“We put our own money into Nissan Classic to pay the bills”
Pat McQuaid with Sean Kelly and Stephen Roche at the Nissan Classic; a race the former UCI president was instrumental in developing and running from the mid 1980s to the early 1990s (Photo: John Pierce – PhotoSport International) http://www.stickybottle.com/latest-news/we-put-our-own-money-into-nissan-classic-to-pay-the-bills/ By Brian Canty October 7th, 2015 One of the two men responsible for bringing the Nissan International Classic to Ireland in the mid-1980s has said the event changed the face of Irish cycling forever. Pat McQuaid, along with fellow race director Alan Rushton , succeeded in bringing 18 teams to Ireland for the stage race event which saw many of the world’s top riders take part. Among those on the start line for that first stage from Trinity College, Dublin, to Wexford were Sean Kelly and Stephen Roche as well as former World champion Hennie Kuiper and one of Kelly’s big rivals in the classics and the sprints, Dutchman Adri van der Poel . ...