Roger Godeau

Roger Godeau (born September 21, 1920 in Veneux-les-Sablons , † April 13, 2000 in Bondoufle ) was a French track cyclist .

Cycling career

Roger Godeau won the title of French champion of professional stayers six times in the 1950s . In 1952 he was third in the European Standing Championship, in 1956 second. He also competed in 40 six-day races, two of which he won in 1954 with Georges Senfftleben , in Aarhus and Paris . In 1957, he and Pierre Brun won the Prix ​​Dupré-Lapize railway competition in Paris. He drove his farewell race in 1962 in the Prinzenparkstadion together with his pacemaker Arthur Pasquier , who also resigned.

Godeau's nickname was "Popeye" because he could perfectly imitate this cartoon character. He was popular with his fellow racing drivers because of his friendly, funny manner.

After retiring from cycling, Roger Godeau became involved in harness racing , including as a driver. In 2000 he died while cycling along the Bondoufle racecourse.

"Waiting for Godot"

Roger Godeau achieved particular fame as the alleged role model for the "title hero" of the play " Waiting for Godot " by Samuel Beckett , in whose works the bicycle plays a special role. There are several versions of how it should have come about, none of which is guaranteed. In the first version, Beckett is said to have stood on the side of the road during a Tour de France stage . After the peloton rushed by, the audience stopped. When Beckett asked what they were waiting for, they replied, "To Godeau". However, there was never a tour participant with this name.

According to another version, Beckett is said to have received this information from spectators in front of the Roubaix Velodrome . Another anecdote goes that Beckett asked a few teenagers outside the Vélodrome d'Hiver in Paris who they were waiting for. Only a few years earlier, the "Vel 'd'Hiv'" - as the Velodrome was also called - had been used by the German occupying forces as a camp for Jews living in France before they were transported to Auschwitz , a fact that Beckett was aware of and could have inspired him in addition to his metaphorical piece.

Another version says that Beckett, who himself was an avid cyclist and a visitor to standing races, trained with a group of racing drivers that Godeau is said to have belonged to, but who was often late in the morning. So you waited “for Godeau”.

literature

• René Jacobs, Hector Mahau, Harry van Den Bremt, René Pirotte: Velo Gotha. Presses de Belgique, Brussels 1984, p. 211.
• Roger de Maertelaere: De Mannen van de night. 100 years of zesdaagsen. Eecloonaar, Eeklo 2000, ISBN 90-74128-67-X , p. 212.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Samuel-Beckett.net: "Joys of Cycling" ( Memento of the original from January 25, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English) 
2. ↑ Bbk.ac.uk
3. ↑ Jörg Drews: The oh so! Experience. What Beckett's "Waiting For Godot" is really about. In: Süddeutsche Zeitung , November 17, 2008, p. 14.

Web links and sources

• Roger Godeau in the database of Radsportseiten.net
• Memoire du Cyclisme: "Roger Godeau" (French)