The Anonymous Widower

Promenade des Anglais

This is the headline on the front page of The Times complete with a picture of Bradley Wiggins in yellow.

The Times for July 23rd, 2012

Not quite in the same vein as The Sun’s infamous “Hop Off You Frogs”, but it has a similar impact, especially as it is balanced by an article inside entitled “France hails its favourite Englishman” Even the French President, Francois Hollande is quoted in this article in the Telegraph.

French President François Hollande: “He is a complete rider. He is a good climber and a super time trialist. His team-mate (Chris Froome) is also very good, so if Wiggins had not won the Tour he would have been there. It was the British year.”

Even L’Equipe the French sporting newspaper, declares Wiggins’s victory to be like Miguel Indurain and used the heading of God Save the King as the link to their report of the last stage.

When was that phrase last used in a French newspaper?

So it is a victory to savour and I don’t think it will be unique within a few years. But now we’ve got the Olympics!

Will we see the Wiggins effect ripple through Team GB?

July 23, 2012 - Posted by AnonW | Sport | Cycling, France, Olympics