Yesterday i finished riding the route of the "Tour de France" for the 13th time in honour of "Handisport and it´s Athletes and those connected and sponsoring these Amazing Athletes!
Had i been a frenchman i am told that M. Chirac earlier and certainly yourself would have honoured me with the "Legion of Honor" for services to sport and Handisport in particular
I did not set out in 1998 from Dublin for any other reason than to help find "Sponsors" for the British Disabled Ski Team but France TV discovered and broadcast the story and turned it into "The Australian helping Paralympic Sport".
The media impact was huge and in 1999 i rode a larger programme starting with the "Paris-Nice" in march. Whilst in Paris i visited the "Assembly National" where i met Fabius Laurent amongst other dignatories at the computer exposition taking place at the time. On other occasions i have met him at the "TDF Village Depart ", one occasion was when the Arnold Schwartnegger circus was there to promote his new film.
Britain has an N.G.O. cazlled "Help for Heroes3 ,USA has "Wounded Warrior Project" & Australia has "Legacy " amongst others that i know of but i am unaware of a French Connection/ N.G.O.. With French personnel of the Army and Gendarmerie serving in Afganistan there is a need for a similar organisation to be created possibily under your "patronage".
Having spoken with Generals; Colonels, Commandants , Captains of the Army , Gendardermie , Sapeurs Pompiers i am aware that there have been service personnel Lost or Retired as a result of Service both overseas and in French Territories.Those who lose limbs are generally retired with support from the state but occasionally some continue in service. one of the aids in rebuilding their self esteem and lives is sport. Some of them go on to serve their country once again in a competive role in International competition.
2004 i was a volunteer at Athens Paralympic and met "Gerhard Schoeder" at the conclusion of a cocktail party at Deutscher house honouring his visit there. The question uppermost in his mind was why Germany/Deutschland was not winning Paralympic medals. I was able to tell him the story of Klaus Lungerhausen who won two silver para medals in Sydney 2000n but due to lack of training and sponsorship from government and private sources was unsuccessful at these games. He had brought his family for their holiday as he could not expect success through the lack of support and preparation. Throughout the intervening years he had continued training but lacked resources to lift the level to achieve the Gold Medals he sought.
When Paralympic Athletes receive external support they excell but when they have to rely entirely on their own resources they are limited in their time commitments and even then their family lose out.
M. President your task is to issue an EDICT that compells A.S.O.(society of Tour de France) to have Paralympic events on the course the Racers will use prior to their competition. This will allow the Tour Spectators , Media and Others to see Paralympians and Disabled Champions from Franch and other Countries in action. This will allow ALL to consider their abilities and encourage sponsors to come forward to fund their future competition prospects.
With Paralympians coming from other countries at their own expense there will be strong and entertaining competition such that the Media would wish to broadcast and will give France a strong boost in the estimation of the world sporting community. Seeing these athletes in action will inspire other "Disabled( house bound currently)" to take up sport thus broadening their horizons getting them back into the community and perhaps back to the workforce where they can contribute to society rather than having to rely on society.
There are many unfortunate to be at home through Accident or Health issues that can be inspired by participation in sport to rejoin society in a more active way.
ONLY YOUR EDICT can change the entrenched regime currently in place at A.S.O. passed from Jean Marie Leblanc to Chris Prudhomme. M.Prudhomme has made little progress from JM´s refusal to permit para athlets visibility; People remember the Ochoa brothers competing in the Kelme Team at the 2001 TDF but in Oct 2001 they were In an accident that Zavior survived with Cerebal Palsey and now competes for Espana as their champion when he is not the Paralympic and World Champion.
YOUR INTERVENTION for the 2011 Tour de FRANCE will ensure that the "Le Tour" becomes an even greater jewel in France´s Sporting Achievements.
With thanks for your help !!
below is an email/letter from "Elysee"
"
Monsieur,
Votre message est bien parvenu au Président de la République française qui m'a confié le soin de vous répondre.
Soyez assuré de l’attention portée par les pouvoirs publics au développement et à la médiatisation du sport paralympique.
Aussi a-t-il été pris connaissance de vos réflexions.
Avec ma considération distinguée.
Le Chef de Cabinet
Cédric GOUBET "
Probably a standard letter modified for the subject matter, Nicko doesn't read the blog but if Carla is reading then i am sorry i missed meeting you in Paris on the 25th, hope you take an interest in cycling so that "M. Laurent Thironet" has the pleasure to show you some cycling tips and his collection of Paralympic Medals.
YOU TOO CAN ASSIST " ADAPTIVE / PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED SPORT"!!..... THIS BLOG REMINISING ON PLACES AND PEOPLE VISITED OVER 24 YEARS OF PEDALING "PRO TOUR " RACE ROUTES". SIT BACK AND ENJOY THE VISIT . Note that i ride alone and unassisted ! I represent NOBODY and my views in relation to " Para Sport " are personal BUT what others do is their OWN affair ! I encourage ALL to help their National Paralympic Org. assisting those living in their area with dreams of Sporting Achievement .
Jul 26, 2010
Jul 22, 2010
Found this in the Irish press!
Seems like i am not the only rider frustrated by events!
Nicolas Roche is fast becoming a force to be watched at Major Tours.
"If John Gadret is found dead in his hotel room in the morning, I will probably be the primary suspect. The 31-year-old French climber has been a team-mate of mine at Ag2r for the past two years.
Although we never had more than what you could call a workmanlike relationship, we never had any reason to fall out or take a dislike to each other over the past two years. But after today's stage, as he sat beside me on the team bus I had great difficulty in not putting his head through the nearest window.
Today was yet another really tough mountain stage, with the summit of a massive mountain coming just 20kms from the finish.
At 25km long, the ascent of the Port de Bales is one of those climbs that is too hard to rank and is classed as an Hors Category climb. If anyone was going to attack the leaders today, this is where it would be.
As usual, the Saxo Bank team of yellow jersey Andy Schleck set a fast tempo on the climb and the peloton began to lose riders out the back door.
I knew that if I could hang on going over the top, I could take a lot of time out of some of the guys in front of me on the overall classification and move up a few places from my overnight position of 14th overall.
Halfway up the climb, I was riding pretty comfortably in the Contador and Schleck group and some of the guys ahead of me like Basso and Kloden were beginning to struggle. As most of the other team leaders were left on their own, I was looking to move into the top 10 overall and still had Gadret with me for support. Or so I thought.
Six kilometres from the top of the climb, just as the pace began to increase at the front, I punctured a front wheel. I pulled over to the side of the road and as Gadret was riding behind me, I asked him for his wheel as he rode alongside.
This is a perfectly normal request if the team car is not around. To save time, a team-mate will often give his team leader a wheel or even his bike if necessary. I have done it plenty of times over the years, as have most cyclists, amateur or professional, at some stage in their careers.
As our team car was No 11 in the cavalcade and it would take a lot of time for them to get to me through the streams of dropped riders, I asked Gadret -- who was there to help me -- for his wheel. I couldn't believe what happened next. He just shook his head and said 'Non'. At first I thought he was joking, but soon realised he wasn't when he kept riding past me.
As my team manager, Vincent Lavenu, in the car behind shouted into Gadret's earpiece to wait, I took my wheel out and waited for a new one. All the time the group -- including Gadret -- was riding up the mountain, away from me.
After what seemed like an eternity, I eventually got a front wheel off the yellow Mavic neutral service car. Because the Mavic cars have to service any rider that needs a wheel or is in mechanical difficulty when their team car can't get to them, they don't have their wheels set up to fit everybody's frames instantly.
My wheel change took way longer than normal as the mechanic unscrewed the wheel's skewer to fit my front fork. At this stage, I was like a bull. I hopped back on my bike only to discover that my new wheel had been put in at an angle and was rubbing off the brake blocks. I leaned down and opened my front brake and, fuelled by rage, started passing groups on the climb.
All I could think of was getting to the finish as quickly as possible. Rage alone though, wasn't going to get me back up to the front of the race. Unbelievably, Gadret had attacked Schleck and Contador near the top, even though there was a group five minutes up the road and he had absolutely no chance of winning the stage.
Vincent was still screaming in our earpieces, calling Gadret every name under the sun and telling him to wait for me on the descent and help me claw back some time on the long run in to the finish. Gadret, though, just ignored him and kept riding.
Encouragement
There were loads of Irish flags on the climb and the encouragement from the fans, some of whom were wearing GAA jerseys, spurred me on even more. I flew up the last kilometre and having passed lots of riders on the way up, I found myself on my own on the descent. I nearly killed myself on the first two corners because in my state of rage and frustration I had forgotten that my front brake was still open.
I had to tighten it as I was descending, which slowed me down again. I spent the rest of the stage on my own, chasing like a madman. I didn't know who I had passed or who was in front of me. I could see world champion Cadel Evans up the road and was fixated on catching him next but the line came too quickly.
I had finished almost eight minutes behind stage winner Thomas Voeckler but more importantly, I lost between three and five minutes to some of the guys that I should have put time into and dropped three places to 17th.
My team-mate Lloyd Mondory had also been in the early break and did a fantastic job to get fourth on the stage. Lloyd is a sprinter and this wasn't his type of stage at all, so to get fourth was a tremendous ride and even though I was angry at Gadret, I was really happy for Lloyd.
After the stage, I reminded Vincent that Gadret was on the team for another two years, and that I hoped he never asked me for anything again, because I would not forget today for a long time. Gadret finished three minutes ahead of me and now lies just two places and two minutes behind me. He is the first French rider overall. Maybe he wants to be the first Ag2r rider too.
By the time I got onto the team bus, Vincent was already in the middle of a blazing row with Gadret.
Although I wanted to smash his head in, and had visions of a baldy French climber exiting through the windscreen, I let Vincent do his job as team manager and said nothing. I got off the bus as quickly as possible and travelled to the hotel in the team car. I couldn't stand to be near him. I will have to keep my hands in my pockets at the dinner table.
Although I am too angry to have thought about it properly yet, I will possibly have to go on the attack now to gain back the time I lost today. If I want to finish in the top 15, I have two options.
I can hang in there on the climbs and hope some of the guys in front of me blow up like they did today, or I can get in an early move and try to stay away to the finish, taking back a bit of time.
I know a move like this can be suicidal and can cost you a lot of time, but I want to finish in the top 15. I'm 17th, so I have nothing to lose.
Looking forward to seeing a strong result that will make your Old Man proud!
Seems like i am not the only rider frustrated by events!
Nicolas Roche is fast becoming a force to be watched at Major Tours.
"If John Gadret is found dead in his hotel room in the morning, I will probably be the primary suspect. The 31-year-old French climber has been a team-mate of mine at Ag2r for the past two years.
Although we never had more than what you could call a workmanlike relationship, we never had any reason to fall out or take a dislike to each other over the past two years. But after today's stage, as he sat beside me on the team bus I had great difficulty in not putting his head through the nearest window.
Today was yet another really tough mountain stage, with the summit of a massive mountain coming just 20kms from the finish.
At 25km long, the ascent of the Port de Bales is one of those climbs that is too hard to rank and is classed as an Hors Category climb. If anyone was going to attack the leaders today, this is where it would be.
As usual, the Saxo Bank team of yellow jersey Andy Schleck set a fast tempo on the climb and the peloton began to lose riders out the back door.
I knew that if I could hang on going over the top, I could take a lot of time out of some of the guys in front of me on the overall classification and move up a few places from my overnight position of 14th overall.
Halfway up the climb, I was riding pretty comfortably in the Contador and Schleck group and some of the guys ahead of me like Basso and Kloden were beginning to struggle. As most of the other team leaders were left on their own, I was looking to move into the top 10 overall and still had Gadret with me for support. Or so I thought.
Six kilometres from the top of the climb, just as the pace began to increase at the front, I punctured a front wheel. I pulled over to the side of the road and as Gadret was riding behind me, I asked him for his wheel as he rode alongside.
This is a perfectly normal request if the team car is not around. To save time, a team-mate will often give his team leader a wheel or even his bike if necessary. I have done it plenty of times over the years, as have most cyclists, amateur or professional, at some stage in their careers.
As our team car was No 11 in the cavalcade and it would take a lot of time for them to get to me through the streams of dropped riders, I asked Gadret -- who was there to help me -- for his wheel. I couldn't believe what happened next. He just shook his head and said 'Non'. At first I thought he was joking, but soon realised he wasn't when he kept riding past me.
As my team manager, Vincent Lavenu, in the car behind shouted into Gadret's earpiece to wait, I took my wheel out and waited for a new one. All the time the group -- including Gadret -- was riding up the mountain, away from me.
After what seemed like an eternity, I eventually got a front wheel off the yellow Mavic neutral service car. Because the Mavic cars have to service any rider that needs a wheel or is in mechanical difficulty when their team car can't get to them, they don't have their wheels set up to fit everybody's frames instantly.
My wheel change took way longer than normal as the mechanic unscrewed the wheel's skewer to fit my front fork. At this stage, I was like a bull. I hopped back on my bike only to discover that my new wheel had been put in at an angle and was rubbing off the brake blocks. I leaned down and opened my front brake and, fuelled by rage, started passing groups on the climb.
All I could think of was getting to the finish as quickly as possible. Rage alone though, wasn't going to get me back up to the front of the race. Unbelievably, Gadret had attacked Schleck and Contador near the top, even though there was a group five minutes up the road and he had absolutely no chance of winning the stage.
Vincent was still screaming in our earpieces, calling Gadret every name under the sun and telling him to wait for me on the descent and help me claw back some time on the long run in to the finish. Gadret, though, just ignored him and kept riding.
Encouragement
There were loads of Irish flags on the climb and the encouragement from the fans, some of whom were wearing GAA jerseys, spurred me on even more. I flew up the last kilometre and having passed lots of riders on the way up, I found myself on my own on the descent. I nearly killed myself on the first two corners because in my state of rage and frustration I had forgotten that my front brake was still open.
I had to tighten it as I was descending, which slowed me down again. I spent the rest of the stage on my own, chasing like a madman. I didn't know who I had passed or who was in front of me. I could see world champion Cadel Evans up the road and was fixated on catching him next but the line came too quickly.
I had finished almost eight minutes behind stage winner Thomas Voeckler but more importantly, I lost between three and five minutes to some of the guys that I should have put time into and dropped three places to 17th.
My team-mate Lloyd Mondory had also been in the early break and did a fantastic job to get fourth on the stage. Lloyd is a sprinter and this wasn't his type of stage at all, so to get fourth was a tremendous ride and even though I was angry at Gadret, I was really happy for Lloyd.
After the stage, I reminded Vincent that Gadret was on the team for another two years, and that I hoped he never asked me for anything again, because I would not forget today for a long time. Gadret finished three minutes ahead of me and now lies just two places and two minutes behind me. He is the first French rider overall. Maybe he wants to be the first Ag2r rider too.
By the time I got onto the team bus, Vincent was already in the middle of a blazing row with Gadret.
Although I wanted to smash his head in, and had visions of a baldy French climber exiting through the windscreen, I let Vincent do his job as team manager and said nothing. I got off the bus as quickly as possible and travelled to the hotel in the team car. I couldn't stand to be near him. I will have to keep my hands in my pockets at the dinner table.
Although I am too angry to have thought about it properly yet, I will possibly have to go on the attack now to gain back the time I lost today. If I want to finish in the top 15, I have two options.
I can hang in there on the climbs and hope some of the guys in front of me blow up like they did today, or I can get in an early move and try to stay away to the finish, taking back a bit of time.
I know a move like this can be suicidal and can cost you a lot of time, but I want to finish in the top 15. I'm 17th, so I have nothing to lose.
Looking forward to seeing a strong result that will make your Old Man proud!
Jul 15, 2010
PRESIDENT SARKOZY ARE YOU READING
Wrote ¨Sarko¨a note which i published on ¨fatcyclist¨for backup!
Too busy meeting and greeting to look for ïnternet cafe s¨!
Thankyou s are due all those people who have helped me at the Giro, Dauphinee and the TDF but as i am using another's internet i will keep it short!
Staying in the homes of some really inspiring people who have lavished excellent hospitality on me! Wish i deserved this kind consideration and it will be hard to repay the kindnesses extended at all of these events!
Amazed to bump into the Norwegian Para skier(who i first met in Hintertux in 1998), in the street of Morzine on Monday, to find another Para Skier on his hand bike on the top of the climb from Sisteron today, to visit the home in Die of another and get news of many that i met at the Sestriere Winter Paralympics 2006.
Riding the course with the pack is ¨deja Vue¨but shows that the ability to meet and greet is still there.
Those of you who i told to send 10 euro to your National Para committee when shooting my photo: DO IT TODAY !!
Cannot begin to describe the last two months activities in detail, but then you would not believe me anyway!
Read www.george the cyclist.blogspot.com and www.fatcyclist.cpm and you may get some feedback!
Too busy meeting and greeting to look for ïnternet cafe s¨!
Thankyou s are due all those people who have helped me at the Giro, Dauphinee and the TDF but as i am using another's internet i will keep it short!
Staying in the homes of some really inspiring people who have lavished excellent hospitality on me! Wish i deserved this kind consideration and it will be hard to repay the kindnesses extended at all of these events!
Amazed to bump into the Norwegian Para skier(who i first met in Hintertux in 1998), in the street of Morzine on Monday, to find another Para Skier on his hand bike on the top of the climb from Sisteron today, to visit the home in Die of another and get news of many that i met at the Sestriere Winter Paralympics 2006.
Riding the course with the pack is ¨deja Vue¨but shows that the ability to meet and greet is still there.
Those of you who i told to send 10 euro to your National Para committee when shooting my photo: DO IT TODAY !!
Cannot begin to describe the last two months activities in detail, but then you would not believe me anyway!
Read www.george the cyclist.blogspot.com and www.fatcyclist.cpm and you may get some feedback!
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