Tony Bell (journalist)

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Tony Bell
Personal information
Full nameAntony Bell
Born (1958-06-20) 20 June 1958 (age 65)
Flag of England.svg  England
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Team information
DisciplineRoad
RoleRider
Amateur teams
-Birkenhead Victoria CC
-Birkenhead North End CC
-Prescot Eagle
-Ribble Valley
-Port Sunlight Wheelers Club
-Kirkby CC
-Team Haverill
-New Brighton CC
Professional teams
1980Midlet - Moser
1981Ian May

Tony Bell (born 20 June 1958) [1] is a freelance writer and journalist, known for his What's he on column in Cycling Weekly, [2] where he was a columnist between 1994 and 2006. [3] His popularity gained as a CW columnist [4] [5] led to engagements as an after-dinner speaker at cycling events. [6] [7]

Bell is also a serious reporter with a degree in politics who has reported on race riots, gangland contracts, drugs wars and environmental and social issues in his native Merseyside for The Independent and The Observer. [2] Following a road accident in which several members of Rhyl cycling club were killed, Bell criticized the attitudes of those such as Jeremy Clarkson, whose column in The Sun he considered anti-cyclist, and what he saw as the cynical attitude of motorists. He called for a single organisation to represent cyclists in the UK to avoid such tragedies recurring. [8]

Bell was also professional cyclist. [4] He once held the mountains and points jerseys in the prestigious Mi-Août Bretonne. [2] He is the brother of former National Amateur and Professional Road Race Champion Mark Bell, who died in 2009.

Bell lives in Chester [2] and supplements his income as a bus driver. He is writing an autobiography, provisionally called "Pinball", excerpts of which are on his web site. [9]

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References

  1. Tony Bell at Cycling Archives
  2. 1 2 3 4 "THE WIRRAL". Cycling Weekly. 30 May 2006. Archived from the original on 14 June 2006.
  3. "About Tony Bell".
  4. 1 2 "Latest Newport Nocturne News". British Cycling. August 2003.
  5. Brian Cookson (January 2003). "REMEMBERING A PRIZED WIN". British Cycling.
  6. "Club Dinner". Hull Thursday Road Club.
  7. "Bell on bikes (speech video)". quickrelease.tv.
  8. "Perpetual Cycle". 21 January 2006.
  9. "Tony Bell". Archived from the original on 21 May 2008.