road bicycle racer Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most com ...

Classics Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

Paris–Nice Paris–Nice is a professional road bicycle racing, cycling stage race in France, held annually since 1933. Raced over eight days, the race usually starts with a prologue in the Paris region and ends with a final stage either in Nice or on the ...

UCI Road World Cup The UCI Road World Cup was a season-long Road bicycle racing, road cycling competition held from 1989 until 2004 and comprising ten one-day events. The World Cup was made up of around ten Road bicycle racing, one-day races chosen from the prest ...

Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; ) is an annual stage race, multi-stage bicycle racing, 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'Ital ...

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

Giro di Lombardia The Giro di Lombardia (), officially ''Il Lombardia'', is a cycling race in Lombardy, Italy. It is traditionally the last of the five 'Cycling monument, Monuments' of the season, considered to be one of the most prestigious one-day events in cycli ...

Milan–San Remo Milan–Sanremo (in italian language, Italian ''Milano-Sanremo''), also called "''The Spring classic''" or "''La Classicissima''", is an annual road bicycle racing, road cycling race between Milan and Sanremo, in Northwest Italy. With a distance ...

Paris–Roubaix Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the 'Cycling monument, Monuments' ...

Liège–Bastogne–Liège Liège–Bastogne–Liège , also known as ''La Doyenne'' ("The Old Lady"), is a one-day classic cycling race in Belgium.Cycling Weekly, UK, 13 March 1993 First run in 1892, it is the oldest of the five ''Cycling monument, Monuments'' of the Eur ...

Tour of Flanders The Tour of Flanders () may refer to the following cycle races: * Tour of Flanders (men's race) The Tour of Flanders (), also known as ''De Ronde'' (''"The Tour"''), is an annual road bicycle racing, road cycling race held in Belgium every spri ...

Grand Prix des Nations The Grand Prix des Nations was an individual time trial (against the clock) for both professional and amateur racing cyclists. Held annually in Cannes, France, it was instituted in 1932 and often regarded as the unofficial time trial championship ...

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

Tour de Suisse The Tour de Suisse () is an annual road cycling stage race. Raced over eight days, the event covers two weekends in June, and along with the Critérium du Dauphiné, it is considered a proving ground for the Tour de France, which is on the calend ...

Tour of the Basque Country The Tour of the Basque Country (Officially: ''Itzulia Basque Country'') is an annual road cycling stage race held in the Spanish Basque Country in April. It is one of the races that make up the UCI World Tour calendar. As the Basque Country is ...

Volta a Catalunya The Volta a Catalunya (; Tour of Catalonia, ) is a road bicycle race held annually in Catalonia, Spain. It is one of three World Tour stage races in Spain, together with the Vuelta a España and the Tour of the Basque Country. The race has had ...

Stephen Roche Stephen Roche (; born 28 November 1959) is an Irish former professional road racing cyclist. In a 13-year professional career, he peaked in 1987, becoming the second of only three cyclists to win the Triple Crown of victories in the Tour de ...

County Waterford County Waterford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is named after the city of Waterford. ...

Waterford City Waterford ( ) is a city in County Waterford in the south-east of Ireland. It is located within the province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford Harbour. It is the oldest He was named John James Kelly after his father and was referred to as "Sean" to avoid confusion at home.

Seán Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Hiberno-English, is a male given name of Irish language, Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (Anglicisation of names, anglicized as ''Shaun/Shawn (g ...

is the Irish form of John. For eight years he was educated at Crehana National School, County Waterford, to which he travelled with his older brother Joe. The journey from home in Curraghduff to Crehana School was approximately a-mile-and-a-half. Together, both he and Sean cycled to and from school. Joe later recollects: "I suppose we were like most young fellows at that age – walking was too dull." Official records from his days at Crehana National School confirm Kelly's satisfactory attendance. At school, he was exceedingly shy, unsure of himself and felt intellectually outclassed by other pupils in his class. As a result, Kelly retreated into almost total silence. His education ended aged only 13 when he left school to help on the farm at home after his father went to a hospital in Waterford with an ulcer. At 16, he began work as a bricklayer. In September 1969, a delegation from the newly formed Carrick Wheelers Road Club visited the Christian Brothers

Secondary School A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

, where Joe was a student. In Joe's classroom, the representatives from the cycling club encouraged the pupils to join a recently formed schoolboy cycling league. Joe was fascinated. He joined the schoolboy league, began winning races, and joined the Carrick Wheelers Road Club as a new member. In the Kelly household, the pattern was for Joe to do something, and Sean would follow in his footsteps. And so it was, from humble beginnings, Sean soon joined Joe. On Tuesday, 4 August 1970, aged 14, Sean competed in his first race at Kennedy Terrace,

Carrickbeg Carrickbeg () is a village in County Tipperary, Ireland. Located on the border with County Waterford, it comprises that part of the town of Carrick-on-Suir lying south of the River Suir. The area is in County Tipperary, but some residents have a ...

, County Tipperary, part of

Carrick-on-Suir Carrick-on-Suir () is a town in County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies on both banks of the River Suir. The part on the north bank of the Suir lies in the Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of "Carrick", in the historical B ...

. The race was an eight-mile (12.87 km) handicap, which meant the weaker riders started first and the best last. Kelly set off three minutes before the backmarkers, which included his brother Joe. He was still three minutes ahead of the pursuers when the course turned for home after four miles (6.43 km) and more than three minutes in the lead when he crossed the finish line. In July 1972, aged 16, he won the National Junior Road Championships at

Banbridge Banbridge ( ) is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Bann and the A1 road and is named after a bridge built over the Bann in 1712. It is in the civil parish of Seapatrick and the historic barony of Iveagh Upper ...

,

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 552,261. It borders County Antrim to the ...

. Kelly won the National Junior Road Championships again in 1973. He took a senior cycling license in 1974, passing up the opportunity to bid for a third consecutive National Junior Road title. In 1974, aged only 17, two months short of his eighteenth birthday, Kelly won the

Shay Elliott Memorial Race The Shay Elliott Memorial race is a one-day road cycling race held in spring in Ireland. It is run in honour of Ireland's first professional cyclist, Seamus Shay Elliott and organised by Bray Wheelers. The race was previously known as the ''Ro ...

. That season he participated in the

Tour of Ireland The Tour of Ireland ( Irish: Turas na hÉireann, known from 1985 to 1992 as the Nissan Classic) was a bicycle stage race held in August, which ran for 35 editions over a 56-year period. Irish rider Seán Kelly recorded the most wins, four. T ...

and the Tour of Scotland and achieved ten victories as a senior competitor while still eligible to race as a junior. In 1975, Kelly successfully defended his title, winning the Shay Elliott Memorial Race for the second time. He won three stages of the 1975

Tour of Ireland The Tour of Ireland ( Irish: Turas na hÉireann, known from 1985 to 1992 as the Nissan Classic) was a bicycle stage race held in August, which ran for 35 editions over a 56-year period. Irish rider Seán Kelly recorded the most wins, four. T ...

and the mountains jersey. Kelly won stage 7 of the 1975

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 th ...

, beating Swede

Bernt Johansson Bernt Harry Johansson (born 18 April 1953) is a Swedish former road bicycle racer, who was a professional rider from 1977 to 1981. His sporting career began with Mariestadcyklisten. A competitor at the 1972 Summer Olympics, he represented his na ...

and

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

rider Jan Trybala in a three-way

sprint Sprint may refer to: Aerospace * Spring WS202 Sprint, a Canadian aircraft design *Sprint (missile), an anti-ballistic missile Automobiles *Alfa Romeo Sprint, automobile produced by Alfa Romeo between 1976 and 1989 *Chevrolet Sprint, a rebadged v ...

. Johansson became Olympic Road Race Champion in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

a year later. Kelly's exploits at the 1975 Tour of Britain caught the eye of a Londoner, John Morris, who had connections with amateur Velo Club Metz in

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

, France. Morris informed Metz of Kelly's potential. In August 1975, Alain Steinhoff, a member of the Metz club, travelled to the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

in Belgium, where Kelly was competing in the amateur road race. Steinhoff offered Kelly a place on the amateur team V. C Metz-Woippy. Kelly assured Steinhoff that he would consider the offer and promised to contact the club sometime during the following winter. Club Metz heard nothing from Kelly during the winter because his focus of attention shifted to competing in the Rapport Toer stage race in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

as preparation for the 1976

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

. In late September 1975, Kelly and two other Irish riders, Pat and Kieron McQuaid went to South Africa to participate in the Rapport Toer stage race in preparation for the 1976

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada. Because of an international ban on athletes competing in South Africa, as a consequence of a protest against

apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

, the three Irish cyclists and two Scottish, John Curran and Henry Wilbraham, competed as a British team under false names. The squad were called "Mum for Men" and managed by Tommy Shardelow. When the

Irish Cycling Federation Cycling Ireland or CI is the operating name of the national governing body of the sport of cycling in the island of Ireland. Formally the body is a charitable company limited by guarantee, the Irish Cycling Federation. CI is a member of the UC ...

received news of their escapades in South Africa, Kelly and the McQuaids incurred a seven-month suspension from racing, reduced after an appeal to six months. Kelly and the McQuaids returned to competitive racing at the end of April 1976. After resuming racing, Kelly won the Tour of the North in

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

, Ireland and the

Cinturón a Mallorca Cinturón a Mallorca was a road bicycle race held annually on the island of Mallorca, Spain. Between 2005 and 2011, it was classified as a 2.2 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competi ...

in

Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The capital of the island, Palma, Majorca, Palma, i ...

, Spain. He also won one stage at the 1976

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 th ...

and one at the 1976

Tour of Ireland The Tour of Ireland ( Irish: Turas na hÉireann, known from 1985 to 1992 as the Nissan Classic) was a bicycle stage race held in August, which ran for 35 editions over a 56-year period. Irish rider Seán Kelly recorded the most wins, four. T ...

. On 29 May 1976, Kelly, Pat and Kieron McQuaid, as a consequence of their participation in the Rapport Toer in South Africa, were barred from the 1976

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

by the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

. It's misinformation that the ban from the Olympics was for life. With the dream of competing at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal now shattered, Kelly suddenly required an alternative plan for the rest of the summer to fill the gut-wrenching void. He cast his mind back to Velo Club Metz's interest in August 1975 and penned a short letter to them asking what they could offer. He received a swift reply, offering free accommodation, £25 per week and free replacements for cycling equipment impaired during races. Kelly accepted the proposition and travelled to Metz in mid-June 1976. Soon after arriving, his motivation grew when he learned Velo Club Metz had an arrangement that a rider would pocket four francs a kilometre for every race won. During the five months he spent with Velo Club Metz, Kelly was victorious in eighteen of the twenty-five races he started, including his most prestigious win, the

Piccolo Giro di Lombardia The Piccolo Giro di Lombardia is a one-day cycling race held annually in Lombardy, Italy. It is part of UCI Europe Tour in category 1.2U, meaning it is reserved for under 23 riders. The race acts as the U23 counterpart to the Giro di Lombardia T ...

in Italy. Kelly's time with Velo Club Metz proved lucrative as he returned home to Ireland £800 richer. The money earned made cycling with Metz worthwhile. He told club officials he would return to V.C Metz-Woippy for the 1977 season. Not long after returning home, Kelly contacted Pat McQuaid, asking if he'd be interested in going to Metz with him. McQuaid immediately agreed to go. In early November 1976, Velo Club Metz flew Kelly and McQuaid to London. Metz sent a delegate to meet them there. With the assistance of the club representative and Londoner John Morris, proposals were accepted, which would cover the two Irish amateurs in Metz for the 1977 season. The bonus scheme offered was substantially better than what Kelly had acquired in his first season with Metz. During Kelly's stint with Velo Club Metz in the 1976 season, an impressive stage win at the Tour de Haute-Marne in Northeastern France caught the attention of Jean-Pierre Douçot. Douçot, a former amateur cyclist, was a mechanic and talent scout in eastern France. Jean-Pierre informed

Jean de Gribaldy Jean de Gribaldy (18 July 1922 – 2 January 1987) was a French road cyclist and directeur sportif. He rode in the Tour de France in 1947 and 1948. Biography Born in Besançon, Doubs ''département In the administrative divisions of ...

, a

directeur sportif A ''directeur sportif'' (, ) is a person directing a cycling team during a road bicycle racing event. It is seen as the equivalent to a field manager in baseball, or a head coach in football. At professional level, a directeur sportif follows t ...

from

Besançon Besançon (, ; , ; archaic ; ) is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzerland. Capi ...

who was putting together a French squad for the Belgian professional team, , of Kelly's potential. Later, Kelly's win at the end of the season on 2 October 1976 in the Piccolo Giro di Lombardia left an indelible impression, which convinced de Gribaldy to act upon Douçot's earlier recommendation. On 9 December 1976, a private jet was flown from Dole Airport, near Besançon and landed at

Dublin Airport Dublin Airport () is an international airport serving Dublin, Ireland. It is operated by DAA (formerly Dublin Airport Authority). The airport is located in Collinstown, north of Dublin, and south of the town of Swords. In 2024, over 34 ...

. Onboard was directeur sportif Jean de Gribaldy, pilot Bernard Dagot and a youthful French amateur cyclist, Noël Converset. Dagot, Chief

Air Traffic Controller An Air traffic controller (ATC) is a person responsible for the coordination of traffic in their assigned airspace. Typically stationed in area control centers or control towers, they monitor the position, speed, and altitude of aircraft and c ...

at Dole Airport, spoke

fluent Fluency (also called volubility and eloquency) refers to continuity, smoothness, rate, and effort in speech production. It is also used to characterize language production, language ability or language proficiency. In speech language pathology ...

English and his

linguistic Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...

skills earned him the role of an

interpreter Interpreting is translation from a spoken or signed language into another language, usually in real time to facilitate live communication. It is distinguished from the translation of a written text, which can be more deliberative and make use o ...

. Converset, Kelly's teammate at Metz, was taken to Ireland to identify Kelly and assist in the recruitment process. The three Frenchmen hired a

taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

in Dublin to take them to Carrick-on-Suir. Upon arrival in Carrick-on-Suir, they were given directions to Kelly's home in rural Curraghduff. Arriving unexpectedly, Jack and Nellie Kelly greeted them. Sean, who wasn't at home, was out driving a tractor. The trio decided to drive out the

Dungarvan Dungarvan () is a coastal town and harbour in County Waterford, on the south-east coast of Ireland. Prior to the merger of Waterford County Council with Waterford City Council in 2014, Dungarvan was the county town and administrative centre of ...

road in the hope that they would discover Kelly on his trip back home in the tractor. Soon they encountered a tractor, driven by a young man, travelling towards them. De Gribaldy asked Converset, "Is that Kelly?" to which the uncertain Converset hesitantly answered. De Gribaldy ordered the driver to bring the taxi to a halt. Dagot emerged from the taxi hailing the tractor and asked the driver, "Are you Sean Kelly?" to which the response was, "Yes, I am Sean Kelly." Both parties agreed to go to Kelly's home in Curraghduff for negotiations. De Gribaldy offered Kelly an annual salary of £4000, which Kelly declined. Kelly consulted Pat McQuaid and Ireland's cycling team manager John Lackey for advice. A week later, de Gribaldy telephoned Kelly, at home in Ireland from Besançon. Kelly successfully negotiated a deal, asking for £6000 in the process, which Gribaldy agreed to. Kelly now had a professional contract with Flandria. Pat's brother Oliver replaced Kelly at Velo Club Metz. Kelly travelled to France in late January 1977 and lived for two years at 18, Place de la Révolution (formerly, Place du Marché) in Besançon, de Gribaldy's home town. The apartment was above a bike shop owned by de Gribaldy. He shared with four teammates, Noël Converset, Marcel Tinazzi,

René Bittinger René Bittinger (born 9 October 1954, in Villé) is a French former professional road bicycle racer. He competed in the individual road race event at the 1976 Summer Olympics. Major results ;1979 :Ambert :Tour de France: ::Winner stage 1 ;198 ...

and Dominique Sanders.

Professional career

Early years

Flandria were a Belgian cycling team sponsored by a Belgian company Flandria, which manufactured bicycles, mopeds and scooters. Guillaume Driessens was the

directeur sportif A ''directeur sportif'' (, ) is a person directing a cycling team during a road bicycle racing event. It is seen as the equivalent to a field manager in baseball, or a head coach in football. At professional level, a directeur sportif follows t ...

of the Flandria team, one of the world's best, with riders such as

Freddy Maertens Freddy Maertens (born 13 February 1952) is a Belgian people, Belgian former professional racing cyclist who was twice UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, world road race champion. His career coincided with the best years of anothe ...

,

Marc Demeyer Marc Demeyer (19 April 1950 – 20 January 1982) was a professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist from Avelgem, Belgium. Although known as the "master servant" for Freddy Maertens, the powerful Demeyer was able to win 60 professional ...

and

Michel Pollentier Michel Pollentier (born 13 February 1951) 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. Pollentier is one of just three Belgian rid ...

among their ranks. Flandria required a French squad to expand its commercial interests in France, so they hired

Jean de Gribaldy Jean de Gribaldy (18 July 1922 – 2 January 1987) was a French road cyclist and directeur sportif. He rode in the Tour de France in 1947 and 1948. Biography Born in Besançon, Doubs ''département In the administrative divisions of ...

to assemble and direct a new team. The French squad competed predominantly in smaller French races. The Belgian team based in Belgium contained the strongest and most experienced riders. Good performances meant promotion from de Gribaldy's French squad to the Belgian team. On 7 February 1977, Kelly participated in his first race as a professional competitor, the first stage of the six-day

stage race A race stage, leg, or heat is a unit of a racing, race that has been divided in several parts for the reason such as length of the distance to be covered, as in a multi-day race, multi-day event. Usually, such a race consists of "ordinary" stages ...

Étoile de Bessèges The Étoile de Bessèges () is an early-season five-day road bicycle racing stage race held annually around Bessèges, in the Gard department of the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France. First organized in 1971 as a one-day race, it became a ...

. He made an impressive debut, finishing tenth in the opening stage and third in the final overall general classification. On 19 February 1977, in the first stage of the

Tour Méditerranéen Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism, travel for pleasure * Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service * Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus * Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed ...

, Kelly was denied his first professional victory. Without the benefit of a

photo-finish A photo finish occurs in a sporting race when multiple competitors cross the finishing line at nearly the same time. As the naked eye may not be able to determine which of the competitors crossed the line first, a photo or video taken at the fini ...

, the judge at the finish line deemed

Jan Raas Jan Raas (born 8 November 1952) is a Dutch former professional cyclist whose 115 wins include the 1979 World Road Race Championship in Valkenburg, the Tour of Flanders in 1979 and 1983, Paris–Roubaix in 1982 and Milan–San Remo in 1977. He w ...

the winner in a sprint finish, with Kelly given second place. Several years later, a photographer who had captured a photo at the finish line that day met Kelly in southern France, showing him the image which provided emphatic evidence that Kelly was the winner of the stage. On 6 March 1977, in a six-man

sprint finish In sport, sports, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves :wikt:traverse, traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed ...

, Kelly recorded his first win as a professional, the pro-am Grand Prix de Lugano in Switzerland. Kelly's early impressive displays caught the attention of Guillaume Driessens and the Belgian Flandria squad, resulting in Kelly being promoted and selected to compete with their team at the 1977

Paris–Nice Paris–Nice is a professional road bicycle racing, cycling stage race in France, held annually since 1933. Raced over eight days, the race usually starts with a prologue in the Paris region and ends with a final stage either in Nice or on the ...

as a

domestique In road bicycle racing, a domestique is a rider who works for the benefit of their cycling team, team and leader, rather than trying to win the race. In French, ''domestique'' translates as "servant".However, in French, the term used is ''équip ...

for Freddy Maertens. Maertens won the opening

prologue A prologue or prolog (from Ancient Greek πρόλογος ''prólogos'', from πρό ''pró'', "before" and λόγος ''lógos'', "speech") is an opening to a story that establishes the context and gives background details, often some earlier st ...

and defended his leader's jersey throughout the entire race winning overall. On 19 March 1977, Kelly participated in his first Monument Classic, the

Milan–San Remo Milan–Sanremo (in italian language, Italian ''Milano-Sanremo''), also called "''The Spring classic''" or "''La Classicissima''", is an annual road bicycle racing, road cycling race between Milan and Sanremo, in Northwest Italy. With a distance ...

. On 11 May 1977, competing with the French squad, Kelly won the first stage of the

Tour de Romandie The Tour de Romandie is a stage race which is part of the UCI World Tour. It runs through the Romandie region, or French-speaking part of Switzerland. The competition began in 1947, to coincide with the 50-year anniversary of Swiss Cycling. It ...

in Switzerland and finished tenth overall in the final general classification. On 25 May 1977, Kelly won the French one-day race Circuit de l'Indre, outsprinting

Eddy Merckx Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (born 17 June 1945), known as Eddy Merckx (, ), is a Belgian former professional road and track cyclist racer who is the most successful rider in the history of competitive cycling. His victories include an ...

into second place. In October 1977, Kelly recorded his fourth win of the season, outsprinting Frenchman Serge Périn in the fourth stage of the

Étoile des Espoirs The Étoile des Espoirs was an end of the season French cycling stage race A race stage, leg, or heat is a unit of a racing, race that has been divided in several parts for the reason such as length of the distance to be covered, as in a multi-d ...

. Kelly stayed with de Gribaldy for 1978. In 1978, he started in the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

, in which he also won a stage.

Michel Pollentier Michel Pollentier (born 13 February 1951) 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. Pollentier is one of just three Belgian rid ...

was disqualified from the 1978 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. Kelly and Pollentier often shared hotel rooms. 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.

Stage successes

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 The Vuelta a España (; ) is an annual stage race, multi-stage bicycle racing, 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'Ital ...

. De Gribaldy employed him as unambiguous team leader, someone he believed could win stage races and not just stages. To this end, de Gribaldy encouraged Kelly to lose weight, convincing the latter that he could target the overall win at

Paris–Nice Paris–Nice is a professional road bicycle racing, cycling stage race in France, held annually since 1933. Raced over eight days, the race usually starts with a prologue in the Paris region and ends with a final stage either in Nice or on the ...

: Kelly won the "Race to the Sun" and four of its stages. On the last of those, a time-trial to the

Col d'Èze The Col d'Èze is a mountain pass in the Alpes-Maritimes department of France. It is located between Nice and Monaco, near to La Trinité. Cycling The pass is particularly well known for its frequent inclusion in the Paris–Nice road cycling ...

, he beat

Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle (born 25 August 1954) is a former French professional road racing cyclist who was a specialist at one-day classic cycling races. He raced from 1977 to 1995, one of the best French riders of a generation that included Bern ...

and pushed him out of the lead. Years later Kelly admitted that his countryman Roche's emergence during his neo-pro season in 1981, during which he had also won Paris–Nice, was one of the factors which motivated him to adjust his focus to becoming more of an all-round rider. However, the spring classics season proved a disappointment, with Kelly's best result being a 12th place in

Paris–Roubaix Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the 'Cycling monument, Monuments' ...

after suffering multiple punctures. Despite that, that season he went on to win another of objectives set by de Gribaldy: the

points classification The points classification is a secondary award category in road bicycle racing. Points are given for high finishes and, in some cases, for winning sprints at certain places along the route, most often called ''intermediate sprints''. The points c ...

of the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

, where he took five second places on flat stages before winning a reduced bunch sprint in Pau after climbing the

Col d'Aubisque The Col d'Aubisque () (elevation ) is a mountain pass in the Pyrenees south of Tarbes and Pau in the department of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques, in the Aquitaine region of France.Chany, Pierre (1988), La Fabuleuse Histoire du Tour de France, La Ma ...

. His points total was nearly three times that of the points classification runner-up, the yellow jersey winner

Bernard Hinault Bernard Hinault (; born 14 November 1954) is a French former professional road bicycle racing, road cyclist. With 147 professional victories, including five times the Tour de France, he is often named among the greatest cyclists of all time. In ...

. He won bronze in the 1982 Road World Championships Elite Men's Road Race in Goodwood,

West Sussex West Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Hampshire to the west. The largest settlement is Cr ...

, England, the first world medal for an Irish rider since

Shay 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 ...

's silver in

1962 The year saw the Cuban Missile Crisis, which is often considered the closest the world came to a Nuclear warfare, nuclear confrontation during the Cold War. Events January * January 1 – Samoa, Western Samoa becomes independent from Ne ...

. At the end of the year, Kelly married his girlfriend, Linda Grant, the daughter of a local cycling club official. Carrick-on-Suir named the town square "Sean Kelly Square" in tribute to his achievements in the 1982

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

and his bronze medal at the 1982 World Championships. The following year, 1983, Kelly won

Paris–Nice Paris–Nice is a professional road bicycle racing, cycling stage race in France, held annually since 1933. Raced over eight days, the race usually starts with a prologue in the Paris region and ends with a final stage either in Nice or on the ...

for the second time, the first of three

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

victories, his first

Tour de Suisse The Tour de Suisse () is an annual road cycling stage race. Raced over eight days, the event covers two weekends in June, and along with the Critérium du Dauphiné, it is considered a proving ground for the Tour de France, which is on the calend ...

and the

points classification in the Tour de France The points classification () is a secondary competition in the Tour de France, which 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 co ...

for the second consecutive year. Kelly wore the yellow jersey in the 1983

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

for one day, during the mountainous stage 10 from Pau to

Bagnères-de-Luchon Bagnères-de-Luchon (; ), also referred to as just Luchon, is a Communes of France, commune and spa town in the Haute-Garonne Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie region of south-western France. T ...

, which included the Pyrenean climbs, the Aubisque,

Tourmalet Col du Tourmalet (; elevation ) is one of the highest paved mountain passes in the French Pyrenees, in the department of Hautes-Pyrénées. Sainte-Marie-de-Campan is at the foot on the eastern side and the ski station La Mongie two-thirds ...

, Aspin and Peyresourde. It was the only time he would wear the " ''maillot jaune''" () at the Tour. Kelly confirmed his potential in autumn 1983. A leading group of 18 entered

Como Como (, ; , or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Nestled at the southwestern branch of the picturesque Lake Como, the city is a renowned tourist destination, ce ...

in the

Giro di Lombardia The Giro di Lombardia (), officially ''Il Lombardia'', is a cycling race in Lombardy, Italy. It is traditionally the last of the five 'Cycling monument, Monuments' of the season, considered to be one of the most prestigious one-day events in cycli ...

after a battle over the Intelvi and Schignano passes. Kelly won the sprint to take his first

Monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

by the narrowest margin, less than half a wheel separating the first four, against cycling greats including

Francesco Moser Francesco Moser (, ; born 19 June 1951), nicknamed "Lo sceriffo" (The sheriff), is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer. He finished on the podium of the Giro d'Italia six times including his win in the 1984 edition. Moser was dom ...

,

Adri van der Poel Adri van der Poel (born 17 June 1959) is a retired Dutch cyclist. Van der Poel was a professional from 1981 to 2000. His biggest wins included six classics, two stages of the Tour de France and the World Cyclo-Cross Championships in 1996. He als ...

, Hennie Kuiper and World Champion Greg LeMond. Kelly dominated the following spring. He won 1984 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice for the third successive time beating Roche as well as the Tour de France winner,

Bernard Hinault Bernard Hinault (; born 14 November 1954) is a French former professional road bicycle racing, road cyclist. With 147 professional victories, including five times the Tour de France, he is often named among the greatest cyclists of all time. In ...

who was returning after a knee injury. Kelly finished second in 1984 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo and the 1984 Tour of Flanders, Tour of Flanders, but was unbeatable in 1984 Paris–Roubaix, Paris–Roubaix and 1984 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, 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 Individual time trial, time trial. Kelly achieved 33 victories in 1984. He was becoming a contender in the Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, as seen by finishing fifth in the 1984 Tour de France, Tour de France. This may have caused him to lose his grip on the

points classification The points classification is a secondary award category in road bicycle racing. Points are given for high finishes and, in some cases, for winning sprints at certain places along the route, most often called ''intermediate sprints''. The points c ...

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 1985 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice in 1985, again beating Roche. He also took three stage wins at the 1985 Vuelta a España, Vuelta a España, but suffered a frustrating spring classics season, taking a third place at Paris–Roubaix and fourth at Liège–Bastogne–Liège, but losing out on wins through poor tactical decisions, such as at Milan–San Remo where he and rival Eric Vanderaerden marked each other out of contention. He won the points classification for the third time and finished fourth overall in the 1985 1985 Tour de France, Tour de France, where his rivalry with Vanderaerden boiled over at the finish of the sixth stage in Reims: the latter veered to prevent Kelly from coming past in the final sprint, leading Kelly to push Vanderarden, and the Belgian pulling the Irishman's jersey in response. The race saw him battle for the last step on the GC podium with Stephen Roche: although Roche finished the Tour in third position overall, the duo's performances saw interest in the race expanding gradually in the Irish press. Kelly won the first Nissan International Classic beating Adri van der Poel. At the end of the season, he won the 1985 Giro di Lombardia, Giro di Lombardia. He won 1986 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo in 1986 after winning 1986 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice. In Milan–San Remo, Kelly was being marked closely by Vanderaerden in the closing stages of the race. Mario Beccia attacked on the race's final climb of the Poggio di San Remo and was followed by Greg LeMond. In order to shake Vanderaerden, Kelly feigned a mechanical problem before sprinting away to join the lead group, and drove hard on the front to prevent Niki Rüttimann, LeMond's team-mate, who had followed Kelly, from linking up with the front group: Kelly won the three-up sprint at the finish. He also took stage wins at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, Critérium International and Three Days of Bruges–De Panne, Three Days of De Panne. He finished second in the Tour of Flanders and won Paris–Roubaix again. According to his autobiography ''Hunger'', Kelly gave his support to Van der Poel in the latter's bid to win Flanders in exchange for the Dutchman's help in the French cobbled Classic. In Flanders, Kelly rode on the front of the leading four man group in the closing stages of the race, which also included Van der Poel, Jean-Philippe Vandenbrande and Steve Bauer: regarding the final sprint, Kelly wrote that "I started my sprint early, and I knew Van der Poel was probably in my wheel as well, but I certainly gave it 100 percent." After Flanders, he flew to Spain to race the Tour of the Basque Country, which he won, before flying north to compete in Paris–Roubaix. Roles were reversed as Kelly followed Van der Poel in latching onto an attack from Ferdi Van Den Haute on a late cobbled ''secteur'' to form another four-man group along with Rudy Dhaenens. Van Den Haute attacked again a kilometre from the race finish – which was located away from Roubaix Velodrome for the first time since 1943 – and once again Van der Poel led Kelly out in the sprint, enabling the latter to cross the line first. To date, Kelly is one of only four riders to win the double of Milan–San Remo and Paris–Roubaix in the same year, along with Cyrille van Hauwaert in 1908, John Degenkolb in 2015 and Mathieu van der Poel in 2023. Kelly was engaged in an intense racing schedule, even by contemporary standards, having competed 34 times from the beginning of the season to 1986. He later explained this as partly due to the influence of Jean de Gribaldy, who reasoned that he might as well race if he was going to have to train on his bike if he didn't compete, and because of new sponsor Kas (drink), Kas, a Spanish soft drink manufacturer, who were primarily concerned with success in Spain, and uninterested in winning the Classics, meaning Kelly had to compete in both types of races. He finished on a podium in a Grand Tour for the first time when he finished third in the 1986 1986 Vuelta a España, Vuelta a España, winning two stages along the way. As a result of serious injuries sustained in a crash during the final stage of the 1986 1986 Tour de Suisse, Tour de Suisse, in which he went over a wall on a descent, Kelly missed the 1986 1986 Tour de France, Tour de France. 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 took more than 30 victories in total across the 1986 season. Kelly won 1987 Paris–Nice, 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 extremely painful saddle sore. His bad luck continued in the Tour de France, retiring after fracturing his collarbone in a crash. After the 1987 1987 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road World Championships Elite Men's Road Race, in which he finished fifth behind Roche, Kelly returned to Ireland to win the Nissan Classic for the third consecutive time. Kelly won his seventh consecutive 1988 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice in the spring of 1988, a record. He won 1988 Gent–Wevelgem, Gent–Wevelgem several weeks later.

Grand Tour success

Kelly returned in April to the 1988 1988 Vuelta a España, Vuelta a España which started on the rugged mountainous island of Tenerife where his team struggled in the second stage, losing the influential rider Thomas Wegmüller to dysentery and losing further time in the time-trial around Las Palmas. However, on the Spanish mainland, Kelly concentrated on winning sprint time bonuses, battling with sprinter Manuel Jorge Domínguez, the teammate of leader, Laudelino Cubino. After regaining a minute in four days, the race reached the mountains where Kelly relied on help from Robert Millar of team to stay within two minutes of Cubino after the mountain trial to Alto Oviedo. He then finished fourth behind stage-winner Fabio Parra and Anselmo Fuerte on stage 13 to the ski-station at Cerler, 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 to Albacete when the leader got caught on the wrong side of a split caused by cross-winds. Kelly maintained the gap between himself and Fuerte and started the Individual time trial, time trial on the second last day 21 seconds behind. Confident that he could overhaul the leader, he "put it in a big gear and gave it everything." He took the leader's "maillot amarillo" (yellow jersey), beating Fuerte by almost two minutes. The following day Kelly won his only Grand Tour, over West German Raimund Dietzen and also won the points competition. After his Vuelta win Kelly returned to Carrick-on-Suir where a parade was held in his honour.

Twilight of his career

Kelly finished 46th overall in the 1988 1988 Tour de France, Tour de France, just over an hour behind winner, Spaniard Pedro Delgado, and later admitted he was no longer a contender for overall victory. He finished third behind the German, Rolf Gölz, in the 1988 Nissan Classic. In 1989, Kelly switched to the Dutch team and stayed there for three years until the end of the 1991 season. He achieved his first major victory with PDM in 1989, winning the 1989 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Liège–Bastogne–Liège for the second time. The same year he won the

points classification in the Tour de France The points classification () is a secondary competition in the Tour de France, which 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 co ...

for the fourth time and the inaugural

UCI Road World Cup The UCI Road World Cup was a season-long Road bicycle racing, road cycling competition held from 1989 until 2004 and comprising ten one-day events. The World Cup was made up of around ten Road bicycle racing, one-day races chosen from the prest ...

championship. He won bronze in the sprint finish at the rainy 1989 1989 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road World Championships Elite Men's Road Race in Chambéry, France behind Dimitri Konyshev and winner Greg LeMond. Kelly won the 1990 Tour de Suisse, Tour de Suisse in 1990 for the second time. In March 1991, while competing in the 1991 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice, he broke his right collarbone. During the 1991 1991 Tour de France, Tour de France, the entire PDM team, including Kelly, abandoned the race, citing illness, which later became known as the "Intralipid Affair." In August 1991, Kelly abandoned his racing schedule to participate in the Tour of Galicia after his brother Joe was tragically killed in the Comeragh 100 near

Carrick-on-Suir Carrick-on-Suir () is a town in County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies on both banks of the River Suir. The part on the north bank of the Suir lies in the Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of "Carrick", in the historical B ...

, County Tipperary. He came back to win his fourth Nissan Classic by four seconds over Sean Yates and went on to win the 1991 Giro di Lombardia, Giro di Lombardia at the end of the season. Festina cycling team - Paris-Nice 1993

Kelly won the Giro di Lombardia for a third time in 1991 but started 1992 regarded as past his prime. He moved to in 1992 and prepared for 1992 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo. Race favourite Moreno Argentin attacked from the leading group on the final climb, the Poggio di Sanremo, 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 teammate Rolf Sørensen. 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. Kelly's first appearance and sole participation in the Giro d'Italia was in 1992 Giro d'Italia, 1992. His team, Lotus–Festina, was offered a wild card entry under the condition that Kelly was included in their starting team. He pulled out of the race after stage 16 from Palazzolo sull’Oglio to Sondrio, later admitting his intention of not completing the Giro and his agreement with his

directeur sportif A ''directeur sportif'' (, ) is a person directing a cycling team during a road bicycle racing event. It is seen as the equivalent to a field manager in baseball, or a head coach in football. At professional level, a directeur sportif follows t ...

that he would withdraw at some stage. In 1992, Kelly travelled to Colombia for the Clásico RCN, where he won the second stage. His former PDM teammate, Martin Earley, pushed him into second place at the 1994 Irish National Cycling Championships, Irish National Road Championships. 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 Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (born 17 June 1945), known as Eddy Merckx (, ), is a Belgian former professional road and track cyclist racer who is the most successful rider in the history of competitive cycling. His victories include an ...

, Laurent Fignon,

Bernard Hinault Bernard Hinault (; born 14 November 1954) is a French former professional road bicycle racing, road cyclist. With 147 professional victories, including five times the Tour de France, he is often named among the greatest cyclists of all time. In ...

, Roger De Vlaeminck, Claude Criquielion, Stephen Roche, Martin Earley, Acácio 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.

Legacy and riding style

Kelly's career spanned the eras of several legends of the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

, from

Eddy Merckx Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (born 17 June 1945), known as Eddy Merckx (, ), is a Belgian former professional road and track cyclist racer who is the most successful rider in the history of competitive cycling. His victories include an ...

through to Miguel Induráin. His first Tour was also the first for

Bernard Hinault Bernard Hinault (; born 14 November 1954) is a French former professional road bicycle racing, road cyclist. With 147 professional victories, including five times the Tour de France, he is often named among the greatest cyclists of all time. In ...

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 Induráin and the early career of Lance Armstrong. Kelly's career coincided with

Stephen Roche Stephen Roche (; born 28 November 1959) is an Irish former professional road racing cyclist. In a 13-year professional career, he peaked in 1987, becoming the second of only three cyclists to win the Triple Crown of victories in the Tour de ...

as well as Classics specialists including

Francesco Moser Francesco Moser (, ; born 19 June 1951), nicknamed "Lo sceriffo" (The sheriff), is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer. He finished on the podium of the Giro d'Italia six times including his win in the 1984 edition. Moser was dom ...

, 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. While some sprinters remain sheltered in the peloton until the final few hundred metres, Kelly could instigate breaks and climb well, proving this by winning the 1988 Vuelta a España, Vuelta a España in 1988, as well as winning a stage of Paris–Nice on the climb of Mont Ventoux. His victories in

Paris–Roubaix Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the 'Cycling monument, Monuments' ...

(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 The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

. He was also a formidable descender, clocking a career top race speed of 124 km/h (77 mi/h), while descending from Col de Joux Plane to Morzine on stage 19 of the Tour in 1984 Tour de France, 1984. He finished fourth in the Tour in 1985 and won the points classification in 1982 Tour de France, 1982, 1983 Tour de France, 1983, 1985 Tour de France, 1985, and 1989 Tour de France, 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 The Vuelta a España (; ) is an annual stage race, multi-stage bicycle racing, 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'Ital ...

. Kelly was also an outstanding time trialist. In the inaugural 1985 Tour of Ireland, Nissan Classic, Kelly, wearing a skinsuit, racing a Vitus (bicycle company), Vitus Plus Carbone road bike with drop handlebars and a rear Mavic (bicycle parts company), Mavic disc wheel, produced a magnificent performance in the stage 3a, 21 km (13.04 mi) individual time trial from

Carrick-on-Suir Carrick-on-Suir () is a town in County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies on both banks of the River Suir. The part on the north bank of the Suir lies in the Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of "Carrick", in the historical B ...

to Clonmel. His winning time of 24:09 was 49 seconds quicker than second-placed

Stephen Roche Stephen Roche (; born 28 November 1959) is an Irish former professional road racing cyclist. In a 13-year professional career, he peaked in 1987, becoming the second of only three cyclists to win the Triple Crown of victories in the Tour de ...

. Kelly's winning average speed of 52.173 km/h (32.419 mi/h) was faster than any individual had ever accomplished in a time trial, further than 20 km. It took another four years to surpass this record when American Greg LeMond averaged 54.545 km/h (33.893 mi/h) in the historical 24.5 km (15.22 mi) individual time trial from Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles to Paris at the 1989 Tour de France, 1989 Tour de France.

Doping

Kelly failed drug tests twice during his career. After the 1984 edition of Paris–Brussels, in which he had finished third, cycling authorities stated that a urine sample supplied by Kelly had tested positive for pemoline (Stimul), a result which was repeated with the testing of a B sample. The Royal Belgian Cycling League sentenced Kelly to a three-month suspended ban and a fine. Kelly denied taking any banned substances: in an interview at the time with David Walsh (journalist), David Walsh, he claimed that there were "irregularities at the testing centre that day ... the medical control at Paris-Brussels was very badly organised and lots of people were in the room who had no right to be there ... in all this confusion something must have gone wrong". In his autobiography ''Hunger'', Kelly stated that

Irish Cycling Federation Cycling Ireland or CI is the operating name of the national governing body of the sport of cycling in the island of Ireland. Formally the body is a charitable company limited by guarantee, the Irish Cycling Federation. CI is a member of the UC ...

official Karl McCarthy, who acted as a witness on Kelly's behalf at the second test as he was unable to attend due to racing commitments, told him that the B sample was "tiny" and below the amount required for the test. In his book ''Massacre à la chaîne: Révélations sur 30 ans de tricheries (Chain massacre: Revelations on 30 years of cheating)'', Kelly's former soigneur Willy Voet claimed that Kelly had been ill with bronchitis in the week before the race and had taken ephedrine to treat it: to avoid a positive test, Voet wrote that Kelly had carried a container in his shorts filled with urine supplied by one of the team's mechanics to doping control, and that the Stimul detected in the sample had been taken by the mechanic to help him stay awake while driving the team's truck. Kelly's second positive test occurred at the 1988 1988 Tour of the Basque Country, Tour of the Basque Country, where he tested positive for codeine. Having finished fourth in the overall classification, he received a ten-minute penalty that dropped him down the order. Kelly explained this as being the result of a worsening cough he had developed during the race: he said that between the end of the final stage and attending doping control he took a swig from a bottle of cough medicine, to which he attributed the presence of codeine in his urine sample.

Post-cycling career

Kelly is a commentator for the English-language services of TNT Sports having previously worked for its predecessor Eurosport where he was described as the "Rolls-Royce of commentators". He is known for giving great insight into races and typically commentates on all the big races including the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

, Giro d'Italia and the

Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; ) is an annual stage race, multi-stage bicycle racing, 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'Ital ...

. He established and is involved in the Sean Kelly Cycling Academy in Belgium. In 2006, he launched Ireland's first professional team, , initially composed of Irish and Belgian riders based at the academy in Merchtem, Flanders. Kelly managed the squad with Kurt Bogaerts who rode for the team in its debut year before retiring and moving into management. The team became more international over the years and competed on the UCI Europe Tour until disbanding at the end of 2017. Team riders took eight general classification victories, six elite national road and time trial championships and many more one-day and stage victories with riders including Sam Bennett (cyclist), Sam Bennett, Ryan Mullen and Owain Doull representing the team early in their careers. He has a cycling clothing company which supplies clubs and companies, and which also organises corporate cycling events in Ireland and throughout Europe. 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. Sean Kelly regularly cycles with SportActive cycling holidays in

Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The capital of the island, Palma, Majorca, Palma, i ...

. The inaugural Sean Kelly Tour of Waterford was held on 19 August 2007. Kelly was one of the 910 participants. The second was on 24 August 2008. Kelly was one of the 2,048. The 2009 Tour went ahead on 30 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 two days and events. This ran annually until 2017. In 2018, the organisers of The Sean Kelly Tour of Waterford completed a review and decided not to run the event and to look at other cycling initiatives in and around Waterford.

Coverage

Kelly is the subject of several books, including ''KELLY A Biography of Sean Kelly'' by David Walsh in 1986 and ''SEAN KELLY a man for all seasons'' by Sean Kelly and David Walsh (sports reporter), David Walsh in 1991. Sean Kelly published his autobiography ''Hunger'' in 2013.

Awards

In December 1986, Sean Kelly won the RTÉ Sports Person of the Year, RTÉ Sports Person of the Year Award. In December 2005, he received the Mick Doyle (rugby union), Mick Doyle Golden Memory Award at the Canon Hayes National Sports Awards in Glen of Aherlow, Aherlow, County Tipperary. In November 2013, at Dublin City University, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Philosophy in recognition of his contribution to Irish sport. In November 2019, he received a lifetime achievement award at the Cycling Weekly Awards in London.

Career achievements

Major results

Sources: ;1972 : 1st Road race, National Junior Road Championships ;1973 : 1st Road race, National Junior Road Championships ;1974 : 1st

Shay Elliott Memorial Race The Shay Elliott Memorial race is a one-day road cycling race held in spring in Ireland. It is run in honour of Ireland's first professional cyclist, Seamus Shay Elliott and organised by Bray Wheelers. The race was previously known as the ''Ro ...

;1975 : 1st

Shay Elliott Memorial Race The Shay Elliott Memorial race is a one-day road cycling race held in spring in Ireland. It is run in honour of Ireland's first professional cyclist, Seamus Shay Elliott and organised by Bray Wheelers. The race was previously known as the ''Ro ...

:

Tour of Ireland The Tour of Ireland ( Irish: Turas na hÉireann, known from 1985 to 1992 as the Nissan Classic) was a bicycle stage race held in August, which ran for 35 editions over a 56-year period. Irish rider Seán Kelly recorded the most wins, four. T ...

::1st Mountains classification ::1st Stages 5, 6 & 7 : 1st Stage 7 Milk Race : 8th Manx Trophy ;1976 : 1st Overall

Cinturón a Mallorca Cinturón a Mallorca was a road bicycle race held annually on the island of Mallorca, Spain. Between 2005 and 2011, it was classified as a 2.2 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competi ...

: 1st Overall The Tour of the North : 1st

Piccolo Giro di Lombardia The Piccolo Giro di Lombardia is a one-day cycling race held annually in Lombardy, Italy. It is part of UCI Europe Tour in category 1.2U, meaning it is reserved for under 23 riders. The race acts as the U23 counterpart to the Giro di Lombardia T ...

: 1st Stage 6

Tour of Ireland The Tour of Ireland ( Irish: Turas na hÉireann, known from 1985 to 1992 as the Nissan Classic) was a bicycle stage race held in August, which ran for 35 editions over a 56-year period. Irish rider Seán Kelly recorded the most wins, four. T ...

: 1st Stage 6 Milk Race ;1977 : 1st Stage 4

Étoile des Espoirs The Étoile des Espoirs was an end of the season French cycling stage race A race stage, leg, or heat is a unit of a racing, race that has been divided in several parts for the reason such as length of the distance to be covered, as in a multi-d ...

: 2nd Overall Ronde van Nederland : 3rd Overall

Étoile de Bessèges The Étoile de Bessèges () is an early-season five-day road bicycle racing stage race held annually around Bessèges, in the Gard department of the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France. First organized in 1971 as a one-day race, it became a ...

: 3rd Omloop van het Houtland : 4th Circuit des Frontières : 9th Delta Profronde, Ronde van Midden-Zeeland : 10th Overall

Tour de Romandie The Tour de Romandie is a stage race which is part of the UCI World Tour. It runs through the Romandie region, or French-speaking part of Switzerland. The competition began in 1947, to coincide with the 50-year anniversary of Swiss Cycling. It ...

:: 1st Stage 1 : 10th Overall Grand Prix du Midi Libre ;1978 :

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

::1st Stage 6 ::Held after Stage 2 : 1st Stage 3

Tour Méditerranéen Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism, travel for pleasure * Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service * Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus * Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed ...

: 1st Stage 5a

Étoile des Espoirs The Étoile des Espoirs was an end of the season French cycling stage race A race stage, leg, or heat is a unit of a racing, race that has been divided in several parts for the reason such as length of the distance to be covered, as in a multi-d ...

: Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme ::1st Stages 1a (Team time trial, TTT) & 1b : 2nd Stausee-Rundfahrt Klingnau, Stausee-Rundfahrt ;1979 : 1st Grand Prix de Cannes : 1979 Vuelta a España, Vuelta a España ::1st Stages 1 & 8a : 2nd GP Union Dortmund : 7th 1979 Dwars door België, Dwars door België : 9th 1979 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road race, 1979 UCI Road World Championships, UCI Road World Championships : 9th Overall Tour of Belgium : 10th 1979 Omloop Het Volk, Omloop Het Volk ;1980 : 1st Overall Three Days of De Panne ::1st Points classification ::1st Jersey granate

Mountains classification ::1st Stage 2 : 1980 Tour de France, Tour de France ::1st Stages 19 & 21 : 1st Stage 3a 1980 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré : 1st Stage 4 Ronde van Nederland : 2nd 1980 E3 Prijs Vlaanderen, E3 Prijs Vlaanderen : 2nd Brabantse Pijl (men's race), Brabantse Pijl : 2nd 1980 Tour du Haut Var, Tour du Haut Var : 3rd 1980 Amstel Gold Race, Amstel Gold Race : 3rd 1980 Omloop Het Volk, Omloop Het Volk : 3rd Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne : 4th Overall

Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; ) is an annual stage race, multi-stage bicycle racing, 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'Ital ...

::1st Points classification in the Vuelta a España, Points classification ::1st Sprints classification ::1st Stages 1, 2, 14, 17 & 19 : 4th Overall Tour of Belgium : 4th 1980 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo : 4th Grand Prix de Cannes : 10th Circuit des Frontières ;1981 : 1st Stage 15 1981 Tour de France, Tour de France : 1st Stage 2 1981 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré : 1st Stage 5a Ronde van Nederland : 1st Stage 1 Tour of Luxembourg : 2nd Overall Four Days of Dunkirk ::1st Stage 2 : 3rd 1981 Grote Prijs Jef Scherens, Grote Prijs Jef Scherens : 4th 1981 La Flèche Wallonne, La Flèche Wallonne : 5th Rund um den Henninger Turm : 6th Overall Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme : 6th 1981 Amstel Gold Race, Amstel Gold Race : 6th 1981 Tour du Haut Var, Tour du Haut Var : 7th Brabantse Pijl (men's race), Brabantse Pijl : 8th 1981 Tour of Flanders, Tour of Flanders : 8th Nationale Sluitingsprijs : 9th Overall Tour of Belgium ::1st Stage 3 : 9th Züri-Metzgete, Züri–Metzgete ;1982 : 1st Overall 1982 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice ::1st Stages 3, 5, 7a & 7b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st 1982 Tour du Haut Var, Tour du Haut Var :

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

::1st Points classification in the Tour de France, Points classification ::1st Intermediate sprints classification in the Tour de France, Intermediate Sprints classification ::1st Stage 12 :

Étoile des Espoirs The Étoile des Espoirs was an end of the season French cycling stage race A race stage, leg, or heat is a unit of a racing, race that has been divided in several parts for the reason such as length of the distance to be covered, as in a multi-d ...

::1st Stages 1 & 3 : 1st Stage 2 Grand Prix du Midi Libre : 1st Points classification, 1982 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré : 2nd Critérium des As : 3rd Bronze medal uci

1982 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road race, 1982 UCI Road World Championships, UCI Road World Championships : 3rd 1982 Omloop Het Volk, Omloop Het Volk : 3rd Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne : 3rd Rund um den Henninger Turm : 4th 1982 Amstel Gold Race, Amstel Gold Race : 5th Giro del Piemonte : 6th Overall

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

::1st Stage 3 (Individual time trial, ITT) : 6th 1982 GP Ouest–France, GP Ouest–France : 7th Overall Tour de l'Aude (men's race), Tour de l'Aude ::1st Stages 1 & 2 : 7th Druivenkoers Overijse : 8th 1982 La Flèche Wallonne, La Flèche Wallonne : 10th 1982 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Liège–Bastogne–Liège ;1983 : 1st Overall

Paris–Nice Paris–Nice is a professional road bicycle racing, cycling stage race in France, held annually since 1933. Raced over eight days, the race usually starts with a prologue in the Paris region and ends with a final stage either in Nice or on the ...

::1st Stages 3a, 4 & 7b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall

Tour de Suisse The Tour de Suisse () is an annual road cycling stage race. Raced over eight days, the event covers two weekends in June, and along with the Critérium du Dauphiné, it is considered a proving ground for the Tour de France, which is on the calend ...

::1st Points classification ::1st Combination classification ::1st Stages 3 & 5b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

::1st Stage 3 (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st

Giro di Lombardia The Giro di Lombardia (), officially ''Il Lombardia'', is a cycling race in Lombardy, Italy. It is traditionally the last of the five 'Cycling monument, Monuments' of the season, considered to be one of the most prestigious one-day events in cycli ...

: 1st Grand Prix d'Isbergues : 1st Stage 4

Étoile des Espoirs The Étoile des Espoirs was an end of the season French cycling stage race A race stage, leg, or heat is a unit of a racing, race that has been divided in several parts for the reason such as length of the distance to be covered, as in a multi-d ...

: 1st Stage 2 Paris–Bourges : 2nd Overall Super Prestige Pernod International : 2nd Overall Escalada a Montjuïc : 2nd Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne : 2nd Giro del Piemonte : 2nd Polynormande : 2nd Boucles de l'Aulne, Circuit de l'Aulne : 2nd Grand Prix de Monaco (cycling), Grand Prix de Monaco : 3rd Critérium des As : 5th 1983 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo : 5th Grand Prix de Cannes : 6th Trofeo Baracchi : 7th Overall

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

::1st Points classification in the Tour de France, Points classification ::1st Intermediate sprints classification in the Tour de France, Intermediate Sprints classification ::Held after Stage 9 : 8th 1983 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road race, 1983 UCI Road World Championships, UCI Road World Championships : 9th 1983 Grand Prix d'Automne, Paris–Tours ;1984 : 1st Overall 1984 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice ::1st Stages 2a & 7b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall 1984 Volta a Catalunya, Volta a Catalunya ::1st Points classification ::1st Mountains classification ::1st Stages 1, 4a, 4b & 7a (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall 1984 Tour of the Basque Country, Tour of the Basque Country ::1st Points classification ::1st Stages 1, 3 & 5b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

::1st Stages 1, 2 & 3 (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall Super Prestige Pernod International : 1st 1984 Paris–Roubaix, Paris–Roubaix : 1st 1984 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Liège–Bastogne–Liège : 1st 1984 Grand Prix d'Automne, Paris–Tours : 1st Paris–Bourges : 1st 1984 GP Ouest–France, GP Ouest–France : 1st Profronde van Almelo : 1st Grand Prix d'Aix-en-Provence : 1st Critérium des As : 1st Tour de Berne : 2nd 1984 Tour of Flanders, Tour of Flanders : 2nd 1984 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo : 2nd

Grand Prix des Nations The Grand Prix des Nations was an individual time trial (against the clock) for both professional and amateur racing cyclists. Held annually in Cannes, France, it was instituted in 1932 and often regarded as the unofficial time trial championship ...

: 3rd Grand Prix d'Isbergues : 3rd Eschborn–Frankfurt : 3rd Rund um den Henninger Turm : 4th Overall 1984 Tour de Suisse, Tour de Suisse ::1st Points classification ::1st Combination classification ::1st Stage 1 : 4th Overall Tour du Limousin ::1st Stages 1b, 2 & 4 : 5th Overall 1984 Tour de France, Tour de France ::Held after Stage 22 : 6th Trofeo Baracchi (with

Stephen Roche Stephen Roche (; born 28 November 1959) is an Irish former professional road racing cyclist. In a 13-year professional career, he peaked in 1987, becoming the second of only three cyclists to win the Triple Crown of victories in the Tour de ...

) : 9th Overall La Méditerranéenne ;1985 : 1st Overall 1985 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice : 1st Overall Nissan Classic ::1st Stages 1 & 3a (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall Super Prestige Pernod International : 1st 1985 Giro di Lombardia, Giro di Lombardia : 1st Critérium des As : 1st Stage 3 1985 Ronde van Nederland, Ronde van Nederland : 2nd Overall 1985 Volta a Catalunya, Volta a Catalunya ::1st Points classification ::1st Stage 2 : 2nd Overall 1985 Three Days of De Panne, Three Days of De Panne : 3rd Overall

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

::1st Stage 1 : 3rd Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana ::1st Stage 5 : 3rd 1985 Paris–Roubaix, Paris–Roubaix : 3rd 1985 Grand Prix d'Automne, Paris–Tours : 4th Overall 1985 Tour de France, Tour de France ::1st Points classification in the Tour de France, Points classification : 4th Overall 1985 Tour de Suisse, Tour de Suisse : 4th 1985 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Liège–Bastogne–Liège : 5th Brussels Cycling Classic, Paris–Brussels : 6th Overall 1985 Tour of the Basque Country, Tour of the Basque Country ::1st Points classification ::1st Stages 3 & 5b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 7th 1985 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo : 7th 1985 Gent–Wevelgem, Gent–Wevelgem : 7th

Grand Prix des Nations The Grand Prix des Nations was an individual time trial (against the clock) for both professional and amateur racing cyclists. Held annually in Cannes, France, it was instituted in 1932 and often regarded as the unofficial time trial championship ...

: 8th Overall Escalada a Montjuïc : 9th Overall 1985 Vuelta a España, Vuelta a España ::1st Points classification in the Vuelta a España, Points classification ::1st Stages 2, 10 & 15 : 9th Overall 1985 Ronde van Nederland, Ronde van Nederland : 9th Grand Prix Eddy Merckx : 10th 1985 E3 Prijs Vlaanderen, E3 Prijs Vlaanderen : 10th Giro del Piemonte ;1986 : 1st Overall 1986 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice ::1st Prologue, Stages 3 & 7b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall 1986 Volta a Catalunya, Volta a Catalunya ::1st Points classification ::1st Stage 7 (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall 1986 Tour of the Basque Country, Tour of the Basque Country ::1st Points classification ::1st Stages 3, 5a & 5b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall Nissan Classic : 1st Overall Super Prestige Pernod International : 1st 1986 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo : 1st 1986 Paris–Roubaix, Paris–Roubaix : 1st

Grand Prix des Nations The Grand Prix des Nations was an individual time trial (against the clock) for both professional and amateur racing cyclists. Held annually in Cannes, France, it was instituted in 1932 and often regarded as the unofficial time trial championship ...

: 1st Critérium des As : Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana ::1st Stages 1 & 3 : 1st Stage 4 Tour du Limousin : 2nd Overall

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

::1st Stages 1 & 3 (Individual time trial, ITT) : 2nd Overall Three Days of De Panne ::1st Stage 1b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 2nd Overall Paris–Bourges ::1st Stage 2 : 2nd 1986 Tour of Flanders, Tour of Flanders : 2nd 1986 Giro di Lombardia, Giro di Lombardia : 2nd 1986 GP Ouest–France, GP Ouest–France : 2nd Brussels Cycling Classic, Paris–Brussels : 3rd Overall 1986 Vuelta a España, Vuelta a España ::1st Points classification in the Vuelta a España, Points classification ::1st Jersey white dots on red

Combination classification in the Vuelta a España, Combination classification ::1st Stages 10 & 13 : 4th Grand Prix d'Isbergues : 5th 1986 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road race, 1986 UCI Road World Championships, UCI Road World Championships : 5th 1986 La Flèche Wallonne, La Flèche Wallonne : 6th 1986 Grand Prix d'Automne, Paris–Tours : 7th Overall Vuelta a Aragón ::1st Stage 4a ;1987 : 1st Overall 1987 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice ::1st Stage 3 : 1st Overall 1987 Tour of the Basque Country, Tour of the Basque Country ::1st Points classification ::1st Mountains classification ::1st Stages 4 & 5b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

::1st Stages 2 & 3 (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall Nissan Classic : 1987 Vuelta a España, Vuelta a España ::1st Stages 1 & 3 ::Held after Stages 1, 3–4, 6 & 18 ::Held after Stages 1–18 : 1st Stage 7 Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana : 2nd Overall Three Days of De Panne ::1st Stage 1b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 2nd Overall Super Prestige Pernod International : 2nd 1987 Tour of Flanders, Tour of Flanders : 3rd 1987 Dwars door België, Dwars door België : 3rd Critérium des As : 4th Overall Grand Prix du Midi Libre : 4th 1987 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo : 4th Brussels Cycling Classic, Paris–Brussels : 4th

Grand Prix des Nations The Grand Prix des Nations was an individual time trial (against the clock) for both professional and amateur racing cyclists. Held annually in Cannes, France, it was instituted in 1932 and often regarded as the unofficial time trial championship ...

: 5th Overall 1987 Volta a Catalunya, Volta a Catalunya ::1st Points classification ::1st Prologue & Stage 1 : 5th 1987 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road race, 1987 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, UCI Road World Championships : 10th Overall Escalada a Montjuïc : 10th 1987 GP Ouest–France, GP Ouest–France ;1988 : 1st Overall 1988 Vuelta a España, Vuelta a España ::1st Points classification in the Vuelta a España, Points classification ::1st Combination classification in the Vuelta a España, Combination classification ::1st Stages 10 & 19 (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall 1988 Paris–Nice, Paris–Nice ::1st Stage 6b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st Overall Setmana Catalana de Ciclisme ::1st Points classification ::1st Stage 4b (Individual time trial, ITT) : 1st 1988 Gent–Wevelgem, Gent–Wevelgem : 1988 Tour of the Basque Country, Tour of the Basque Country ::1st Points classification ::1st Stage 4 : 2nd 1988 Tour du Haut Var, Tour du Haut Var : 2nd Grand Prix de Fourmies : 2nd Critérium des As : 3rd Overall 1988 Tour of Britain, Kellogg's Tour : 3rd Overall Nissan Classic : 3rd 1988 Paris–Tours, Paris–Tours : 4th Overall Vuelta a Asturias : 4th 1988 Tour of Flanders, Tour of Flanders : 5th Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana : 5th 1988 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo : 5th 1988 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Liège–Bastogne–Liège : 5th Giro del Lazio : 7th 1988 Omloop Het Volk, Omloop Het Volk : 10th Overall Tour du Limousin ::1st Stages 2b & 3 ;1989 : 1st 1989 UCI Road World Cup, UCI Road World Cup : 1st 1989 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Liège–Bastogne–Liège : 1st Stage 4 1989 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré : 2nd 1989 Omloop Het Volk, Omloop Het Volk : 2nd Critérium des As : 3rd Bronze medal uci

1989 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road race, 1989 UCI Road World Championships, UCI Road World Championships : 3rd 1989 Wincanton Classic, Wincanton Classic : 3rd Trofeo Baracchi (with Gianni Bugno) : 4th Overall 1989 Ronde van Nederland, Ronde van Nederland : 4th Overall Nissan Classic ::1st Mountains classification : 4th Ronde van Limburg (Belgium), Ronde van Limburg : 5th 1989 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo : 5th Grand Prix de la Libération (Team time trial, TTT) : 6th Overall Three Days of De Panne : 7th Overall 1989 Tirreno–Adriatico, Tirreno–Adriatico : 7th 1989 Paris–Tours, Paris–Tours : 8th Trofeo Pantalica : 9th Overall 1989 Tour de France, Tour de France ::1st Points classification in the Tour de France, Points classification ::1st Intermediate sprints classification in the Tour de France, Intermediate sprints classification : 9th Overall 1989 Tour of Britain, Kellogg's Tour : 9th Giro del Piemonte : 9th Brussels Cycling Classic, Paris–Brussels : 10th Grand Prix Impanis-Van Petegem, Grand Prix Impanis ;1990 : 1st Overall 1990 Tour de Suisse, Tour de Suisse ::1st Points classification ::1st Stage 4 : 1st Grand Prix de la Libération (Team time trial, TTT) : 2nd 1990 Wincanton Classic, Wincanton Classic : 3rd 1990 UCI Road World Cup, UCI Road World Cup : 3rd 1990 Clásica de San Sebastián, Clásica de San Sebastián : 4th Ronde van Limburg (Belgium), Ronde van Limburg : 5th 1990 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, Road race, 1990 UCI Road World Championships, UCI Road World Championships : 6th Overall 1990 Tirreno–Adriatico, Tirreno–Adriatico : 8th Overall

Critérium International The Critérium International was a two-day Stage (bicycle race), bicycle stage race held in France every spring from 1932 until 2016, typically the last weekend of March. It was formerly known as the Critérium National de la Route, first run in ...

: 8th 1990 Paris–Tours, Paris–Tours : 8th Trofeo Luis Puig : 9th Overall 1990 Volta a Catalunya, Volta a Catalunya : 10th Overall Nissan Classic : 10th 1990 Giro di Lombardia, Giro di Lombardia ;1991 : 1st Overall Nissan Classic : 1st 1991 Giro di Lombardia, Giro di Lombardia : 1st Points classification, 1991 Tour de Suisse, Tour de Suisse : 4th Milano–Torino : 4th Trofeo Luis Puig : 9th Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana ;1992 : 1st 1992 Milan–San Remo, Milan–San Remo : 1st Trofeo Luis Puig : 1st Stage 7 1992 Tour de Suisse, Tour de Suisse : 1st Stage 4 Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana : 1st Stage 2 Clásico RCN : 4th Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne ;1993 : 4th 1993 Paris–Tours, Paris–Tours : 6th Paris–Bourges ;1994 : 2nd Road race, Irish National Cycling Championships, National Road Championships : 4th Grand Prix de Wallonie : 6th Overall Tour d'Armorique : 10th Overall Route du Sud

General classification results timeline

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Classics results timeline

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Major championships results timeline

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Notes and references

Footnotes

References

Bibliography

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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Sean 1956 births Living people Irish male cyclists Irish Tour de France stage winners Irish expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Sports commentators Vuelta a España winners Irish Vuelta a España stage winners Cycling announcers Tour de Suisse stage winners RTÉ Sports Person of the Year winners Super Prestige Pernod winners UCI Road World Rankings winners UCI Road World Cup winners Sportspeople from Waterford (city) 20th-century Irish sportsmen

Early life and amateur career

Professional career

Early years

Stage successes

Grand Tour success

Twilight of his career

Legacy and riding style

Doping

Post-cycling career

Coverage

Awards

Career achievements

Major results

General classification results timeline

Classics results timeline

Major championships results timeline

See also

Notes and references

Footnotes

References

Bibliography

External links