On Saturday Daniel Martin , the nephew of Stephen Roche , cousin of Nicolas and son of former professional Neil Martin won a race .
The race was the Tour of Poland , the first national tour victory by Irish rider since Kelly’s victory in Spain in 1988 and uncle Stephens wins in France and Italy the previous year .
In years to come this may be looked upon , along with Philip Deignan’s great stage win in last years Vuelta , as the beginning of the second great era of Irish cycling .
There will never be another Kelly , a rider capable of winning any race under any condition , from any country . It is impossible to see anyone equal Roche seniors wins in the GIro , Tour and Worlds in a single year where he joined a club of 2 alongside the legend that is Eddy Merckx .
However the current crop of riders who have ‘Ireland ‘ stamped on the cover of their passports gives us something real and tangible to hope for . The numbers of cyclists on the roads of Ireland are now close to the numbers of the mid eighties which was the Golden era .
I don’t know what lies ahead for the cycling fans of Ireland but I am really looking forward to finding out over the next few years !
Barry
are there two dans the man? is there room for 2? poor waterford Dan is in decline, but this Dan is on the up and up. I’m from tipperary, but I admire the waterford Dan. great contribution to Waterford. but, every doggy has his day.
jim