From the archive: World Road Race Championships 1958

I've been raiding my Dad's photo archive for previously unpublished shots that really shouldn't be hidden away in an attic. I've selected some that I feel help to preserve the history of the sport, especially in Ireland, but which I also feel the wider cycling world might like to see. Over the next while I'll be posting sets of photos so keep an eye out.

We've tried to correctly identify people and places but, if you spot an error or you can fill in a blank for us, please do leave a comment. Obviously, after more than 50 years, some of the shots may not be of HD quality but that doesn't take away from their historical value. Clicking on a photo will open the full set in a gallery.

This first set is from the World Championships in Reims, France in 1958.

Dad was one of four Irish spectators who journeyed to support the teams that year, a fact unusual enough to warrant mention in several newspaper articles. Accompanying with him from Dublin were his brother, Paddy, and his close friend, Brendan Tyrrell. John Flanagan, a club-mate of Christy Kimmage and Shay Elliott in Dublin Wheelers, got a weekend pass from his posting with the US Army in Germany to join them.

The Irish selectors had chosen a very young team for the amateur race. Manager Jim McQuaid, himself a 5 time participant at the Worlds, spoke to the Irish Press a few days before the race. "This will be their biggest test, but the international races here should give them a good idea of what they are up against", he said.

Irish Amateur RR Team relaxing before the World Championships, 1958, Reims.
L-to-R: Denis Whelan (Obelisk Wheelers), Peter Dowling (Antlers CC),
Bobby Talbot (East Tyrone CC),  Christy Kimmage (Dublin Wheelers CC)

Some of the team were profiled in the same article. They were:

Peter Dowling (23), Antlers CC, Dublin, who had ridden for Ireland twice before.He was selected as the reigning Irish Massed Start Champion. He had also won the Dun Laoghaire Grand Prix, the An Tostal 3 day race and was on the way to being the best all round rider in the country for 1958.

Christy Kimmage (20), Dublin Wheelers CC, has also already been selected for Ireland twice. In 1958 he had won the Dalkey Massed Start, the Dalkey Hill Climb, the 1st stage of the An Tostal and the Irish Road Clubs "50".

Denis Whelan (20), Obelisk Wheelers, Dublin, had ridden the Manx International on the Irish team. He'd broken John Lackeys record for the "Mountain Time Trial" and recorded the fastest time of the year for the Navan Rd 25 mile TT course as well taking second in the An Tostal and 3rd in the Dan Lennon Memorial race.

Irish Amateur Team, Worlds Reims 1958.
L-to-R: Christy Kimmage (Dublin Wheelers), John Flanagan (Dublin Wheelers - spectator),
Bobby Talbot (East Tyrone CC), Jim McQuaid (Emerald CC - Team Manager),
Denis Whelan (Obelisk Wheelers), Peter Dowling (Antlers CC)

The 4th rider (not profiled) was Bobby Talbot, who, along with his three brothers, raced with East Tyrone CC.

Irish team parading to the start of the World Amateur RR, Worlds Reims 1958.
L-to-R: Christy Kimmage (Dublin Wheelers), Denis Whelan (Obelisk Wheelers),
Bobby Talbot (East Tyrone CC), Peter Dowling (Antlers CC)

World Amateur RR, Reims 1958.
Start of the race, Christy Kimmage (IRL) on left.

World Amateur RR, Reims 1958. 

In the race a small group escaped from a larger nine strong break coming towards the finish. Those six riders fought out a thrilling sprint finish. It took the judges several minutes before Gustav-Adolf Schur (GDR) was declared the winner, from two Belgians, Valère Paulissen and Henri DeWolf.

Gustav-Adolf Schur (GDR) wins the World Amateur RR, Reims 1958
ahead of Valère Paulissen (BEL) and  Henri De Wolf (BEL)

It appears that the inexperience of the Irish riders showed and none were listed as finishers.

World Amateur RR, Reims, 1958.
Gustav-Adolf Schur (GDR) with his new Rainbow Jersey and bouquet.

The Women's title was won by Elsie Jacobs (LUX) who was followed home by Tamara Novikova (USSR)
and Mariya Lukshina (USSR).

World Championships, Reims, 1958
Fausto Coppi (ITA)

In the Professional race, 25 year old 2nd year pro Ercole Baldini (ITA), reigning Giro D'Italia, Italian and Olympic Champion, decided that the best strategy was to escape early and put the field under pressure.It worked!

The French team, including silver medallist Louison Bobet (second right) and bronze medallist André Darrigade (third left) parade to the start of the World Professional RR, Reims, 1958

Baldini escaped with 3 times Tour De France winner, Louison Bobet (FRA), Gastone Nencini (ITA) and Gerardus Voorting (NED) after just 12 miles of the 172 mile race. Eventually, first Voorting and then Nencini dropped away leaving the two champions to thrill the crowd with their head to head battle for the title. Meanwhile, with three laps to go, Ireland's Shay Elliott broke away from the bunch with his trade team colleague, Andé Darrigade (FRA). Unfortunately, Elliott suffered cramp and was forced to drop away from the leaders.

L-to-R: André Darrigade (FRA) and Shay Elliott (IRL)
trying to close the gap to the leaders.
World Professional RR, Reims, 1958

Louison Bobet (FRA) on the way to second place
in the World Professional RR, Riems 1958

In the end the result was:

1st Ercole Baldini (ITA) 7h 29m 32s
2nd Louison Bobet (FRA) @ 2m 08s
3rd André Darrigade (FRA) @ 3m 47s
22nd Shay Elliott (IRL) @ 7m 06s

To see the full results click here.

2009 Review of the Cycling Year

Another year, indeed another decade, has almost passed and it's time for the first, maybe annual (if I remember), definitely not at all prestigious, Muse-ette Awards

(Disclaimer: no actual awards will be presented ... it's just me thinking out loud).

In my opinion 2009 has been a good year for the bike world. It's been a year that has seen triumph and tragedy, high profile comebacks and (hopefully) good riddances, spectacular TV viewing, great racing, farcical administrative decisions and lot's of talking points.  What more could you want?

So here, in no particular order, are the 2009 Muse-ette Awards:

Best Stage Race: Le Tour. Thrills, spills, politics, bitching and, for a change, no early morning arrests.

Best One Day Race: Paris-Roubaix. OK, I've always loved Roubaix but this years was particularly good. Who wouldn't have been rooting for "Charlie" Boonen to do over Pozzatto after his tactics in Flanders the previous week.

Best Performance: Cadel Evans at the Worlds. He kept his head down all day, looked like he'd missed the boat, and then defied every one of his critics by launching a devastating attack at the foot of the final climb to win almost within sight of his European home. That it came off the back of a disastrous Tour was even more impressive. Not sure about his move to BMC though! Honourable Mention: Alberto Contador for winning the Tour so emphatically despite the sore losers in his own team and Andy Schleck for his win at Liege-Bastogne-Liege.

Best Irish Rider: Philip Deignan bags us a Grand Tour stage again at long last and what a fabulous place to do it. Honourable Mention: Nicolas Roche for being in every (it seemed) break in the Tour, made even better by his being in the Irish Champions jersey.

Best Young Rider: Sam Bennett. What a Rás! Honourable Mention: Edvald Boassen Hagen and Jacob Fuglsang

Best Celebration: Fabian Cancellara. Who else could afford to take time to celebrate winning the Worlds TT as if he was away in a road race? 

Most Embarrassing Result of the Year: Valverde wins the Vuelta. How can he be winning a Grand Tour in one country when he's banned in another? Farcical.

The Bertie Ahern Play the Man not the Ball Award (coupled with the Anglo Irish Bank Self Interest over Ethics Award): Lance Armstrong, for trying to bully Contador out of a Tour title when his legs couldn't do it for him, and for never once taking a position against doping.

The Shackleton Award for Defying the Odds Through Epic Hardness: Joe Barr for not just completing, but winning, the Race Around Ireland with a broken foot. Have you seen the state he was in on that BBC documentary?

The Thierry Henry Cheat of the Year Award: Danilo Di Luca for making us want to believe his Giro exploits were real even though we should have known better. (Dis)Honourable Mention: Rebellin,  Hamilton, Astarloza, Colom, Jimenez Sanchez, Bosisio, Nozal, Guerra, Ribeiro, Dekker, Biondo, Landaluze, Serrano, Astarloa, Cauchiolli, etc, etc

The Woodward and Bernstein Award for Asking Awkward Questions: Paul Kimmage for that press conference at the Tour of California.

The "As Welcome as a F**t in a Spacesuit" Award: Jointly to Vino, Basso, Ricco and Rasmussen. Need I say more. Although it was nice to see Basso reduced to attention seeking breaks at the Giro now that he's not got the pharma-boost of old to rely on.

The Martin Cullen E-Voting Machines Award for Stupid Decisions: UCI and IOC for dropping the individual pursuit from the Olympics in favour of the Omnium. Who could argue with swapping the spectacle of the worlds best endurance track athletes (Phinney, Thomas, Wiggins, Romero, etc) fighting it out, head to head, over 4 minutes or so for an event no-one knows anything about and which is won over six days without  necessarily winning any of the races?

Finally, 2009 has also been a year when the cycling community sadly lost some of it's finest members including:

Paul Healion, 31, Irish Criterium Champion tragically killed in a car crash just days before the Tour of Ireland.
Frank Vandenbroucke, 34, a sad end to a sad life blighted by drugs and depression.
Johnny Helms, 85, Cycling Weekly cartoonist for over 63 years drew his final Dog Chases Bike scene.
Mark Bell, 48, British RR Champion in the 80's also sadly succumbs to depression.
Frederiek Nolf, 21, promising young Belgian rider died in his sleep during the Tour of Qatar.
Dimitri DeFauw, 28, sadly committed suicide three years after he was involved in a freak accident which took the life of Spanish World Champion Isaac Galvez during the Ghent Six.

May they all rest in peace.

Finally it's only left for me to thank you for visiting my blog and wish you all a very Happy New Year and many enjoyable miles in 2010.