Making the French connection
STANDING proudly at The Fair Green in Enniscorthy is a permanent reminder of the town’s contribution to cycling’s greatest event - The Tour de France. Twenty years ago, the very spot where the statue, expertly crafted by Mayo man Mark Rode, proudly stands was a veritable hive of activity as some of the world’s greatest cyclists gathered with the crews, signed in and carried out last minute checks to their bikes before setting off for the second stage of one of the greatest races in the world. The event was historically starting outside of France, with stage two seeing the riders travel from Enniscorthy to Cork before travelling to Roscoff for the start of stage three.
The level of excitement in the town was palpable, as everyone became cycling mad. Former councillor Sean Doyle recalls a major operation which really captured the imagination of everyone across County Wexford and indeed the whole country.
‘Oh it was huge,’ he said. ‘Bellefield was completely taken over with tents and stalls and all manner of foods on sale. All of the top organisers of the race from France were also present at the start of the stage. The image of the cavalcade of the 189 best cyclists in the world travelling from the Duffry Gate, through Market Square to the Old Bridge and over Seamus Rafter Bridge, through the Abbey Square, and taking the road to Clonroche and on to Cork will remain forever in the memories of all who were in Enniscorthy on that unique day.’
In terms of how the event came to find it’s way from France, Sean recalls a huge effort on behalf of many people. ‘ The late Eddie Tobin was absolutely instrumental in bringing the race to Enniscorthy,’ he said. ‘If I recall correctly, I think it was Peter Byrne who first raised the issue at a council meeting. From there on a lot of committees were set up and then town clerk Donal Minnock also put in a huge amount of work to ensure that everything came together. The Bicentenary of the 1798 Rebellion was the catalyst that led to the Tour de France coming to Ireland and Enniscorthy. What better way to honour the Bicentenary than by introducing one of the world’s great sporting events from France, whose revolutionary spirit of the 1790s is believed by many historians to be the inspiration of the 1798 revolution in Ireland.’
Around 1,500 vehicles set off from Enniscorthy on the morning of the stage and, fitting in with the historical connection, it was the thundering of a canon from Vinegar Hill which got the 189 riders underway. ‘It’s hard to comprehend just how big this was,’ said Paul Nolan of Kennys for Bikes. ‘It was like the World Cup coming to town. We’ll never see anything like it again.’
Again, Paul credits one man with bringing the race to town.
‘ This was all Eddie Tobin’s dream,’ he said. ‘At first when he raised the idea of bringing the Tour to Enniscorthy, people laughed at him. But he put in a huge amount of work into making this happen and he was there on the starting line as the Stage End Manager.’
While there was an unbelievable buzz around the town as the tour rolled in, Paul recalled that the riders existed in their own little bubble and couldn’t be got to by the general public. While the teams were scattered all around a forty mile radius, the newly built Riverside Park Hotel played host to the Mercantone Uno-Bianchi team and eventual winner Marco Pantani. Meanwhile, Treacy’s was filled with Team Polti and the now infamous Festina team who became embroiled in the Tour’s first major doping scandal afterwards. Over 2,500 people directly connected with the tour were present at the starting line in the Duffry on July 13 and that doesn’t include the countless spectators who lined the streets along the route, hoping to catch a glimpse at the world’s top cyclists.
Pikemen lined the streets in a guard of honour as the different coloured jerseys whizzed through town and over the old bridge.
‘It was amazing,’ said Paul. ‘I’ll never forget seeing Tour Director Jean Marie Leblanc driving through the town, hanging out the window applauding the people of Enniscorthy. They couldn’t believe how easy things were here compared to Dublin. Eamonn Hore put in a huge amount of work from a council point of view and nothing was a problem.’
The impact of the Tour was marked ten years later as legend Sean Kelly officially unveiled the Fair Green statue to mark the town’s contribution to one of the world’s major sporting events.