James Moore (cyclist)

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James Moore (right) and the runner-up Jean-Eugène-André Castera near Paris – Rouen 1869 on November 7, 1869

James Moore (born January 14, 1849 in Bury St Edmunds , † July 17, 1935 there ) was a British cyclist. He is falsely credited with winning the first cycle race in history.

Athletic career

Moore lived with his parents in France from 1853. He was the first cyclist to stand out for sustained success. On May 31, 1868, he won the third cycle race ever in Parc de Saint-Cloud, a western suburb of Paris . While he was still contesting this race with a serial Michaux velocipede , he later rode a Suriray velocipede , which was very modern for its time , which already had ball bearings, solid rubber tires on metal rims and a 1.15 meter front wheel. The rear wheel was half the size. This race is also known as the first track race ever, it took place on an earth track with slightly elevated curves over a distance of 1200 meters. Moore won the race 20 meters ahead of the Frenchman Drouet.

At the fence of the park of Saint-Cloud there is a plaque that reads that Moore was the winner of the first "Velocipede speed race held in France". This is incorrect, however, as there were two races on May 31, 1868, and the first was won by a driver named Polocini, who was probably forgotten because Moore was able to celebrate further successes afterwards.

On November 7, 1869, Moore won the first long-distance race in history, Paris-Rouen over 123 kilometers. Of more than 400 riders who started (who appeared on Michaulinen , three- and four-wheelers at the start), around a third made it to the finish line, 32 riders made the distance within 24 hours. Moore needed 10:45 hours, which corresponds to an hourly average of 11.3 km / h. There were also five women at the start, u. a. a driver who called herself Miss America (she placed 29th). The first rider on a tricycle, the French Tissier, crossed the finish line around nine hours after the winner Moore.

In 1869, French cities organized more than 155 velocipede races, in which Moore often dominated. For the first time, organizers laid down regulations for the size of the front wheel, which relativizes the few lists of race results that exist. In 1870 he won the International Paris Championship , his first race with a train-spoke velocipede by Eugène Meyer . In 1874 he won the “1. World Championship "over 1 mile, which was not recognized by the world association. His world record of 1 mile behind pacemakers was also not recognized. He was not deterred and improved the record three more times until his last best time in 1877 with 2 minutes 55 seconds.

While high bikes became fashionable in England and the USA, these did not develop in France until the late 1870s. Until then, Moore dominated with his velocipedes as the fastest racing driver in Europe. He earned so much money as a cyclist that after the end of his cycling career he was able to acquire a stud farm in Normandy and a horse racing stable in Chantilly .

James Moore set the first recorded hour record of 23.331 kilometers (14.4 or 14.5 miles) in Wolverhampton , England, in 1873 , before it was regulated as a competition by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) from 1888 . He used an Ariel brand pegged bike with 49 inches , i.e. almost 125 centimeters front wheel and 3.91 meters deployment .

memory

In March 2019, a memorial in memory of him was unveiled in James Moore's hometown of Bury St Edmund in the presence of his grandson John.

literature

  • Dodge, Pryor: Fascination Bicycle: History - Technology - Development , 2nd edition 2001, Moby Dick Verlag, ISBN 3-89595-118-8

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Wolfgang Gronen, Walter Lemke: History of cycling, history of the bicycle . Fuchs Verlag, Hausham 1987, p. 49, 51 .
  2. ↑ Benjo Maso : The Sweat of the Gods. The history of cycling . Covadonga Verlag , Bielefeld 2011, ISBN 978-3-936973-60-0 , p. 5 f .
  3. ^ Jean-Paul Ollivier: Histoire du Cyclisme . Editiones Flammarion, Paris 2003, ISBN 2-08-011199-X , p. 10 (French).
  4. ↑ Benjo Maso: The Sweat of the Gods. The history of cycling . Covadonga Verlag , Bielefeld 2011, ISBN 978-3-936973-60-0 , p. 6 .
  5. ↑ Bike Cult World Hour Records bikecult.com, Copyright 200 (3) –2005, updated May 6, 2015, accessed October 6, 2018.
  6. ↑ Michael Steward: Sculpture paying tribute to Bury-born cyclist James Moore is unveiled in Bury St Edmunds. In: eadt.co.uk. March 20, 2019, accessed March 20, 2019 .


personal data
SURNAME Moore, James
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English cyclist
DATE OF BIRTH January 14, 1849
PLACE OF BIRTH Bury-Saint Edmunds
DATE OF DEATH July 17, 1935
Place of death Bury-Saint Edmunds