'Italia in 1989, after having been the runner-up in 1984,...
emerged in the early eighties and challenged Kelly in the classics as well as in the Tour, and Kelly witnessed the rise of Miguel Indurain
Miguel Indurain
Miguel Ángel Indurain Larraya is a retired Spanish road racing cyclist. He won five consecutive Tour de Frances from 1991 and 1995, the first to do so, and the fourth athlete to win five times. He won the Giro d'Italia twice, becoming one of only seven people in history to achieve the Giro Tour...
and the early career of Lance Armstrong
Lance Armstrong
Lance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
. Kelly's career coincided with Stephen Roche
Stephen Roche
Stephen Roche is a retired professional road racing cyclist. In a 13-year professional career, he peaked in 1987, becoming only the second cyclist to win the Triple Crown of victories in the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia stage races, plus the World road race championship...
as well as classics specialists including Francesco Moser
Francesco Moser
Francesco Moser , nicknamed "Lo sceriffo" , is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer. He was one of the dominant riders from the mid-1970s to the early 1980s, and won the 1984 Giro d'Italia, the 1977 world road racing championship and six victories in three of the five Monuments...
, Claude Criquielion, Moreno Argentin and Eric Vanderaerden
Eric Vanderaerden
Eric Vanderaerden is a retired road cyclist from the town of Lummen, Belgium.He was a considerable talent, winning the prologue time trial of the Vuelta and the Tour de France in his professional debut year 1983. As for classics, he won the Ronde van Vlaanderen in 1985 and Paris–Roubaix in 1987...
. Evidence of Kelly's dominance can be seen from his three victories in the season-long Super Prestige Pernod International
Super Prestige Pernod International
The Super Prestige Pernod International was a season-long competition in road bicycle racing between 1958 and 1988.Disagreements between the organisers of the similar Challenge Desgrange-Colombo led to its demise and a gap in season-long competitions. In 1958, the publicity division of Pernod...
competition (predecessor to the World Cup). Kelly competed throughout the season, from Paris–Nice in March to the Giro di Lombardia in October, winning both in 1983 and 1985.
Robin Magowan said: "It is customary to talk of Kelly as quintessentially an Irish rider. For my part, though, I think it helps to place Kelly better as a cyclist to see him as the last of the Flemish riders. This is usually a title associated with the post-war rider, Briek Schotte who has become appropriately enough the man in day-to-day charge of the de Gribaldy teams. As exemplified by Schotte it stood for a certain type of mentality, willing to suffer, narrowly focussed, and hard, hard, hard. Kelly had all this in him from his Irish small farm background: the outside loo; the dogs that have to be chained before you can step from your car; the one career possible, as a bricklayer on a construction site, stretching away and away into the grey mists. On the positive side, along with the self-reliance, came a physical strength that even by peasant standards is impressive. In a profession of iron wills, there is no one harder.
Kelly is the subject of several books, including his biography Kelly and A Man For All Seasons by David Walsh
David Walsh
David or Dave Walsh may refer to:* David I. Walsh , American politician, governor of Massachusetts, and U.S. Senator* David Walsh , American voice actor...
.
Riding technique
While some sprinters remain sheltered in the pelotonPeloton
The peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
until the final few hundred metres, Kelly could instigate breaks and climb well, proving this by winning the Vuelta a España
Vuelta a España
The Vuelta a España is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages...
in 1988. His victories in Paris–Roubaix (1984, 1986) showed his ability in poor weather and on pavé sections, while he could stay with the climbing specialists in the mountains in the Tour de France
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
. He was also a formidable descender, clocking a career top race speed of 124 km/h, while descending from Col de Joux Plane
Col de Joux Plane
Col de Joux Plane is a high mountain pass in the Alps in Haute-Savoie, France, linking Morzine with Samoëns. The climb has been featured several times in the Tour de France cycling race-Climb details:...
to Morzine on stage 19 of the Tour in 1984
1984 Tour de France
The 1984 Tour de France was the 71st Tour de France, run over 4020.9 km in 23 stages and a prologue, from 29 June to 22 July 1984.French rider Laurent Fignon won his second consecutive Tour, beating former teammate Bernard Hinault by over 10 minutes. Hinault was pursuing his fifth Tour...
. He finished fourth in the Tour in 1985 and won the maillot vert in 1982
1982 Tour de France
The 1982 Tour de France was the 69th Tour de France, taking place July 2 to July 25, 1982. The total race distance was 22 stages over 2179 miles , with riders averaging 23.649 mph...
, 1983
1983 Tour de France
The 1983 Tour de France was the 70th Tour de France, run from 1 to 22 July 1982 in 22 stages and a prologue, over a total distance of 3862 km., won by French rider Laurent Fignon. Sean Kelly of Ireland won the green jersey, and Lucien Van Impe of Belgium won the polka dot jersey...
, 1985
1985 Tour de France
The 1985 Tour de France was the 72nd Tour de France, taking place June 28 to July 21, 1985, over 4109 km in 22 stages and a prologue.Bernard Hinault would attempt to equal the records of Jacques Anquetil and Eddy Merckx who had each won the Tour de France five times. Hinault was unable to...
, and 1989
1989 Tour de France
The 1989 Tour de France was the 76th Tour de France, a race of 21 stages and a prologue, over 3285 km in total. In the closest tour in history, Greg LeMond was behind by 50 seconds at the start of the final stage, a time trial into Paris. LeMond rode for an average speed of 54.55 km/h ,...
, the first to win four times, a feat he repeated in the Vuelta a España. Kelly won five stages in the Tour de France and 16 in the Vuelta a España
Vuelta a España
The Vuelta a España is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages...
.
Post-cycling career
Kelly is a commentator for the English-language services of EurosportEurosport
Eurosport is a pan-European television sport network operated by French broadcaster TF1 Group. The network of channels are available in 59 countries, in 20 different languages providing viewers with European and international sporting events...
and has established and is involved in the Sean Kelly Cycling Academy in Belgium. In 2006 he launched Ireland's first professional team, the Sean Kelly Team, composed of young Irish and Belgian riders based at the Sean Kelly Cycling Academy in Merchtem, Belgium. He rides long-distance charity cycling tours with Blazing Saddles, a charity raising money for the blind and partially sighted. Such tours have included a journey across America by bike in 2000. He also participates in charity cycling endurance events in Scotland (notably with the Braveheart Cycling Fund), England, France and Ireland.
The inaugural Sean Kelly Tour of Waterford was held on 19 August 2007.
Kelly was one of the 600 participants. The second was on the 24 August 2008. Kelly was one of the 2,048. The 2009 tour went ahead on the 30th August 2009. It attracted over 3,400 participants. On 29 August 2010, 3708 cyclists took part in the Tour. In 2011 the attendance ballooned to over 8,000 over the 2 days and 10km,50km,90km and 160km events.
Personality
Fellow pupils at Kelly's school [see above] felt Kelly fell silent because he felt intellectually outclassed. The lack of words continued even after Kelly had proved himself one of the best racing cyclists of his era. The writer Robin Magowan said:- "On the bench, swivelling his body away as you approach, chary of words when not downright hostile, Sean Kelly remains for a journalist the hardest of the great riders to fathom. In an age when most of his brethren rate themselves, and are paid, according to the amount of publicity inches they have gleaned in a season, this farmer's son... remains very much the exception, closed, withdrawn, and extremely suspicious. Yet one has only to look at him joking with Stephen RocheStephen RocheStephen Roche is a retired professional road racing cyclist. In a 13-year professional career, he peaked in 1987, becoming only the second cyclist to win the Triple Crown of victories in the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia stage races, plus the World road race championship...
, or know the respect with which he is held by the pelotonPelotonThe peloton , field, bunch or pack is the large main group of riders in a road bicycle race. Riders in a group save energy by riding close near other riders...
, to see that he gets along very well without us."
Grand Tour record
- 1978 - Tour de France1978 Tour de FranceThe 1978 Tour de France was the 65th Tour de France, taking place June 29 to July 23, 1978. The total race distance was 22 stages over 3908 km, with riders averaging 36.084 km/h...
: 34th GC; Stage 6 win - 1979 - Tour de France1979 Tour de FranceThe 1979 Tour de France was the 66th Tour de France, taking place June 27 to July 22, 1979. The total race distance was 24 stages over 3765 km, with riders averaging 36.513 km/h. It was the only tour to finish at L'Alpe d'Huez twice. It was won by Bernard Hinault, who also won the points...
: 38th GC - 1979 - Vuelta a EspañaVuelta a EspañaThe Vuelta a España is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages...
: Stages 1 and 5 wins - 1980 - Tour de France1980 Tour de FranceThe 1980 Tour de France was the 67th Tour de France. The total distance was 3945.5 km over 22 stages, the average speed of the riders was 35.317 km/h....
: 29th GC; Stages 19 and 21 wins; 2nd Points class - 1980 - Vuelta a España1980 Vuelta a EspañaThe 35th Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from April 22 to May 11, 1980. It consisted of 20 stages covering a total of 3225 km, and was won by Faustino Rupérez of the Zor cycling team.Roberto Visentini won the prologue of the race and...
: 4th GC;
points classificationPoints classification in the Vuelta a EspañaThe points classification in the Vuelta a España is a secondary classification in the Vuelta a España, in which the cyclists are ranked in a points classification based on the stage rankings...
; Stages 1, 2, 14, 17 and 19 wins; Sprints class winner - 1981 - Tour de France1981 Tour de FranceThe 1981 Tour de France was the 68th Tour de France, taking place June 25 to July 19, 1981. The total race distance was 24 stages over 3753 km, with riders averaging 38.96 km/h....
: 48th GC; Stage 17 win - 1982 - Tour de France1982 Tour de FranceThe 1982 Tour de France was the 69th Tour de France, taking place July 2 to July 25, 1982. The total race distance was 22 stages over 2179 miles , with riders averaging 23.649 mph...
: 15th GC;
points classificationPoints classification in the Tour de FranceThe points classification in the Tour de France is a secondary competition in the Tour de France, that started in 1953. Points are given for high finishes in a stage and for winning intermediate sprints, and these are recorded in a points classification. It is considered a sprinters' competition...
; Intermediate sprints class winnerIntermediate sprints classification in the Tour de FranceThe red jersey was awarded to the leader of the intermediate sprints classification in the Tour de France. The competition was first calculated in 1971, but the jersey was only awarded from 1984...
; Stage 13 win - 1983 - Tour de France1983 Tour de FranceThe 1983 Tour de France was the 70th Tour de France, run from 1 to 22 July 1982 in 22 stages and a prologue, over a total distance of 3862 km., won by French rider Laurent Fignon. Sean Kelly of Ireland won the green jersey, and Lucien Van Impe of Belgium won the polka dot jersey...
: 7th GC; points classificationPoints classification in the Tour de FranceThe points classification in the Tour de France is a secondary competition in the Tour de France, that started in 1953. Points are given for high finishes in a stage and for winning intermediate sprints, and these are recorded in a points classification. It is considered a sprinters' competition...
; Intermediate sprints class winnerIntermediate sprints classification in the Tour de FranceThe red jersey was awarded to the leader of the intermediate sprints classification in the Tour de France. The competition was first calculated in 1971, but the jersey was only awarded from 1984... - 1984 - Tour de France1984 Tour de FranceThe 1984 Tour de France was the 71st Tour de France, run over 4020.9 km in 23 stages and a prologue, from 29 June to 22 July 1984.French rider Laurent Fignon won his second consecutive Tour, beating former teammate Bernard Hinault by over 10 minutes. Hinault was pursuing his fifth Tour...
: 5th GC; 2nd Points class - 1985 - Tour de France1985 Tour de FranceThe 1985 Tour de France was the 72nd Tour de France, taking place June 28 to July 21, 1985, over 4109 km in 22 stages and a prologue.Bernard Hinault would attempt to equal the records of Jacques Anquetil and Eddy Merckx who had each won the Tour de France five times. Hinault was unable to...
: 4th GC;points classificationPoints classification in the Tour de FranceThe points classification in the Tour de France is a secondary competition in the Tour de France, that started in 1953. Points are given for high finishes in a stage and for winning intermediate sprints, and these are recorded in a points classification. It is considered a sprinters' competition...
; - 1985 - Vuelta a España1985 Vuelta a EspañaThe 40th Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from 23 April to 12 May 1985...
: 9th GC; points classificationPoints classification in the Vuelta a EspañaThe points classification in the Vuelta a España is a secondary classification in the Vuelta a España, in which the cyclists are ranked in a points classification based on the stage rankings...
; Stages 2, 9 and 15 wins - 1986 - Vuelta a España1986 Vuelta a EspañaThe 41st Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from April 22 to May 13, 1986. It consisted of 21 stages covering a total of 3,666 km, and was won by Álvaro Pino of the Zor cycling team....
: 3rd GC; points classificationPoints classification in the Vuelta a EspañaThe points classification in the Vuelta a España is a secondary classification in the Vuelta a España, in which the cyclists are ranked in a points classification based on the stage rankings...
; Stages 10 and 13 wins; Mixed class winner - 1987 - Tour de France1987 Tour de FranceThe 1987 Tour de France was the 74th Tour de France, taking place from July 1 to July 26, 1987. It consisted of 25 stages over 4231 km, ridden at an average speed of 36.645 km/h...
: DNF - 1987 - Vuelta a España1987 Vuelta a EspañaThe 42nd Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from April 23 to May 15, 1987. It consisted of 22 stages covering a total of 3,921 km, and was won by Luis Herrera of the Café de Colombia cycling team...
: DNF; Stages 1 and 3 wins; held Gold Leaders Jersey for 4 stages - 1988 - Tour de France1988 Tour de FranceThe 1988 Tour de France was the 75th Tour de France, taking place from July 4 to July 24, 1988. It consisted of 22 stages over 3281 km, ridden at an average speed of 38.909 km/h...
: 46th GC; 3rd Points class - 1988 - Vuelta a España1988 Vuelta a EspañaThe 1988 Vuelta a España was the 43rd Vuelta a España, taking place from April 25 to May 15, 1988. It consisted of 20 stages over 3425 km, ridden at an average speed of 38.506 km/h...
:
Overall Winner; points classificationPoints classification in the Vuelta a EspañaThe points classification in the Vuelta a España is a secondary classification in the Vuelta a España, in which the cyclists are ranked in a points classification based on the stage rankings...
; Stages 11 and 20 wins; Mixed class winner - 1989 - Tour de France1989 Tour de FranceThe 1989 Tour de France was the 76th Tour de France, a race of 21 stages and a prologue, over 3285 km in total. In the closest tour in history, Greg LeMond was behind by 50 seconds at the start of the final stage, a time trial into Paris. LeMond rode for an average speed of 54.55 km/h ,...
: 9th GC;points classificationPoints classification in the Tour de FranceThe points classification in the Tour de France is a secondary competition in the Tour de France, that started in 1953. Points are given for high finishes in a stage and for winning intermediate sprints, and these are recorded in a points classification. It is considered a sprinters' competition...
;
Intermediate sprints classificationIntermediate sprints classification in the Tour de FranceThe red jersey was awarded to the leader of the intermediate sprints classification in the Tour de France. The competition was first calculated in 1971, but the jersey was only awarded from 1984... - 1990 - Tour de France1990 Tour de FranceThe 1990 Tour de France was the 77th Tour de France, taking place June 30 to July 22, 1990. The total race distance was 21 stages over 3504 km, with riders averaging 38.62 km/h...
: 30th GC - 1991 - Tour de France1991 Tour de FranceThe 1991 Tour de France was the 78th Tour de France, taking place July 6 to July 28, 1991. The total race distance was 22 stages over 3914 km, with riders averaging 38.747 km/h.-Stages:-General classification:-External links:* *...
: DNF - 1992 - Tour de France1992 Tour de FranceThe 1992 Tour de France was the 79th Tour de France, taking place July 4 to July 26, 1992. The total race distance was 21 stages over 3983 km, with riders averaging 39.504 km/h...
: 43rd GC
'Monument' classic victories (9)
- Milan – San Remo 1986, 1992
- Paris–Roubaix 1984, 1986
- Liège–Bastogne–Liège 1984, 1989
- Giro di Lombardia 1983, 1985, 1991 (also won amateur version in 1976)
- Note: tied 3rd in all-time list of MonumentClassic cycle racesThe classic cycle races are one-day professional cycling road races in the international calendar. Most of the events, all run in western Europe, have been fixtures on the professional calendar for decades and the oldest ones date back to the 19th Century. They are normally held at roughly the same...
wins
Other 'classic' victories
- Blois–Chaville (Paris–Tours) 1984
- GP Plouay 1984
- Gent–Wevelgem 1988
- Grand Prix des NationsGrand Prix des NationsThe Grand Prix des Nations was an individual time trial for professional racing cyclists. Held annually in France, it was instituted in 1932 and often regarded as the unofficial time trial championship of the world and as a Classic cycle race. The race was the idea of a Parisian newspaper editor...
1986 - Tour du Haut VarTour du Haut VarThe Tour du Haut Var is an early-season two-day road bicycle race in the Provence region of France. From 2005 to 2008, it was organised as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour. In 2009, the race was changed to a two-day 2.1 event.-Palmarès:...
1982 - Criterium des As 1984, 1985, 1986
- GP d'Isbergues 1983
- Paris–Bourges 1984
Stage race victories (24)
- Vuelta a EspañaVuelta a EspañaThe Vuelta a España is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages...
(1988) - Paris–Nice (1982–1988) (7 consecutive wins, a record)
- Tour de SuisseTour de SuisseThe Tour de Suisse is a UCI World Tour stage race held annually in June. The race debuted in 1933 and has evolved in timing, duration and sponsorship. With the Critérium du Dauphiné, it is a proving ground for the Tour de France, and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar...
(1983, 1990) - Volta a Catalunya (1984, 1986)
- Vuelta al País Vasco (1984, 1986, 1987)
- Critérium InternationalCritérium InternationalThe Critérium International is a two-day bicycle stage race held in France every spring. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in 1932....
(1983, 1984, 1987) - Setmana Catalana (1988)
- Three Days of De PanneThree Days of De PanneThe Three Days of De Panne is a mid-week, three-day stage race before the Ronde van Vlaanderen in De Panne in West Flanders, Belgium. It is rated 2.HC by the UCI and is part of the UCI Europe Tour.- Winners :...
(1980) - Nissan International Classic (1985, 1986, 1987, 1991) (4 wins, a record)
Series victories (4)
UCI Road World Cup Season Champion (1989)- Super Prestige Pernod InternationalSuper Prestige Pernod InternationalThe Super Prestige Pernod International was a season-long competition in road bicycle racing between 1958 and 1988.Disagreements between the organisers of the similar Challenge Desgrange-Colombo led to its demise and a gap in season-long competitions. In 1958, the publicity division of Pernod...
(1984, 1985, 1986)
Grand Tour General Classification results timeline
| Grand Tour | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Giro d'Italia The Giro d'Italia , also simply known as The Giro, is a long distance road bicycle racing stage race for professional cyclists held over three weeks in May/early June in and around Italy. The Giro is one of the three Grand Tours , and is part of the UCI World Ranking calendar... |
- | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
 Tour de France The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The... |
34 1978 Tour de France The 1978 Tour de France was the 65th Tour de France, taking place June 29 to July 23, 1978. The total race distance was 22 stages over 3908 km, with riders averaging 36.084 km/h... |
38 1979 Tour de France The 1979 Tour de France was the 66th Tour de France, taking place June 27 to July 22, 1979. The total race distance was 24 stages over 3765 km, with riders averaging 36.513 km/h. It was the only tour to finish at L'Alpe d'Huez twice. It was won by Bernard Hinault, who also won the points... |
29 1980 Tour de France The 1980 Tour de France was the 67th Tour de France. The total distance was 3945.5 km over 22 stages, the average speed of the riders was 35.317 km/h.... |
48 1981 Tour de France The 1981 Tour de France was the 68th Tour de France, taking place June 25 to July 19, 1981. The total race distance was 24 stages over 3753 km, with riders averaging 38.96 km/h.... |
15 1982 Tour de France The 1982 Tour de France was the 69th Tour de France, taking place July 2 to July 25, 1982. The total race distance was 22 stages over 2179 miles , with riders averaging 23.649 mph... |
7 1983 Tour de France The 1983 Tour de France was the 70th Tour de France, run from 1 to 22 July 1982 in 22 stages and a prologue, over a total distance of 3862 km., won by French rider Laurent Fignon. Sean Kelly of Ireland won the green jersey, and Lucien Van Impe of Belgium won the polka dot jersey... |
5 1984 Tour de France The 1984 Tour de France was the 71st Tour de France, run over 4020.9 km in 23 stages and a prologue, from 29 June to 22 July 1984.French rider Laurent Fignon won his second consecutive Tour, beating former teammate Bernard Hinault by over 10 minutes. Hinault was pursuing his fifth Tour... |
4 1985 Tour de France The 1985 Tour de France was the 72nd Tour de France, taking place June 28 to July 21, 1985, over 4109 km in 22 stages and a prologue.Bernard Hinault would attempt to equal the records of Jacques Anquetil and Eddy Merckx who had each won the Tour de France five times. Hinault was unable to... |
- 1986 Tour de France The 1986 Tour de France was the 73rd Tour de France, taking place July 4 to July 27, 1986. The total race distance was 4094 km, distributed over 23 stages and a prologue. It was won by Greg LeMond, the first American to win the Tour... |
WD 1987 Tour de France The 1987 Tour de France was the 74th Tour de France, taking place from July 1 to July 26, 1987. It consisted of 25 stages over 4231 km, ridden at an average speed of 36.645 km/h... |
46 1988 Tour de France The 1988 Tour de France was the 75th Tour de France, taking place from July 4 to July 24, 1988. It consisted of 22 stages over 3281 km, ridden at an average speed of 38.909 km/h... |
9 1989 Tour de France The 1989 Tour de France was the 76th Tour de France, a race of 21 stages and a prologue, over 3285 km in total. In the closest tour in history, Greg LeMond was behind by 50 seconds at the start of the final stage, a time trial into Paris. LeMond rode for an average speed of 54.55 km/h ,... |
30 1990 Tour de France The 1990 Tour de France was the 77th Tour de France, taking place June 30 to July 22, 1990. The total race distance was 21 stages over 3504 km, with riders averaging 38.62 km/h... |
WD 1991 Tour de France The 1991 Tour de France was the 78th Tour de France, taking place July 6 to July 28, 1991. The total race distance was 22 stages over 3914 km, with riders averaging 38.747 km/h.-Stages:-General classification:-External links:* *... |
43 1992 Tour de France The 1992 Tour de France was the 79th Tour de France, taking place July 4 to July 26, 1992. The total race distance was 21 stages over 3983 km, with riders averaging 39.504 km/h... |
Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages... |
- | WD 1979 Vuelta a España The 34th Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from April 24 to May 13, 1979. It consisted of 19 stages covering a total of 3,373 km, and was won by Joop Zoetemelk of the Miko-Mercier cycling team... |
4 1980 Vuelta a España The 35th Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from April 22 to May 11, 1980. It consisted of 20 stages covering a total of 3225 km, and was won by Faustino Rupérez of the Zor cycling team.Roberto Visentini won the prologue of the race and... |
- | - | - | - | 9 1985 Vuelta a España The 40th Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from 23 April to 12 May 1985... |
3 1986 Vuelta a España The 41st Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from April 22 to May 13, 1986. It consisted of 21 stages covering a total of 3,666 km, and was won by Álvaro Pino of the Zor cycling team.... |
WD 1987 Vuelta a España The 42nd Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from April 23 to May 15, 1987. It consisted of 22 stages covering a total of 3,921 km, and was won by Luis Herrera of the Café de Colombia cycling team... |
1 1988 Vuelta a España The 1988 Vuelta a España was the 43rd Vuelta a España, taking place from April 25 to May 15, 1988. It consisted of 20 stages over 3425 km, ridden at an average speed of 38.506 km/h... |
- | - | - | - |
WD = withdrew