Brian Robinson (3 November 1930 – 25 October 2022) was an English road bicycle racer of the 1950s and early 1960s. He was the first Briton to finish the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

and the first to win a Tour stage. He won the 1961 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré stage race. His success as a professional cyclist in mainland Europe paved the way for other Britons such as Tom Simpson and

Barry Hoban Barry Hoban (born 5 February 1940) is a former English professional cyclist who rode during the late 1960s and early 1970s. He formerly held the record for the most stage wins in the Tour de France by a British rider, winning eight between 1967 ...

Early life and amateur career

Robinson grew up during the Second World War, which began when he was eight years old. His family lived in Ravensthorpe and moved to Mirfield in 1943. Both his parents worked at a factory producing parts for

Halifax bomber The Handley Page Halifax is a British Royal Air Force (RAF) four-engined heavy bomber of the World War II, Second World War. It was developed by Handley Page to the same specification as the contemporary twin-engine Avro Manchester. The Halifa ...

s, Henry at night and Milly by day. The family rented a small area of land, known as an allotment, where they kept rabbits and two pigs.Fotheringham, William (2005), Roule Britannia, Yellow Jersey, UK

Early career

Robinson rode with the

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

Road Club at 13 and joined when he reached the club's minimum age the following year. His elder brother, Des, and his father were already members. His father, however, would not let Robinson start racing until he was 18.Cycling, UK, 25 April 1992 He worked for the family building business, training before and after work, and frequently raced on roads in Sutton Park,

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

, where races had to end by 9.30 am so the public could use the park. In 1948 he went to

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

to watch the Olympic Games road race in

Windsor Great Park Windsor Great Park is a Royal Park of , including a deer park, to the south of the town of Windsor on the border of Berkshire and Surrey in England. It is adjacent to the private Home Park, which is nearer the castle. The park was, for man ...

"little realising that four years later I would make the next Olympics in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

". He was fifth in the National Cyclists' Union massed-start championship and third in the Road Time Trials Council (RTTC) hill-climb championship in 1950. The following year, he was equal seventh in the Isle of Man International, tenth in the NCU massed-start championship, and second in the RTTC hill-climb championship. In 1952 he was fourth in the NCU title race, won the hill-climb championship, and was fifth in the Isle of Man International.

International experience

In spring 1952 whilst doing his

National Service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The ...

Robinson rode the Route de France, amateur version of the

, in a joint NCU/Army team. He rode well and was fifth with three days to go, but poor days in the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...

saw him slip to 40th. The following August, he represented Great Britain at

in the Olympic Games road race. Robinson finished 27th, one place behind his brother, to André Noyelle of Belgium. The future Tour de France winner,

Jacques Anquetil Jacques Anquetil (; 8 January 1934 – 18 November 1987) was a French road racing cyclist and the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times, in 1957 and from 1961 to 1964. He stated before the 1961 Tour that he would gain the ye ...

, was 12th, and Robinson raced against him again in the

world cycling championship The UCI world championships are annual competitions promoted by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) to determine world champion cyclists. They are held in several different styles of racing, in a different country each year. Championship winne ...

in Italy in September 1952 where they tied for eighth.

Professional career

The new professional

In 1953, Robinson left the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry and joined the

Ellis Briggs Ellis Briggs is a British bicycle manufacturer and shop, based in Shipley, West Yorkshire, England. It is the oldest bicycle shop in the Bradford area still in business today. Ellis Briggs have produced lightweight bicycles since 1936 and contin ...

team as an independent, or semi-professional. He rode the

Tour of Britain The Tour of Britain is a multi-stage cycling race, conducted on British roads, in which participants race across Great Britain to complete the race in the fastest time. The event dates back to the first British stage races held just after the S ...

in 1952, wearing the leader's yellow jersey before finishing fourth. The following year, 1954, he improved to second, and second in the mountains competition.

Tour de France

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...

planned a team that would be the first from Britain to ride the Tour de France, then based on national teams. The riders in its colours grew season by season until in 1955 it had Robinson, Bernard Pusey, Dennis Talbot, Freddy Krebs, Clive Parker, Ken Joy, Arthur Ilsley, Derek Buttle (the founder of the team) and Dave Bedwell. The team raced in France, the Netherlands and Belgium in preparation. Robinson was eighth in Paris–Nice, fourth in

La Flèche Wallonne La Flèche Wallonne (, French for "The Walloon Arrow") is a men's professional cycle road race held in April each year in Wallonia, Belgium. The first of two Belgian Ardennes classics, La Flèche Wallonne is today normally held mid-week betw ...

and led the Tour of the Six Provinces to the sixth stage. The eventual Tour team was a mixture of Hercules riders and those from other sponsors. The Tour de France proved tough and only Robinson and Tony Hoar finished, Robinson 29th and Hoar

lanterne rouge The ''lanterne rouge'' is the competitor in last place in the Tour de France. The phrase comes from the French for "Red Lantern" and refers to the red lantern hung on the rear vehicle of a passenger railway train or the brake van of a freight tr ...

or last. They were the first Britons to finish the Tour, 18 years after Charles Holland and Bill Burl were the first Britons in the race in 1937. In 1956, the Tour allowed mixed teams. Robinson joined a squad which included Charly Gaul. He took third on the first stage, and by the end of the Tour was 14th, Gaul 13th. He also rode the

Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; en, Tour of Spain) is an annual multi-stage bicycle race primarily held in Spain, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. Inspired by the success of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia, the ...

in Hugo Koblet's Swiss-British team, and was second after the fourth stage. He punctured on a climb on the tenth stage when in a break with Italy's Angelo Conterno, the race winner, but managed to recover from eleventh to eighth.

Milan–San Remo

In 1957 he scored his first professional win, in the GP de la Ville de Nice, beating Louison Bobet by 50 seconds. Then he finished third in Milan–San Remo to Spain's Miguel Poblet, whose 29th birthday it was.Cycling, UK, 28 March 1957, p239 Robinson crashed on wet cobbles early in the 1957 Tour de France, injuring his left wrist. He recovered to finish 15th in the world championship won by

Rik Van Steenbergen Rik Van Steenbergen (9 September 1924 – 15 May 2003) was a Belgian racing cyclist, considered to be one of the best among the great number of successful Belgian cyclists. Early life Van Steenbergen was born in Arendonk into a poor fami ...

First Tour stage win

In 1958, Robinson won stage seven of the Tour de France, to Brest. Arigo Padovan crossed the line first, but was relegated to second for his tactics in a hot sprint. Robinson won the 20th stage (from Annecy to Chalon-sur-Saône) of the 1959 Tour by 20 minutes. Next day he trailed far behind the field with his Irish teammate,

Seamus Elliott Seamus "Shay" Elliott (4 June 1934 – 4 May 1971) was an Irish road bicycle racer, Ireland's first major international rider, with a record comparable only to Sean Kelly and Stephen Roche. He was the first Irish person to ride the Tour de Fr ...

, beside him. Both finished outside the time limit and expected to be sent home. The team's manager,

Sauveur Ducazeaux Sauveur Ducazeaux (8 December 1910, Biarritz — 23 June 1987, Colmar) was a French professional road bicycle racer. He won one stage in the 1936 Tour de France. After his cycling career, he became a team captain. In 1956, he was the team captain ...

, insisted the judges apply a rule that no rider in the first ten could be eliminated. Robinson had started the day ninth: it was Elliott who was sent home. Robinson finished the Tour 19th, having at one time been ninth. Robinson finished 26th and 53rd in the Tours of 1960 and 1961. In between he won the 1961 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, winning two stages. He was part of the winning team in the team time-trial, then third in the individual time trial at Romans. He won the following day's stage at Villefranche. He kept control of the race as it passed through the mountains and won the race.

Retirement

Robinson retired when he was 33. The magazine ''Cycling'' placed Robinson ninth best British rider of the 20th century.Cycle Sport, UK, June 2002 Robinson, at 74, helped organise a dinner in August 2005 to mark the 50th anniversary of the first British competitors in the Tour de France. The event aimed to attract all British riders who have raced in the Tour since 1955. In 2009, he was inducted into the British Cycling Hall of Fame. Robinson's daughter Louise became a cyclo-cross rider, taking a silver medal at the 2000 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships. Two of Brian's grandchildren are also competitive racing cyclists: Jake Womersley competing in cyclo-cross and road racing and Becky Womersley in road racing. On 16 July 2014, Robinson was knocked off his bike in a collision with a car driver whilst riding through Thornhill Lees, suffering a fractured collar bone, six broken ribs, a punctured lung. Robinson was awarded the British Empire Medal in the

2017 New Year Honours The 2017 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours were awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

for services to charity and cycling. Robinson died on 25 October 2022, nine days before his 92nd birthday.British cycling pioneer Brian Robinson dies aged 91
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Career achievements

Major results

Source: ;1951 : 1st Overall Dublin–Galway–Dublin ::1st Stage 1 ;1952 : 1st MaillotReinoUnido

National Hill Climb Championships ;1953 : 4th Overall

: 5th Overall Tour of Ireland ;1954 : 1st Stage 6 Tour d'Europe : 2nd Overall Tour of Britain ;1955 : 1st Tour of Pennines : 4th

: 8th Overall Paris–Nice ;1956 : 8th Overall

: 9th

Critérium des As The ''Critérium des As'' (''Race of the Aces'') was a cycle race that was generally held at the end of the season, with entry by invitation only, for the leading riders of the season. Competitors rode behind pacers on tandems or motorcycles. It w ...

;1957 : 3rd Milan–San Remo : 4th Overall

Tour de Luxembourg The Tour de Luxembourg is an annual stage race in professional road bicycle racing held in Luxembourg. The Tour de Luxembourg is classified as a 2.Pro race, the highest rating below the World Tour, by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), th ...

: 4th Overall Tour de l'Ouest : 4th Overall

Tour de Picardie The Tour de Picardie was a professional multi-stage cycle road race that was held between 1936 and 2016 in Picardy, France. In its last twelve editions, it was organised as a 2.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a s ...

: 8th Overall Paris–Nice : 10th

Bordeaux–Paris The Bordeaux–Paris professional cycle race was one of Europe's classic cycle races, and one of the longest in the professional calendar, covering approximately – more than twice most single-day races. It started in northern Bordeaux in sout ...

;1958 : 1st Stage 7

: 1st Pursuit & Omnium, de Guecho (with

) : 1st Mountains classification Paris–Nice : 5th Overall Tour du Sud-Est ::1st Stage 5 : 5th

Mont Faron Mont Faron is a mountain overlooking the city and roadstead of Toulon, France. It is 584m high. At its peak is a memorial dedicated to the 1944 Allied landings in Provence (Operation Dragoon), and to the liberation of Toulon. The top can be rea ...

Hill Climb ;1959 : 1st Stage 20

: 3rd Manx Trophy ;1960 : 1st Stage 3

Midi Libre ''Midi Libre'' () is a French daily newspaper in Montpellier that covers general news. It began publication in 1944. Since 1949, the newspaper has organised a cycling stage race, the Grand Prix du Midi Libre. References External links W ...

: 7th Overall Tour de l'Aude ::1st Stage 2 ;1961 : 1st Jersey yellow-bluebar

Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré ::1st Stages 2b ( TTT) & 3 : 2nd Overall Circuit d'Auvergne ::1st Stage 2 : 1st Stage 8

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

Source:

Awards and honours

* British Cycling Hall of Fame: 2009

Notes

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Brian 1930 births 2022 deaths British Tour de France stage winners Cyclists at the 1952 Summer Olympics Cyclists from Yorkshire Olympic cyclists of Great Britain People from Mirfield Recipients of the British Empire Medal King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry soldiers