Conference tallis::celt

    Rene,
    
    I reckon the British TV is the best at this confusion over nationality.
    In the boxing particularly, if we have a lad from Belfast or Derry
    the commentary runs something like this
    
    When he is doing well it is the 'British boy lands a good solid
    right etc etc' but when he starts to be beaten into a pulp it is
    ' the Irish boy is taking a lot of punishment etc etc'.
    
    - Joe    
    

    Re .0: Well Rene, you have every reason to cheer up, today Stephen
    Roche has taken the first place, 41 seconds before the next competitor.
    		Denis.

    Re .4: Sorry to disappoint you, Rene, but I don't follow the tour
    on TV. First, I don't own a TV set and sure don't want to, and second,
    I'm not usually very interested in sports events. I just happened
    to hear a flash about the tour on a radio set yesterday. BTW, I
    also heard another one last night, and Roche is again second, but
    only 21 seconds after the first, which means he's likely to get
    back to the first place. The first one was a Spanish yesterday night,
    not the French who led during the previous days.
    			Denis.

    Leaprechauns have been watching hard.
    
    Wednesday's stage will always live in my memory as the day that
    the 1987 Tour De France was won and lost. Roche started with a 25
    second deficit on Pedro Delgado in the overall classification.
    The Spaniard needed to extend his lead to consolidate his position
    in the yellow jersey (race leader). He needed to do on the road
    to La Plagne as he needs to do it again today (thursday), as this
    is the last stage in the mountains. With 14 kilometers left on the
    sided of the sttep climb to the finish Delgado struck out and left
    Roche and a group of others in his wake with a tremendous uphill
    attack. Roche did not respond and we all felt that this was the
    end of his Tour. At one stage the time gap on the road was 1min
    and 20 secs., which had Delgado a total of 1 min. and 45 secs. in
    front of Roche. With 4 kilometers left Roche responded, and at the
    two kilometer mark he was I min and 10 secs. down. Then with a
    superhuman effort he hauled Delgado into sight and was 5 secs down
    going over the line. It was "magnifique", and it must have been
    excrutiating, as Roche went into oxygen debt at the high altitudes.
        Roche rode his heart out to contain Delgado (a noted mountain
    climber), and he succeeded, and if he has the energy left today
    to keep the leaders advantage within 1 min. and 15 secs. at the
    end of today, then Roche is a great bet to wear the yellow jersey
    in Paris.
         Incidentally the Tour De France is the greatest sporting event
    in the world in terms of live audience with over 1 million people seeing
    this race from the roadsides each week. No Irishman has ever won
    the Tour, indeed it has been the French, the Belgians, the Dutch,
    the Italians, and the Spanish that have dominated this event and
    last year was the first time that someone from the english speaking
    world won the event when Greg LeMonde of the USA took the yellow
    jersey in Paris.
    
    Snake will be glued to the box at 6 p.m.
    

    Just to let you know the result of todays stage, LA PLAGNE to MORZINE.
    Stephen ROCHE has gained 18/19 secs on the race leader DELGRADO.
    There are conflicting news reports about whether it is 18 or 19.
    The main thing is that he had to keep the gap less than 1min and
    he has gained time. He is now 20/21 secs behind Delgrado. And as
    the race is out of the mountains and with a time trial on Saturday
    this could be our year. I will be joining Rene tomorrow to cheer
    on Stephen and the other IRISH lads. 
    
    Roche showed the ITALIANS the way to go home in the tour of Italy,
    now it will soon be the turn of the French to receive the same
    treatment.
    
    Fergal.

    Leaprechauns are not named FERRIE.
    
    I am submitting this entry by courtesy of Liam Ferrie's account
    as my system is out for maintainence.
    
    Rene must have gone on the piss in a big way. Yes my friends, Stephen
    Roche pulled it off. The scenes from Paris were quiet delightful.
    An Irishman taking the yellow jersey for life. 
       Stephen, his wife, and his family arrived in Dublin to the most
    amazing scenes ever seen in the Irish capital. The crowds blocked
    the roads everywhere to give this man a hero's welcome. It was a
    joyous occasion and everybody wanted to be part of it. Dublin
    Corporation in conjunction with the Department of Foreign Affairs
    and the French Embassy are approaching the Tour De France authorities
    with the object of starting next years Tour from Dublin, to mark
    Dublin's millenium, and Stephen's victory.
    
    Snakes are proud of this man.