Seán Kelly, the toughest of men in the hardest of sports, digs deep during a mountain stage of the 1989 Tour de France, in which he claimed his fourth and final green points jersey; a record at the time.

Riding for PDM-Concorde, he finished 9th overall in GC and, at 33, was the second-oldest cyclist left in the race by the time it reached the Alps.

The Curraghduff, Co. Waterford native’s flying form also saw him win the “Maillot Rouge” for the intermediate sprints classification that year; the last time the red jersey was awarded. Greg LeMond ultimately pipped Laurent Fignon by eight seconds on a dramatic final day in Paris.

By the by, Rob Van de Merwe, the Dutchman behind the wheel of Kelly & co.’s state-of-the-art £75,000 black Mercedes team “comfort coach”, which was the envy of the pro peloton, doubled as tour bus driver for The Bee Gees’ in Europe that summer. Hence the headline.