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19 November 2005

DVD Review: The Sean Kelly Story

The Sean Kelly Story - An Irish Cycling Legend

If you are a fan of cycling, Sean Kelly: An Irish Cycling Legend is a must have for your video library.

"King" Kelly is breed of now extinct professionals that raced from February to October competing in classics to Grand Tours and winning all along the way.

This 2-DVD set from Bromley Video is 220 minutes (nearly 4 hours!!) chronicling the life and career of this amazing hard-man. It goes into incredible detail from his humble working class roots as an Irish farmer, to his stay with a Belgian family when he first came to race continentally, on through to his four green jerseys in the Tour de France. There is commentary from the early 1980's with a rather youthful Phil Liggett, and many television interviews showcasing Kelly's off the wall taste in 80's sweaters.

Disc 1 is a real treat for the serious cycling junkie. There is so much footage from classic races that we have all read about for so many years but either took place before our time, or before TV coverage was what it is now (especially for the Americans). That is what makes this video such a gold mine. One of the highlights for me was the segment showing the finale of the 1983 Giro di Lombardia. It's a very fast and furious chase down to the line. The final selection contained the heavy-hitters of the day, with the likes of Kelly, Stephen Roche, Hennie Kuiper and a rainbow jersey clad Greg LeMond all duking it out in the sprint!

Another great moment is hearing Kelly's commentary on his legendary pursuit and capture of Moreno Argentin in the 1992 Milan-Sanremo. He gives a blow by blow account of his death defying descent of the Poggio, where he leaves the chase group for dead and then mercilessly chews up and spits out an incredulous Argentin on the Via Roma.

Kelly may not have the magnetic persona of somebody like Mario Cipollini or Marco Pantani, but the incredible and in depth interview footage is absolutely fascinating nonetheless. He is a very humble and soft spoken man who never blows his own horn. The dichotomy of his ruthlessness as a bike racer and his quiet demeanor is amazing.

Disc 2 is broken into several chapters that each look in depth at his victory in the Tour of Spain, the Tour de Suisse, the World Championships and the Nissan International Classic (among others). But the most moving piece for me on disc 2 is hearing him describe his incredible disappointment at missing out on victory in the 1989 World Championships. He was so shattered that he couldn't even smile when he was presented with his medal!

It's hard to imagine that men ever raced the way that Sean Kelly did. While riding for KAS, he would do the week of classics that included Tour de Flanders, Gent-Wevelgem and Paris-Roubaix and then (to make the sponsors happy) go up and do the Vuelta al Pais Vasco the very next day ... And win it!

They just don't make them like Sean Kelly any more.
- Franco

Price: £31.99 or $55.00

Visit Bromley Video for this and other great DVD's.